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World War 1 One ww1 wwII greatwar great 1914 1918 first battalion regiment
Want to know more about Tank Corps ?
There are:5874 items tagged Tank Corps available in our Library
These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Great War.
Those known to have served with
Tank Corps
during the Great War 1914-1918.
- Alexander A.. Sgt.
- Allen Cyril Sheldon. Pte. A Btn. (d.20th Nov 1917)
- Arthurs Frederick Charles. Gnr. F Battalion
- Ashworth Alfred Edward. 2/Lt.
- Bell Anthony M.. Lt. 15 Btn.
- Brennan William Patrick. Sgt. 1st Battalion
- Bullock Frank. 14th Btn. (d.9th Aug 1918)
- Bullock Frank. Pte. 14th Btn. (d.9th August 1918)
- Church John Edward. 2Lt. 20th Tank Battalion, B Company
- Cleaver Sidney James. Gnr. 8th Btn. 11 Section.
- Cotton Thomas. Pte. 4th Btn. (d.23rd July 1918)
- Cruickshank S. C.W.. Capt.
- Cullum Robert Henry. Pte
- Dorgan James. Cpl 11th Btn (d.23rd Aug 1918)
- Drew John William. S/Sgt. 2/8th (Cyclist) Btn.
- Farrell Thomas. Sjt.
- Francois Luc Rene. Pte.
- Garbutt Lawrence Mark. 2Lt. 9th Btn. (d.10th Aug 1918)
- Graham Andrew. Pte. Machine Gun Section
- Hall John. Lt. 9th (Glasgow) Battalion
- Harrison William Herbert. Sgt.
- Holt Albert Fletcher. Pte. 3rd Battalion
- Humphreys Noel Forbes. Capt. 10th Btn. (d.27th March 1918)
- Keegans John. Pte. 7th Btn.
- Kendall Robert. Cpl. 2/7th Btn.
- Kirkham Joseph. Pte. 8 Bn TC 5 Tank Bde
- Mansell Burton Arthur. Pte. 16th Btn.
- Neal Josiah. Pte.
- Nelson Robert. Pte.
- Newsam Harry Brighstone. 2nd Lt. 3rd Battalion (Light) (d.8th Aug1918)
- Powell Ernest John. Fus. 26th Btn.
- Richardson Alexander John. Cpl. 1st Battalion, D Company
- Sewell Cecil Howell. Lt. 3rd (Light) Tank Bn. (d.29th August 1918)
- Short John James.
- Smith Henry Thomas Bayard. 2nd Lt. (d.25th March 1918)
- Snowdon Gilbert. Pte C Coy. 18th Btn.
- Spencer Randolph Churchill. Sgt. 1st Battalion
- Stiddard Sidney George. Pte. 12th Btn. (d.2nd Sep 1918)
- Stokes Arthur George. Cpl. C Coy.
- Tabor Alfred James. Pte 9th (I) Battalion (d.23rd July 1918)
- Taylor Henry. Pte 13th Battalion (d.25th April 1918)
- Thornton Ernest. Cpl. C Coy.
- Vans-Agnew Frank. Capt. B. Btn.
- Wain Richard William Leslie. Capt. (d.20th Nov 1917)
- Wain Richard William Leslie. Capt. 25th Btn. att. A Bn. Tank Corps (d.20th Nov 1917)
- Walmsley John. Corporal 3rd Battalion, C Coy
- Watkins James. Pte. 1st Battalion (d.23rd Sep 1918)
- Webster James. Sgt. (d.4th April 1918)
- West Richard Annesley. Lt/Col. attd. Tank Corps (d.2nd September 1918)
- Whale Benjamin. Pte. 9th Btn. (d.29th September 1918)
- Wildman Arthur Frank. WO. 14th Battalion
- Williams Garfield. L/Cpl H Company
- Williams William. Sgt. 19th Btn.
- Wray George Victor. Cpl.
