Service Life:

Campaigns:

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

At the start of the war it was important to bring Regular Battalions back from their 'Imperial Policing' role in India and the FarEast. These troops were replaced by Territorial and other Garisson troops.

Detail :

Disembarked in France 15th October 1914.

Surrey Advertiser 22nd April 1916. "DIED OF WOUNDS Taylor, Major B.W., D.S.O., R.F.A.
Major Brook Wilbraham Taylor, D.S.O., R.F.A., who died of enteric and wounds on April 8th, was the second son of the late Lt.-Col M.B. Wilbraham Taylor of Wimbledon. He was born in 1881, and received his commission in the Royal Artillery in 1900, being promoted captain in 1910, and major in October, 1914. He was awarded the D.S.O. last January."

Newcastle Journal 27th April 1916 - " Major Brook Wilbraham Taylor, D.S.O., Royal Field Artillery, died from wounds, was the second son of the late Lieut.-Colonel M.B. Wilbraham Taylor, of the Rifle Brigade. Gazetted to the Royal Field Artillery in 1900, he shortly afterwards obtained his jacket and served in the Royal Horse Artillery until his promotion to captain in 1910. In October, 1914, he was gazetted major in command of a battery of the R.F.A. attached to the Indian Expeditionary Force serving in France, and took part in the battles of Neuve Chapelle and Loos. He was mortally wounded while in command of a brigade of the R.F.A., and died at the age of 35. For his services in France he was mentioned in despatches of Viscount French, and received the D.S.O., his companionship of the Order being gazetted in the Honours List of last January."

ProbateTAYLOR Brook Wilbraham of 114 Shooters Hill-road Blackheath Kent D.S.O. major R.A died 8 April 1916 at Bombay India Administration London 26 March to Eliza Jane Wilbraham Taylor widow. Effects £147 16s. 1d.

An article in the Sheffield Daily Telegraph of 27th October 1903 show this officer's actions were not always honourable. "ARMY OFFICERS' ROWDY RAILWAY JOURNEY. - At Southwark Police Court yesterday, Lieutenants Brooks Wilbraham Taylor, and Walter Rogers, Royal Field Artillery, pleaded guilty to damaging a first-class compartment of the South-Eastern Railway. On October 1st the defendants booked at Charing Cross for Woolwich. At Cannon Street they were noticed to be noisy, and later a booking clerk in the next compartment, looking out of the window, saw them throw away the window blinds. He gave information, and investigation led to the discovery that six blinds had been removed, and thrown away and other damage done. Defendants also assaulted a porter. - They were each fined £5, a guinea damage, and 23s. costs."

The story was commented on by the Adelaide Observer 5th December 1903: "If two roughs in a third-class railway carriage were guilty of the same outrage they would probably be called "hooligans," and conceivably be sent to prison with hard labour. But two young army officers doing the same thing in a first-class compartment are said to be "imbued with the spirit of ragging," and are merely fined."

Not the kind of behaviour which is expected of a young Freemason either!

But, in the end he gave his life for his country, and there can be no higher expectation than that. In addition to the D.S.O. and for his service he was awarded the 1914 Star, the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.

Masonic :

Lieutenant, based at Woolwich Garrison when initiated in 1902. He further joined Stewart Lodge No. 1960 at Rawal Pindi in 1909.

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