Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Grave: | West Norwood Cemetery And Crematorium | ||
| 2. Book: | The (1921) Masonic Roll of Honour 1914-1918 | Pg.127 | |
| 3. Memorial: | The (1940) Scroll - WW1 Roll of Honour | 31D GQS | |
Awards & Titles: | |||
Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: Not Yet Known |
- |
| Action : Air Campaign |
The use of aircraft as a platform for observation, also gave rise to strategic bombing raids on military and civil targets
Detail :
Civilian non-combatant killed on home soil by an enemy air raid.
Dundee Evening Telegraph 21st December 1917 - "Waiting for a Tramcar. Another London Coroner held an inquest concerning the deaths of four persons from injuries during the same raid. Evidence was given that threre bombs were dropped in the neighbourhood in which the deceased were killed. Others injured were taken to hospital. They were all waiting for a tramcar when bombs fell. One of the victims was Mr. Henry Willis Shields King (38), a sub-editor on the staff of the Church Times, and a special constable, who was hurrying back to his district to perform his duties. The jury returned a verdict that in each case death was due to a bomb dropped by hostile aircraft, and recommended that the authorities be approached to institute sound signals for warning those exposed to danger."
See also: National Police Officers Roll of Honour.
This must have been an early incident of this kind of warfare, what we would commonly term an air raid, with the coroner calling for what would become commonplace in subsequent conflict as an air-raid siren.
Probate: KING Henry Willis Shields of 46 Bonham-road and of 12 Lothian-road both in Brixton Surrey died 18 December 1917 at Charing Cross Hospital Middlesex Administration London 11 April to Lucy Mary King widow. Effects £734 6s. 9d.
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | Gallery No. 1928 E.C. | London |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
4th December 1915 | 5th February 1916 | 6th May 1916 |
The 1921 Book, The Masonic Roll of Honour lists KING, H.W.S. as an entry for Gallery Lodge. The Lodge contribution record shows H.W., for Henry Willis with an annotation of "Killed 18 Decr 1917." He was listed employed as a Journalist, resident in Brixton. The lodge lists his age as 28, putting his year of birth as circa 1889, but the report above shows the age as 38, which is further evidenced by other sources (e.g. Burial Record).
Source :
The project globally acknowledges the following as sources of information for research across the whole database:
- The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
- The (UK) National Archives
- Ancestry.co.uk - Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History online
- ugle.org.uk - The records of the United Grand Lodge of England including the Library and Museum of Freemasonry
Additional Source:
- Founder Researchers : Paul Masters & Mike McCarthy
- Researcher : Bruce Littley