All names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed, please Add a Name to this List
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Sgt. William Williams 19th Btn. Tank Corps
From the age of 12, William Williams went down the mines, leading the pit ponies. Trained as a Male Nurse then enlisted in Royal Welsh Fusilliers. Selected to join the Heavy Machine Gun section which became the Tank Corps ; as mechanic/driver/gunner. Later became Sgt. 5/11/18 and Tank commander. Returned to nursing at The Priory with many famous patients 'Grandad Bill' wrote his memoirs which included a significant amount of detail of his time in the Tank Corps. This is his account of being signed up and trained:The army at this time were stopping men at the railway stations and asking for their papers. I had none so thought I would take a chance and wrote for some. The result was, I got my calling up papers to join the army. I reported and was asked if there was a regiment I would like to join. I said the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, there was a London battalion, so I joined that in 1916. I was sent to Kinnock Park, Rhyl. I found some old school pals in other battalions there. I got through my recruits drill after two months. Then one day coming off parade I got the call, '24477 Williams report to the company office'. I reported and was given a pass for four days. Still in the dark of what it was about, on reporting back I was sent with 10 others to be transferred to the Machine Gun Corp (Heavy Section) at Wool in Dorset. The train was full of men going to the same place. When we arrived we were put in huts for the night, all wondering what it was, there were men from every regiment in the British Army there. We found out that it was for what was to be known later as the Tank Corps.
After a success on the Somme with a few tanks it had been decided to raise four battalions and we were the lot. It was a little while before things were settled down, as there was only one doctor there. No medical examinations were given, instead we were taken to what was an old crater on a hillside, and seven men at a time were put on it to run round, up and down. That was the test, if they pulled a man out he was sent back. I got through it so that was my corp for the rest of the war. I met some very nice men there and formed a friendship with Cliff Baldwin, a Yorkshire lad. We were pals for the whole time.
We were soon put into a new kind of training with machine guns, six pounder guns for the gunners, and driving and maintenance tests for drivers, also signalling, Morse code and pigeon training. So we were kept busy. We were put into crews of seven men and one officer. It was all interesting. I was first gunner and Cliff was the first driver. The gunners were sent to Whale Island, Portsmouth for a course with the Navy, as the Army had not any schools to try us, we would be firing from a moving tank at a moving object.
John Morriss
Lt. Cecil Howell Sewell VC 3rd (Light) Tank Bn. Tank Corps (d.29th August 1918)
Cecil Sewell was killed in action on 29th August 1918 aged 23 and is buried in the Vaux Hill Cemetery in France. He was the son of Harry Bolton Sewell and Mary Ann Sewell, of 26 Crooms Hill, Greenwich, London. His brothers Harry Kemp Sewell and Herbert Victor Sewell also fell.An extract from The London Gazette, No. 30982, dated 29th Oct., 1918, records the following:- "When in command of a section of Whippet Light Tanks in action this officer displayed most conspicuous bravery and initiative in getting out of his own Tank and crossing open ground under heavy shell and machine-gun fire to rescue the crew of another Whippet of his section which had side slipped into a large shell-hole, overturned and taken fire. The door of the Tank having become jammed against the side of the shell-hole, Lt. Sewell, by his own unaided efforts, dug away the entrance to the door and released the crew. In so doing he undoubtedly saved the lives of the officer and men inside the Tank as they could not have got out without his assistance. After having extricated the crew, seeing one of his own crew lying wounded behind his Tank, he again dashed across the open ground to his assistance. He was hit in doing so, but succeeded in reaching the Tank when a few minutes later he was again hit, fatally, in the act of dressing his wounded driver. During the whole of this period he was within full view and short range of the enemy machine guns and rifle-pits, and throughout, by his prompt and heroic action, showed an utter disregard for his own personal safety."
s flynn
Lt/Col. Richard Annesley West VC DSO MC attd. Tank Corps North Irish Horse (d.2nd September 1918)
Richard West was killed in action on 2nd September 1918 aged 40. He had also served in the South African War and was the son of Augustus E. and Sarah West, of Whitepark, Co. Fermanagh; husband of Maude E. West, of 14, Trafalgar Square, Chelsea, London.An extract from the Second Supplement to The London Gazette, No. 30982, dated 29th Oct., 1918, records the following:- "For most conspicuous bravery, leadership and self-sacrifice. During an attack, the infantry having lost their bearings in the dense fog, this officer at once collected and re-organised any men he could find and led them to their objective in face of heavy machine-gun fire. Throughout the whole action he displayed the most utter disregard of danger, and the capture of the objective was in a great part due to his initiative and gallantry."
