Lance Corporal Henry James Brewer Royal Marine Light Infantry and Royal Fleet Reserve
The Man Henry James Brewer was born on Tuesday 17th December 1889 son of George Gilbert, a Dockyard Labourer and Mary Ann nee Collins. He had six siblings, William R born in 1876, George H G 1888, Adelaide 1890, Ivy G 1890, William Edward born in 1893 and Walter Thomas 1887.
In the 1891 census Henry and family were living at 7 Baker Street, Portsmouth and in 1901 at 6 Arnaud Street.
Following his schooling Henry enlisted into the Royal Marine Light Infantry on 23rd January 1904 at Gosport, aged just 15 with service number PO 12911 as a Bugler. He was described as 5’ tall, grey eyes, fresh complexion, light brown hair and several tattooed dots on his right and left forearm.
In the 1891 census Henry and family were living at 7 Baker Street, Portsmouth and in 1901 at 6 Arnaud Street.
Following his schooling Henry enlisted into the Royal Marine Light Infantry on 23rd January 1904 at Gosport, aged just 15 with service number PO 12911 as a Bugler. He was described as 5’ tall, grey eyes, fresh complexion, light brown hair and several tattooed dots on his right and left forearm.
He served in Portsmouth during 1904 under training, confirmed as ‘able to swim’ on 26th April and gained a 3rd class education certificate on 28th July. He was then posted to HMS Cressy - a Cressy-class armoured cruiser built for the Royal Navy around 1900 -from 8th February 1905 to 12th March 1906. This was followed by HMS Berwick, one of 10 Monmouth-class armoured cruisers, from 13th March 1906 to 12th April 1907 (under the command of Captain Horace Hood, later Rear Admiral, Sir) then back to Portsmouth where, having reached the age of 18, he was appointed as a Private in the Royal Marine Light Infantry (RMLI) on 13th April, by which time he had grown to 5’.7¼” tall. He achieved a 2nd Class Education Certificate on 18th June.
His service records show that he was underage from 23rd January 1904 to 16th December 1907, thus ineligible for good conduct badges or able to count his 3 years 3 months towards his service or any medals!
Having now joined the RMLI Henry saw service at Deal until June 1908, possibly under training followed by service in the following ships:
His service records show that he was underage from 23rd January 1904 to 16th December 1907, thus ineligible for good conduct badges or able to count his 3 years 3 months towards his service or any medals!
Having now joined the RMLI Henry saw service at Deal until June 1908, possibly under training followed by service in the following ships:
- HMS Amethyst: 30 Jun – 27 Jul 08
- Portsmouth: 28 Jul – 12 Oct 08
- HMS Vengeance: 13 Oct 08 – 19 Feb 09
- HMS Bellerophon: 20 Feb 09 – 31 Jan 11
- Portsmouth: 1 Feb – 21 Apr 11 (The 1911 census shows him as a Private at the Royal Naval College, Osborne, a training college for Royal Navy officer cadets on the Osborne House estate, Isle of Wight, established in 1903)
- HMS Revenge: 22 Apr 11 – 14 May 13
- Portsmouth: 15 May – 4 Jun 13
- HMS Achilles: 5 Jun 13 – 19 Oct 17 (Service during World War I. Achilles was a Warrior-class armoured cruiser launched in 1905. She served with the 2nd Cruiser Squadron for most of the First World War and did not participate in the Battle of Jutland in 1916 but did sink the German raider Leopard in 1917).
- Portsmouth: 20 Oct – 17 Nov 17
- HMS Armadale Castle: 18 Nov 17 – 14 Jan 19 (Henry was serving in this ship at the time of the Armistice on 11th November 1918. Armadale Castle was a passenger steamship built in 1903 at Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering, Govan, Scotland, for the Union-Castle Mail Steamship Co Ltd, London. She was requisitioned as an armed merchant cruiser in the Royal Navy on 2nd August 1914 and returned to commercial service in 1919).
- Portsmouth: 15 Jan – 13 Jan 20
Henry married Alice Turnbull during the first quarter of 1918 in Chorlton and hey had one daughter, Marjorie born on 3rd May 1920. He was paid a prize bounty of £1.12’ 2d on 16th June 1919 for the sinking of Leopard and a war gratuity of £29.00 on 2nd August 1919. He was awarded the 1914-15 Star, 1914-18 British War Medal and Victory Medal for his services.
Having reached the age of 32 and served for a total of 16 years Henry left the Royal Navy, having completed his first period of limited service. His general character was described throughout as Very Good.
On 14th January 1920 he enrolled into the Royal Fleet Reserve for five years, a Royal Navy formation of decommissioned vessels which could be brought to a state of readiness at time of war.
