Commemorated: | |||
| 1. Memorial: | Cabaret-Rouge British Cemetery | Souchez | |
| 2. Book: | The (1921) Masonic Roll of Honour 1914-1918 | Pg.128 | |
| 3. Memorial: | The (1940) Scroll - WW1 Roll of Honour | 8A GQS | |
Awards & Titles: | |||
Family :
Winchester College "He was the son of George Patrick Charles Lawrence of the Chancery Bar Association and the Hon. Hildegarde Lawrence (daughter of Lord Davey), of Kingston Cottage, Bradford on Avon. He entered College fifth on the Roll from Copthorne School. He was a College Prefect and won the King's Silver Medal for Latin Speech and the Duncan Reading Prize: he played in College VI, Association XI and 2nd XI cricket teams, and was a valued member of the Shakespeare Society, excelling especially in female parts. In 1912, he won a Classical Scholarship at Trinity College, Oxford, and became President of the O.U.D.S."See more at Winchester College.
Service Life:
Campaigns:
- The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.
| Unit / Ship / Est.: 2nd Battalion Grenadier Guards |
2nd Battalion August 1914 : in Chelsea. Part of 4th (Guards) Brigade, 2nd Division. 20 August 1915 : transferred to 1st Guards Brigade, Guards Division. |
| Action : The Second Battles of the Somme 1918 |
21 August - 3 September 1918. Following the success at Amiens which Ludendorf described as "the black day for the German army" the conditions were right for the advance to be continued over the old Somme battlefield. Astonishingly the battlefield was crossed in 10 days, compared with the four months of the first battle. The Germans were pushed back towards the Hindenburg Line defences.
Detail :
"On the outbreak of war he joined the 7th Battalion South Staffordshire Regiment and after a period of training at Grantham went with them to Gallipoli, taking part in the landing at Sulva Bay. He returned to England with dysentery in September 1915 and on his recovery, being passed for light duty only, went to South Africa as A.D.C. to Lord Buxton, the Governor-General. He left after nine months in the hope of returning to active service, but being rejected for anything more strenuous than light duty, went to Egypt as A.D.C. to General Sir Archibald Murray, who at that time was in command of the British forces there. He took part in the fighting of the spring of 1917, and was mentioned in Despatches, but had to come home in August suffering from another attack of dysentery. He served for a short time at Aldershot as A.D.C. to Sir Archibald Murray again and was passed for general service at the end of the year. He was then transferred to the Grenadier Guards and after training at Chelsea went to France on Easter Day 1918, joining the 2nd Battalion near Arras from the Reinforcement Battalion. Reinforcement Battalions were men from each battalion held back from the front line "in reserve" to make good losses sustained in battle. In August 1918 he was appointed Battalion Intelligence Officer.
August 27th 1918 saw the 2nd Grenadiers play their part in the Battle of the Scarpe, during the Second Battle of Arras. There were three Wykehamists serving in the Battalion at the time: Lawrence; Lieutenant Cyril Gwyer (I1900-1902), who was second-in-command of No.2 Company; and Lieutenant Roderic Magrath Oliver (A1895-1901), in No.3 Company (see individual entries). All three were killed that day in St. Leger Wood. The undergrowth and fallen trees in the wood greatly hindered the troops as they tried to advance and Lawrence was killed at some point during the day although his death is not specifically mentioned in the war diary. Lieutenant Hugh Reginald Baldwin (C 1911-1915- see individual entry) of 1st Battalion, Irish Guards also died that day at St Leger Wood."
Masonic :
| Type | Lodge Name and No. | Province/District : |
|---|---|---|
| Mother : | Apollo University No. 357 E.C. | Oxfordshire |
Initiated | Passed | Raised |
29th April 1913 | 10th June 1913 | 28th October 1913 |
Undergraduate of Trinity College, Oxford University at the time of his initiation into Freemasonry in 1913. The contribution record shows no explicit war service but shows a payment of 1s. in the 1915 column and then "Resd May 15." It does not appear that he became a joiner of any other Lodge, so at the time of his death he wasn't a subscribing member.
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