Family :

Education & Career :

He entered Winchester College from Horris Hill, was a Prefect during his last year and stood on Dress for College XV.

He was in College House from 1899 to 1903.

Service Life:

Campaigns:

• The First World War 1914-1918, World-wide.

The Gallipoli Campaign was fought on the Gallipoli peninsula 25th April 1915 to 9th January 1916. in a failed attempt to defeat Turkey by seizing the Dardanelles and capturing Istanbul. Ill-conceived and planned, the initial effort by the Royal Navy failed to force passage through the Dardanelles by sea power alone. It was then realised that a land force was needed to support the project by suppressing the Turkish mobile artillery batteries. By the time all was ready the Turks were well aware and well prepared. Despite amazing heroics on the day of the landings only minor beachheads were achieved and over the succeeding 8 months little progress was made. Eventually the beachheads were evacuated in a series of successful ruses.

Despite Gallipoli rightly becoming a national source of pride to Australians and New Zealanders, far more British casualties were sustained, and these days the substantial French contribution is almost forgotten.

Detail :

Captain G. P. Leach, B Battery, 66th Brigade, Royal Field Artillery, killed in action at Gallipoli. There are differences across records on date of death; this legend shows the date given at probate.

He entered the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich in 1903, obtaining his commission in the Royal Field Artillery in 1905. He served three years in India with the Royal Horse Artillery, and was appointed to command a battery of the New Army in March 1915. Captain Leach, B Battery, 66th Brigade, R.F.A., was killed in action at Gallipoli on 19 August 1915.

A newspaper article within the British Newspaper Archives reads:- "Son of General Leach Killed. Captain Gordon Permberton Leach, Royal Field Artillery, who has fallen in action at the Dardenelles, was the son of the late General Sir Edward Pemberton Leach, V.C., K.C.B., K.C.V.O., at one time commanding in Scotland. he was born in 1885, educated at Winchester and Woolwich, and entered the Royal Field Artillery in 1905. For three years he served in India with the Royal Horse Artillery, and in March last was given his command of a battery in the Royal Field Artillery, Captain Leach came of a military stock, his grandfather being the late Colonel Sir George Archibald Leach, K.C.B."

Probate LEACH Gordon Pemberton of 3 Egerton-place Middlesex captain R.F.A. died 20 August 1915 in Gallipoli Probate London 16 November to Herbert Pemberton Leach esquire. Effects £3200 7s. 2d.

For his service in the Great War he was awarded the 1914-15 Star (Capt. G. P. Leach, R.F.A.); British War and Victory Medals (Capt. G. P. Leach).

He is buried and remembered at Pink Farm Cemetery, Gallipoli.

Masonic :

Gordon is a Lieutenant in the Royal Field Artillery, based at Bordon Camp when initiated in 1910. The contribution record shows that he was "Killed in Action 20 Aug 1915."

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