s flynn
Capt. Richard William Leslie Wain VC. 25th Btn. att. A Bn. Tank Corps Manchester Regiment (d.20th Nov 1917)
Richard Wain was killed in action on the 20th of November 1917, aged 20 and commemorated on The Cambrai Memorial in France. He was the son of Florence E. Wain, of Woodside, The Avenue, Llandaff, Cardiff, and the late Harris Wain.An extract from The London Gazette, dated 13th Feb., 1918, records the following:- "For most conspicuous bravery in command of a section of Tanks. During an attack the Tank in which he was, was disabled by a direct hit near an enemy strong point which was holding up the attack. Capt. Wain and one man, both seriously wounded, were the only survivors. Though bleeding profusely from his wounds, he refused the attention of stretcher-bearers, rushed from behind the Tank with a Lewis gun, and captured the strong point, taking about half the garrison prisoners. Although his wounds were very serious he picked up a rifle and continued to fire at the retiring enemy until he received a fatal wound in the head. It was due to the valour displayed by Capt. Wain that the infantry were able to advance."
s flynn
Fus. Ernest John Powell 26th Btn. Royal Fusiliers
Fusilier Powell was my father. In 1953, he gave a short talk about his career to his Rotary Club (West Wickham, Kent). In this talk he referred to his Service in WW1, as follows: "I volunteered for the Army in 1914, but Head Office said we could not be released until sufficient women had been trained to replace us…. In September 1915 I volunteered at Ammanford, Carmarthenshire (being the nearest recruiting centre to Llandeilo where I was a Junior Clerk in the London and Provincial Bank). I was assigned to the 26th (Service) Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (Bankers) raised by Col. Pitt of the London and South Western Bank, and we were 80% Bank chaps. We went to France in May 1916, supposed to be tough infantry men, which I rather doubt. I transferred to the Tank Corps in France". The first photo shows Fusilier Powell as one of "The Boys of Tent No 7, High Beech, 1915". He is 2nd from right in back row, as you look at the photo.The second photo is the All Ranks photo, 26th (Service) Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (Bankers). Aldershot, 1915. Fusilier Powell is 2nd from the left in the fourth row of the photo. It was taken (presumably) before the Battalion embarked for France.
The third photo is of the 1936 Reunion of the Banker’s Battalion. My father attended these Reunions in London – at least until the mid 1950’s (excluding years of World War 2). He was then Manager, Barclays Bank, West Wickham, Kent, a London suburb. These reunions were always preceded by a Church Service at the Royal Fusiliers Church in the City. The cost of the Reunions (always at the Connaught Rooms) were reportedly heavily subsidized, so my father said, by a Maj. Clutterbuck, a Board Director of Martin’s (or was it District?) Bank. My father is the nearest person at the nearest side of the 2nd table from the right (looking over left shoulder and in a lighter colored jacket - probably as befits a suburban Manager, compared with all the "City types"!).
Graham Powell
Gnr. Frederick Charles Arthurs MM, CdeG. F Battalion Machine Gun Corps (Heavy)
Frederick Arthurs, was born in Petersfield , Hampshire in 1898. Soon after his birth, his mother died. Fred’s father, William Arthurs, was in the army, and Fred ended up in a children’s home in Caledonia Rd., London. When war broke out in 1914, Fred was sixteen and he ran away and joined up, pretending he was eighteen. Fred’s dad by chance found him in France and got him sent home. This was not before Fred had the chance to fight in a battle at Mons.Fred rejoined when he was eighteen and ended up in the Machine Gun Corps and subsequently as a gunner in the tank F41 Fray Bentos. Fred took part in the Third Battle of Ypres and together with the rest of his crew was stuck for three days in no-man’s-land from the 22nd to the 24th August 1917. Near Pond Farm, one crew member was killed and all the rest were wounded. Fred was ordered to open a door of the tank and wave a flag to signal to British lines that the tank was still in British hands. As he did this, a shell exploded beside the tank and Fred got shrapnel through the neck causing him to be knocked unconscious. After three days, Fred and the remaining crew made it back to British lines, but his family was told he was missing. When Fred got home, he walked down the road and his future wife was horrified when she saw him, thinking she was seeing a ghost. Fred may also have taken part in the Battle of Cambrai in November 1917 in F41 Fray Bentos 2.
