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Able Sea. Henry John Wilson
Royal Navy HMS Euryalus
(d.24th May 1915)
Henry John Wilson died 24/05/1915, aged 35 He is buried in Cairo War Memorial Cemetery, Egypt.
The following is Courtesy HMS Euryalus Association Website:
In April, Wemyss was put in charge of the main landings at Gallipoli and hoisted his flag in Euryalus, which had separately joined the force build-up. At nightfall on 24 April 1915, three companies of the 1st Battalion XX of The Lancashire Fusiliers were transferred from their transports to Euryalus, one of the ships transporting the .assault force to the beaches. The troops remember being received well on board by the sailors who gave up their bread ration for the soldiers.
At 0400 in the morning of 25 April 1915, the soldiers clambered down into a flotilla of warship boats and merchant ship lifeboats, towed by Euryalus' steam cutters, and at 0550 the tows were slipped 1,500 yards from 'W' beach. The landing was achieved against appalling odds, with Euryalus sailors pulling the Battalion ashore in the boats and beaching them within point-blank range of the Turkish gunfire. Typical of the boat's crewmen was peacetime merchant seaman, Able Seaman Thomas Kibblewhite, Royal Naval Reserve, aged 29, who was killed in this action. The Battalion casualties were 11 officers and 350 men whilst 63 of the 80 Euryalus ratings manning the boats were killed or wounded. During the assault the Lancashire Fusiliers won 6 VC's "before breakfast". Following the landing, Euryalus steamed close inshore for Wemyss to supervise all aspects of the operation. Despite the bravery of the allied troops, the subsequent lack of success ashore is well known, and eventually Wemyss organised and commanded the evacuation from Euryalus in mid-December. 80,000 men were withdrawn with just one casualty