He saw service in Portsmouth Division from 9th – 28th April 1923, where he was shown as exempt from training 31st March to 22nd April. In February he was awarded his Royal Fleet Reserve Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. This medal was similar to that of the Royal Navy Reserve and Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve Long Service and Good Conduct medals. The only difference being that the ribbon is suspended from a ring, not a bar. It was awarded for fifteen years’ service in the Fleet Reserve, with conduct assessed as ‘Very Good’. Service in the Royal Navy counted, so long as the RN Long Service and Good Conduct Medal had not been awarded.
He was transferred to Plymouth Division on 29th July 1923 and left the RFR in 1925, when his address was given as 22 Oxford Terrace, Burnage Lane, Didsbury, Oxford. In November 1926, he joined the Post Office, becoming a postman in Didsbury, Manchester. His appointment appeared in the London Gazette of 7th January 1927.
In 1939, aged 49 Henry was living with Alice at 3 Catterick Avenue, Manchester and shown as a Postman. It is not known if he served in any capacity during World War II.
Henry retired from the Post Office in 1955 aged 65 and was awarded the Imperial Service Medal, this appearing in the London Gazette of 3rd May 1955.
Henry died during the last quarter of 1958 aged 68.
Having reached the age of 32 and served for a total of 16 years Henry left the Royal Navy, having completed his first period of limited service. His general character was described throughout as Very Good.
On 14th January 1920 he enrolled into the Royal Fleet Reserve for five years, a Royal Navy formation of decommissioned vessels which could be brought to a state of readiness at time of war.
He saw service in Portsmouth Division from 9th – 28th April 1923, where he was shown as exempt from training 31st March to 22nd April. In February he was awarded his Royal Fleet Reserve Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. This medal was similar to that of the Royal Navy Reserve and Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve Long Service and Good Conduct medals. The only difference being that the ribbon is suspended from a ring, not a bar. It was awarded for fifteen years’ service in the Fleet Reserve, with conduct assessed as ‘Very Good’. Service in the Royal Navy counted, so long as the RN Long Service and Good Conduct Medal had not been awarded.
He was transferred to Plymouth Division on 29th July 1923 and left the RFR in 1925, when his address was given as 22 Oxford Terrace, Burnage Lane, Didsbury, Oxford. In November 1926, he joined the Post Office, becoming a postman in Didsbury, Manchester. His appointment appeared in the London Gazette of 7th January 1927.
In 1939, aged 49 Henry was living with Alice at 3 Catterick Avenue, Manchester and shown as a Postman. It is not known if he served in any capacity during World War II.
Henry retired from the Post Office in 1955 aged 65 and was awarded the Imperial Service Medal, this appearing in the London Gazette of 3rd May 1955.
Henry died during the last quarter of 1958 aged 68.
The Story The medal group awarded to Henry James Brewer were acquired from E-Bay on 27th September 2022 and of interest because of the Imperial Service and Royal Fleet Reserve Long Service Medal combination, a sub-theme of this collection.
Initially it was difficult to find any detail of Henry on Ancestry.UK as the combination of names were popular. This was not helped by initially following a research trail on a person with the same names born just two days later living in Portsmouth, where Henry was born. However, his Naval service records were downloaded from The National Archives website, these giving his date of birth, his wife’s first name, Alice and an address in Manchester that he moved to upon his marriage in 1918.
Once the jigsaw pieces were matched, as often happens with research, everything fell into place, including the fact he was a postman in Manchester in 1939, enabling a reasonably detailed biography to be completed.
Initially it was difficult to find any detail of Henry on Ancestry.UK as the combination of names were popular. This was not helped by initially following a research trail on a person with the same names born just two days later living in Portsmouth, where Henry was born. However, his Naval service records were downloaded from The National Archives website, these giving his date of birth, his wife’s first name, Alice and an address in Manchester that he moved to upon his marriage in 1918.
Once the jigsaw pieces were matched, as often happens with research, everything fell into place, including the fact he was a postman in Manchester in 1939, enabling a reasonably detailed biography to be completed.
Medal Details:
- 1914 - 15 Star: PO.12911. PTE.H.J.BREWER. R.M.L.I.
- 1914 - 18 British War Medal: PO 12911. L.CPL.H.J.BREWER. R.M.L.I.
- Victory Medal: PO 12922. L.CPL.H.J.BREWER. R.M.L.I.
- Imperial Service Medal: HENRY JAMES BREWER
- Royal Fleet Reserve Long Service and Good conduct Medal: PO 12911 B.1820.H.J.BREWER. R.F.R.
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