Fred never really worked properly again on returning from the war, as he had heart and lung problems caused by the fumes in the tank and maybe by poison gas. There is a story that he once lifted a car off of someone when it fell off a jack in the street and was squashing him. He also swapped some medals for a loaf of bread as he was so hard up. At one time, Fred was a casual mechanic for eccentric Irish Brooklands racing driver Kay Donne. Fred died in 1949 aged 51.
Laurie Arthurs
S/Sgt. John William Drew 2/8th (Cyclist) Btn. Essex Regiment
John William Drew is my maternal grandfather. He was later in the Tank Corps. He was also an inspector almost at the outset of the automobile association.Olga Turner
2Lt. John Edward "Joe" Church 20th Tank Battalion, B Company Royal Tank Corps
Joe Church was the eldest son of Rev. Edward & Florence Church, and born 10 August 1899 at Burrough Green, Cambs. He trained at Hazeley Down and Bovington to September 1919, not going overseas. He then studied at Barts Hospital, and was a doctor with the Ruanda Mission (CMS). He married Dr Decima Tracey. They retired to Little Shelford, Cambs, and he died 29 September 1989.Judith Mary Church
Sgt. William Patrick Brennan DCM. 1st Battalion Leinster Regiment
Bill Brennan was awarded the DCM for his part at Gurabeh in Palestine in August 1918. He transferred to 2nd Battalion, Royal Tank Corp when the Leinster Regiment was disbanded.John Brennan
Cpl. Arthur George Stokes C Coy. Machine Gun Corps Heavy
Arthur Stokes drove his tank C15 at the Battle of Fleurs 1916, his tank commander was Lt Jethro Toll.Kenneth Stokes
Pte Gilbert Snowdon C Coy. 18th Btn. Tank Corps
Gilbert Snowdon's war records are hard to read, but I have extracted some information such as his date of enlistment, which was 22nd of August 1918. He was in C Company, 18th Battalion, Tank Corps. Gilbert was a metal carrier in Seaton Carew iron works before enlisting. He was 27 years old on enlistment, he had 5 children and his wife was called Hannah.
Cpl. George Victor Wray Tank Corps
George Wray is my grandfather. He was injured after his tank was hit and he was the only survivor and spent time in hospital. He died in 1974.Janice Smith
Pte. Albert Fletcher Holt 3rd Battalion Manchester Regiment
Albert Holt served initially in 3rd Battalion, Manchester Regiment as a Gunner and was already in the Army when war broke out. He subsequently transferred the 7th Battalion, Tank Corps serving as part of the 1st Tank Brigade.His unit was captured at Toulouse on 12th of April 1918 and he was taken to Gardelegen, one of the worst disease ridden camps. It was so bad that the Germans lived off site and left the prisoners to fend for themselves regarding sickness. His POW number there was 9700. When the war ended and the soldiers were repatriated, Albert was among those who passed through Braine le Chateau in Belgium, where they were entertained to a banquet hosted by the Countesses (the de Ursels of Hingene of Chateau le Yonhuys) and The Mayor and Inhabitants.
Albert was an artist and painted a Centurion Tank on a hammered out Bully Beef can for The Countess Daisy, using her paints. In return, she gifted him those paints. The original carry case containing the spent paint tubes, is still in the possession of his descendants.
Albert served as an ARP warden in the Second World War and he was also a Fire Watcher at The Bolton Methodist Mission. He worked as a painter and decorator and spent time in Liverpool camouflaging the ships. Albert died in his 86th year in 1971.
