Yearly Archives: 2014

3 November 1914; Tuesday

November 1914, , , , ,

Pretty busy at work. Went up to the Garrison Field at night with Joe to join the scouts†, but they were out so we went to Green Street Hall and watched the Athletes’ Force drilling. Went to the choir practice late. Played one ping pong game and lost. Came up late with Charlie and Joe Edwards†. Received news that some German ships have been off Lowestoft1 and dropped mines which sank a Submarine2 and fired on a steamer Halcyon3.

Dardanelles forts bombarded by French & British ships4.

  1. “Lowestoft”: Wikipedia notes a Raid on Yarmouth, about 10 miles north of Lowestoft on the Norfolk coast. This raid took place on 3 November 1914. ↩

  2. “Submarine”: The submarine was the HMS D5, sunk by a German mine laid by SMS Stralsund. ↩

  3. “Halcyon”: Yarmouth coast was patrolled by the minesweeper HMS Halcyon and the old destroyers HMS Lively and Leopard. Halcyon had spotted two German cruisers, which she challenged.  ↩

  4. “Dardanelles forts bombarded…”: On 3 November 1914, Churchill ordered the first British attack on the Dardanelles following the opening of hostilities between Ottoman and Russian empires. This attack actually took place before a formal declaration of war had been made by Britain against the Ottoman Empire. ↩

1 November 1914; Sunday

November 1914, , ,

At chapel and School as usual. Mr Chadwick preaching. Managed pretty well at School. Stormy day. Sacrament at night. Had only short walks. Received news of the loss of the Hermes1 off Dover. Sunk by a submarine.

Germans sink “Good Hope” & “Monmouth”2 off Valparaiso.

  1. HMS Hermes: cruiser, the first RN vessel to be fitted for carrying and launching seaplanes; she had delivered some to Dover on 30 October, and while returning to the Solent next day was torpedoed by U-27 off Ruylingen Bank, in the Straits of Dover. ↩

  2. HMS Good Hope and Monmouth: heavy cruisers sunk at the Battle of Coronel, W. of Valparaiso; there followed (8 December) the Battle of the Falkland Islands (a British victory). See 5 November for news of these events reaching ALL. ↩

31 October 1914; Saturday

October 1914, ,

Finished at the office in good time. Went to Porteous and had a second tooth stopped. It took all the afternoon nearly. It rained heavily at night. Went to the Teachers Training Centre, and afterwards bicycled called for Willie Whittaker but didn’t go far. Came back home and played chess for a few minutes.

Wayman finished1.

Hospital Steamer Rohilla2 ashore at Whitby. About 70 lives lost. Newcastle lifeboat took off 50 people. British casualty list to date 57,000 on land.

  1. The diary entry for 2 December 1914 mentions a Billy Wayman who had recently left the Paper Works. It appears that 31 October was his last day of employment there. This Billy may possibly be the “Willie” who received his notice on 29 October to “finish on Saturday first”. ↩

  2. His Majesty’s Hospital Ship Rohilla: 7114 tons, built for the British India Steam Navigation Company in 1906 (Rohilla means an Afghan tribesman); ran aground 4.00am on 30 October in gale and blackout, at Whitby Rock just S. of Whitby; carried no rockets (for breeches buoy), but out of 229 aboard 144 were rescued (including one Titanic survivor) by land-­based rockets and lifeboats from as far away as Tyneside. ↩

29 October 1914; Thursday

October 1914, , ,

X Wednesday X Mr Aitken took Willie into the room and gave his notice X
 Finish on Saturday first. He tried to induce Willie to enlist. A good deal of excitement caused by this step. I had a slight cold so stayed at home at night and read and looked up some words.

Turkish battleships bombard Theodosia1 in Black Sea without formal declaration of War.

  1. Theodosia: in Russia, at the E. end of the Crimea. There was long-­standing rivalry between Russia and Turkey, both because of Russia’s ambitions to replace the crumbling Ottoman Empire in the Balkans, Romania and Bulgaria, and because Turkey, possessing the Dardamelles, still controlled access to the Black Sea and thus to the Crimea and southern Russia; indeed the failure of the Gallipoli expedition (1915) to open seaborne access to southern Russia was arguably a significant factor in the economic, and then political, collapse of Russia in 1917. ↩

27 October 1914; Tuesday

October 1914, ,

Kept pretty well busy at work. Still talk about the reduction in the staff. Joe and I went up to the YMCA to see about joining the Civilian Force, but there was a march out and a big crowd so we didn’t do anything. Went to the choir practice. Played one game at ping-­pong. Nothing fresh in the war news.

Russians drive back Austro-­German Army in Poland.

26 October 1914; Monday

October 1914, , ,

Not much to do at work. Mr Aitken read from a letter from Mr Lawson asking that he should <arrange> for some of us to join the army1. I explained my position to Mr Scott. A lot of stir and excitement about it. Finished soon. Went to the King’s Theatre at night with Joe to see Hamlet played by Mr Alexander Morton’s company. We were in the gallery. It was very good. Didn’t get out until late.

  1. Mr Lawson was evidently a Director of the Hendon Paper Works Company; his absence from a Directors’ meeting is noted on 15 December. Mr Aitken appears to have taken Mr Lawson’s request to heart as he was giving employees their notice and encouraging them to enlist only 2 or 3 days later. ↩

25 October 1914; Sunday

October 1914, , , , ,

At chapel and School as usual. Managed pretty well in School. 2 new scholars. Wet afternoon and night and no walks. Marmie and Joe and Dorothy to tea at Willie and Lily’s. Got news that the Badger1 had rammed a German submarine off the Dutch coast.

  1. HMS Badger: a torpedo boat – only 990 tons – and this was said to be the first successful attack by an Allied ship on a German submarine (the U-19): Wikipedia says that this ramming occurred on 24 October. ↩