Family :

Service Life:

Campaigns:

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

The Battle of the Somme 1st July - 18th November 1916 is inevitably characterised by the appalling casualties (60,000) on the first day, July 1st 1916. Having failed to break through the German lines in force, and also failed to maximise opportunities where success was achieved, the battle became a series of attritional assaults on well defended defence in depth. The battle continued officially until 18th November 1916 costing almost 500,000 British casualties. German casualties were about the same, and French about 200,000. The Somme could not be counted a success in terms of ground gained or the cost, but it had a strategic impact as it marked the start of the decline of the German Army. Never again would it be as effective whilst the British Army, learning from its experience eventually grew stronger to become a war winning army. The German High Command recognised that it could never again fight another Somme, a view that advanced the decision to invoke unrestricted submarine warfare in an attempt to starve Britain of food and material, and in doing so accelerated the United States declaration of war thus guaranteeing the eventual outcome. 287 Brethren were killed on the Somme in 1916.

Detail :

Temporary Major (Captain), Vere Duncombe Loxley, Royal Marine Light Infantry, 1st Royal Marine Battalion

De Ruvignys Volume 5: "LOXLEY, VERE DUNCOMBE, Major, Royal Marine Light Infantry, s. of the Re. Arthur Smart Loxley, Vicar of Fairford, co. Gloucester, by his wife, Alice Mary, dau. of the Rev. William Duncombe; b. Fairford, Co. Gloucester, 7 Sept. 1881; educ. Horris Hill, Newbury, and Radley College, Abingdon, co. Berks; gazetted 2nd Lieut. R.M.L.I. 1 Sept. 1900; promoted Lieut. 1 July, 1901; Capt. 1 Sept. 1911 and Temporary Major 30 May, 1916; served with the Portsmouth Division and in H.M.S. Venerable, H.M.S. Dido, H.M.S. Encounter, H.M.S. Magnificent, H.M.S. St. George and H.M.S. Victory; was appointed in command of 1st Royal Marine Battn. 13 Nov. 1915; serves with the Expeditionary Force in France and Flanders from 19 May, 1916; was wounded in the following month, and invalided to England; on recovery in Sept. returned to France, and was killed in action on the Somme 13 Nov. 1916. Buried in Knightsbridge Cemetery, Mesnil, north of Albert. Lieut.-Colonel Lywood, R.M.L.I., wrote: " Major Loxley ... was one of the very best types of British officer and English gentleman; he was simply loved by his men.... Always devoted to his company or detachment, he was ever ready to lead them in fighting or at manly games... At Malta he organized our football and boat racing crews, and to his zeal and energy I attribute a great measure of our successes in both sports. He was a useful member of the Royal Navy Polo Team." Major Loxley was mentioned in Despatches (London Gazette, 13 July, 1916), for galland and distinguished service in the field; unm."

Burial: Knightsbridge Cemetery, Mesnil-Martinsart (FR 220) Service History: Commissioned 2nd Lieutenant RMLI 1/9/1900 ; Lieutenant 1/7/1901 ; Captain 1/9/1911 ; Temporary Major RMLI 30/5/16 ; Embarked RM Brigade 26/9/15, joined 1st RM Bn. 25/10/15-15/7/16 fragment of shrapnel shell left thigh, Invalided to UK 19/7/16 ; Draft for BEF 2/9/16, joined 1st RM Bn. 7/9/16-13/11/16 DD. Notes: CWGC headstone & GRO index = Captain ; CWGC has no record of MiD ; Officer Commanding 1st RM Bn. 13/11/15-19/11/15, 18/1/16-21/1/16 & 29-30/1/16 ; Globe & Laurel (RM Journal) & Blumberg's Britain's Sea Soldiers 1914-19 = Major ;

Obituary in Globe & Laurel (RM Journal) 1917 p.18 ;

He was brother of Captain Noel Loxley RN, KIA HMS Formidable 1/1/15. ; ADM/171 = St.V.B. issued to Residual Legatee. H.M.S. Formidable was a battleship, launched in 1898, which was sunk by torpedo in Lyme Bay on 1 January 1915 with the loss of 547 men.

Masonic :

Vere's residence at the time of his initiation was merely care of the Admiralty, and his occupation is R.M.L.I. (Royal Marine Light Infantry). He appears only to have taken his first degree, but paid his contributions until, as the contribution record shows, he was "Killed 1916." Strangely, in the ledgers only his initial appears and no date of birth. The 1921 Roll of Honour Book resolves the first name and initial as Vere. D.

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