Elaine Fletcher Cowen
Pte. Benjamin Whale CdG. 9th Btn. Tank Corps (d.29th September 1918)
Ben Whale was killed at the Battle of St Quentin Canal, along with 5 other tank crew.John French
Pte Alfred James Tabor 9th (I) Battalion Tank Corps (d.23rd July 1918)
Alfred Tabor was my grandfather. He and died of wounds received whilst driving Mk V male 9049 at Sauvillers, on 23rd of July 1918, during the subsidiary attack on Harpon Wood.Kev Smith
L/Cpl Garfield Williams MM. H Company Machine Gun Corps (Heavy)
My Grandfather, Garfield Williams won the Military Medal for actions on 3rd of October 1918, against the Beayrevoir Line wile serving with 8th Battalion, Tank Corps.Paul Williams
Lt. John "Jock" Hall 9th (Glasgow) Battalion Highland Light Infantry
John Hall enrolled in the 9th (Glasgow) Battalion, Highland Light Infantry, volunteer battalion, Territorial Force on 6th of April, 1908.John enrolled for service in WWI on 5th of August 1914. He was commissioned acting sergeant in the Highland Light Infantry on 9th November, 1915. He was commissioned temporary 2nd Lieutenant in the Motor machine Gun Service on 10th of November, 1916. He was later appointed temporary Lieutenant on 11th May, 1917. On 28 July, 2017, he was transferred to the newly formed tank corps. John relinquished is commission on account of ill health caused by wounds received in action during a tank battle. He lost hearing in one ear as part of his wounds. He retained the rank of Lieutenant when he was decommissioned from the Army on 18th of January, 1919.
John received the following medals for his wartime services, 1914-15 Star: British War Medal, Victory Medal and the Silver War Badge for his services in WWI He received the Africa Service medal and the War Medal 1939/1945 for his services in WWII.
Lindsay Hague
2Lt. Lawrence Mark Garbutt 9th Btn. Norfolk Regiment (d.10th Aug 1918)
Lawrence Mark enlisted on 10th of December 1915, in Army Reserve. His physical description was given as fresh complexion, brown hair, brown eyes, height 5ft 6½ins, girth when expanded 37 inches with a 3 inch range of expansion, with no distinctive marks. His religion was Church of England.He was mobilized on 17th of April 1916. He was with 24th Division on 30 August 1915 and 6th Division 11 October 1915 and tested on 17th April 1916, where he was sent to 7 (FT) Artillery Training School as a Driver on 19th April 1916.
On 7th September 1917 he was transferred to No.12 Cadet Battalion, Newmarket for training as an Officer. He was discharged to Commission on 17th December 1917 as 2nd Lieutenant in the 3rd (Battalion) Essex Regiment. On 12 February 1918 Lawrence was passed as fit for his transfer to the Machine Gun Corps (Heavy Branch).
Whilst attached to the 9th Norfolk Regiment he went to the Western Front with 71st Brigade. He was gassed and had just returned to his unit when he was wounded in action on 18th July 1918. History tells us that the British Command decided that as they had taken so many hits that day the order was given to withdraw and to leave all the dead and dying lying on the battlefield. The ANZACS were sent to move into position and Lawrence was picked up and taken to the 3rd Australian Casualty Clearing Station. He had been hit in the lower right lumbar and kidney region. Lawrence died there three days later, cause of death "of wounds received in action".
Lawrence Mark was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. He is buried in Esquelbecq Cemetery in France. The newspaper report of Lawrence Mark's death states that he was 28 years of age, his death certificate and report from the Ministry of Defence confirms that he was wounded on 31st July 1918 and died on 10th August 1918. This is also reinforced by the War Diaries for the 9th Norfolk Regiment held at the National Archives, Kew, London.
Vivienne Parker
Capt. Noel Forbes Humphreys MC. 10th Btn. Tank Corps (d.27th March 1918)
Noel Humphreys was born 1st December 1891 at Llangan Rectory, Bridgend, Glamorgan, the fourth son of the Rev. Henry James and Sydney Humphreys. In 1901 he was boarding at Saint Chads College, Denstone, Staffordshire, the census shows his parents and 4 siblings living in Hyde, Cheshire, the family then moved to Thornley, Vicarage, Tow Law, Co.Durham in 1903. He attended Durham Grammar School 1905-1909 and then to Armstrong College. The 1911 census shows he was living at the home of his married sister Mary and her husband Richard Howe in Sunnybrow, Willington, he was employed as a solicitors articled clerk. In August 1914 he enlisted with the Royal Engineers and served as a despatch rider. Two months later he received his commission and joined the Motor Machine Gun Services as temp 2nd Lieutenant, then promoted to Captain with 10th Battalion Tank Corps.He was mentioned in Despatches and on 8th June 1917 was awarded the Military Cross for "conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. "His tank becoming stranded, he commenced to dig it out, and though wounded, he completed his task and continued in action the whole day, finally bringing his tank out of action to the rallying point".
