First World War Centenary. 10 : Michael Charles Cawdery

Sargeant Michael Charles Cawdery

Michael Charles 'Charlie' Cawdery was born on the 20th of September 1873 at no. 20 Queen's Square, Dublin, Ireland.  He was the son of George Cawdery and Teresa Scott. 

Charlie's father was a master carpenter, who specialized in making stage sets. He had moved to Dublin from England, and chose to live in Queen's Square, because of its association with, and proximity to, the Queen's Royal Theatre located on Pearse Street,  The Theatre Royal was also nearby on Hawkins Street.  The family remained in Dublin throughout much of the 

No. 20 Queen's Square

(now Pearse Square) Dublin

Video: Pearse Square

1870s, but, sometime before 1881, Teresa died, and George moved back to England with Michael Charles and his siblings, Francis Arthur and Mary Georgina.  George's other daughter, Susan, appears to have died in her youth.  Upon returning to England, the family lived in Camberwell, Surrey. George died at 109 Blackfriars Road in Southwark on 15 July 1898.  By 1894. Francis was living in Salford, having followed in his father's occupational footsteps, as did Charles. In the 1901 census his occupation is given as a "stage carpenter theatre". By 1911 Charles was living in Pendleton.

click on images to enlarge

                  

                       Francis (left) and Charlie

Francis (left) and Charlie

                  

                     George Cawdery and offspring

Teresa Scott Cawdery

   

Susan holding Mary Georgina ?

To Arms!

When Charlie joined the Lancashire Fusiliers, he was already 41 years old, and at the upper age limit for recruitment, but he dutifully answered the call to arms as Kitchener began his task of building a new all-volunteer army. Charlie was one of the ''Salford Pals", who joined the ranks as a Lance Sargeant in the 16th (Service) Battalion (2nd Salford Pals). His service number was 11723.  The 16th 

Charles appears to have misrepresented his age in 1914

Lance Sergeant Michael Charles Cawdery
Lancashire Fusiliers 11723 [1]

was formed in Salford on 5 November 1914 by Sir Montague-Barlow, MP for Salford South, and the Salford Brigade Committee. After some intitial training carried out locally, the battalion moved to Conway Camp on the 11th of February 1915.  The 16th Bn was assigned to the 96th Brigade, 32nd Division, and was moved to Prees Heath Camp in Shropshire for trench-warfare training. However, conditions there were too wet, and, on 20 June 1915, it was moved to Catterick. North Yorkshire. This was followed by a stint at the Ponteland Rifle Ranges in Northumberland. On the 13 August 1915, the battalion was transferred to Codford Camp [2] on Salisbury Plain, and, in the following month, it was formally adopted by the War Office.

In November 1915, the 32nd Division received orders to prepare to sail for France. Charlie and the 2nd Salfords left Codford on a slow-moving train in the early hours of the morning with full packs.  After an eight hour journey, the battalion arrived at Folkestone, embarking on an Isle of Man Packet Co. steamer, bound for Boulogne-sur-Mer.  After a smooth crossing, the ship arrived on the 22nd of November 1915. [3]  From the port, Charlie travelled by train to Longpré, and then continued to move south and east to the front at  La Boisselle. Christmas Day was spent in reserve at Albert.

The 16th Battalion (2nd Salfords) spent the first six months of 1916 confined to a relatively small area just north of the Rive Somme. Its principal job, when not in reserve, was to man the trenches at Authuille, Theipval and Aveluy.  On 1 July 1916, this same small area turned out to be the most deadly place on earth.  This fateful day, the 'First Day on the Somme' was the blackest day in the British Army's long history. It marked one of the beginning of one of the bloodiest military battles in history. Charlie and the Salford Pals Battalions were in the thick of it.   In preparation for the Battle of the Somme, British artillery fired more than 1.5 million shells at the German lines, more than in the first year of the war and another 250,000 shells were fired on 1 July. The noise was horrendous, and could be heard on Hampstead Heath, 300 miles (480 km) away. The object was to neutralize the

video: The Somme: From Defeat to Victory (BBC)

enemy and obliterate their defences.  British commanders were so confident that the artillery had been effective that they ordered their men to walk slowly toward the German lines.  It was a slow walk toward German machine guns, and they were cut to pieces.  By the end of the day, 20,000 corpses and 40,000 wounded littered the landscape of no-man's land.

We assume that Charlie was one of the wounded, and that, upon his recovery, he was transferred to the Labour Corps, though his age may have militated against front line service. He served with the 9th Labour Company with the rank of Sargeant. His service number was 566128.

Charles was awarded the 1914-15 Star, the Victory Medal, and the British War Medal.

Charles married Adelaide "Ada" Rebecca Rollings, presumably before their first child was born, in 1893.  Ada was born in Ancoats, Manchester in 1875. They had seven children:

• Henrietta "Hettie" born about 1893 in Ardwick, Manchester. 
• Ada christened in 1897 in Ardwick; married William Hilton in 1915; died 1980.[4]
• George Stanley born 19 March 1900; married Lucy Taylor on 30 March 1918; died 1971.
• Arthur christened in Salford 1902; married Ethel Jones in 1924, died 1975.[5]
• Charles born 1905; married Amelia Irwin in 1924; died 1959 [6]
• John Richard born 1907; married Annie Lingard in 1927 ; died 1990.[7]
• Amy born in 1910; married Thomas Eaton in 1924; died 1975. [8]

Michael Charles Cawdery's death was registered at Barton, He died on 22 June 1951, and is buried in the Southern Cemetery, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester. He was 77.  Ada died on 31 August 1940, and is buried with her husband.

[1] Probably taken during training (1915). [see Manchester Courier, 16th January 1915]. The photograph was sent to Charlie's niece, May Cawdery, who was also engaged in the war effort. The verso reads: " To May with Best Wishes from Uncle Charlie".
[2] Diary: conditions at Codford Camp

[3] sources: Tattersall Diary ; History of the Lancashire Fusiliers, 1914-1918, v.2. The Isle of Man packet steamer was either Empress Queen or Mona's Queen.
[4] son: Edward Hilton born 1925
[5] children: Arthur Cawdrey born 1925; Harold born 1927
[6] children: Charles born 1924; Hilda born 1932
[7] children: John R. born  1927 ; Irene born 1929 ; Rita born 1936
[8] son: Brian H. Eaton born 1942