He was severely wounded on Easter Monday 25th of March 1918 and died of his wounds on 27th of March 1918 aged 27 years, he is buried in Etaples Military Cemetery, France. He is remembered on the War Memorial, Tow Law, Durham, Memorial Plaque in St. Bartholomews Church, Thornley and The Memorial Cross, Thornley.
In January 1918 The Times newspaper published a story of a Patriotic family "The Rev H.J. Humphreys, vicar of Thornley, Tow Law, Durham had five sons. Henry St. Giles Humphreys had been returning from America to enlist when he was killed on the Lousitania when it was torpedoed. John Theodore Gordon Humphreys had been to Sandhurst and was commissioned into the Indian Infantry and killed in action at Narumgombe. Captain Herbert Phillip Wynne Humphreys was an officer in the Royal Flying Corp and had been awarded a Military Cross. Owen (Aled Owain) Humphreys was serving with the Canadian Royal Flying Corps. Captain Noel Forbes Humphreys first served as a despatch rider, then in the Machine Gun Corps and had become a section commander of tanks in France." They omitted to mention the fact that his son in law Richard Howe (married to his daughter Mary Grace) was serving with the Durham Light Infantry.
Welsh Rugby's forgotten War Hero.
Noel Humphreys, the former fly-half, does not appear on the Welsh Rugby Union's Roll of Honour for war heroes, despite playing international rugby, because even though he was one of seven Welsh players on the first official British Lions tour to South Africa in 1910, he never represented Wales' national side. While still a teenager he became the youngest Welshman to play for the Lions on that tour after making his debut in a 17-0 win over Pretoria. He played for Tynedale RFC.
The Rugby Fotball Union wants to honour every rugby player who lost his life during the WWI, irrespective of country, and on 15th September 2017 unveiled a memorial, designed by the former French Grand Slam captain Jean-Pierre Rives, just outside the village of Craonnelle on land next to the Basque Memorial in the heart of the Chemin des Dames Battlefields. It is hoped that the Memorial will become the place in the World where the game of Rugby will be remembered . A Rugby Players' Book of Remembrance has been opened and The World Rugby Memorial committee wants to ensure every player is honoured and remembered.
Caroline Hunt
Gnr. Sidney James Cleaver 8th Btn. 11 Section. Tank Corps
We have a postcard addressed to my grandfather Sidney Cleaver from his wife whilst at the hospital on 23rd October 1918 and my grandfather's WW1 diary. It finishes with the following information.29th of September 1918. Started off at 5am after a good breakfast, this is rather a hot quarter, about 9am we had our officer gassed and then we had engine trouble and had to stop and he started shelling us, and he dropped one a bit close, I think that German must have been a decent sort as he gave me a nice little bit through my leg. Then I made my way back to an American dressing station and then went a bit further back in an ambulance to another station, where I was inoculated and then we went on a light railway to the 50th Casualty Clearing Station at Tincourt and got the wound dressed again and had something to eat and drink and was took to the hospital train at 9pm, don't know where we are going to, but we were soon asleep.
30th of September 1918, Woke up in the morning and was still travelling and arrived quite safe at Le Havre at 4pm and to the hospital at 5pm. It is a big hotel turned into an hospital, The Hotel Les Emigrants. Had a wash and change and was soon asleep again.
1st Oct 1918. Left hospital at 5pm for the hospital ship, but we did not sail till 11pm.
2nd Oct 1918. Arrived at Southampton 9am and went to the hospital train and went to Portsmouth to the 5th Southern General, Fawcett Rd. We were kept there 10 days and then were sent to an auxiliary hospital at Langton Towers, Havant it is a V.A.D. about 8 miles from Portsmouth. Was there about 6 weeks and went home the day after the Armistice was signed had a very good time and went on sick leave from Nov 12th to 22nd and then went to the depot at Wareham.
Michael Cleaver
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