Today | News | Books | Recipes Adventure | Science Fiction | Ghost stories | Poetry | Children | History Books by his father in Surveying and Engineering, and was acting as assistant to him when war broke out. In Dec. 1914, he was given a temporary Lieutenancy in the 16th Light Horse and, after qualifying at the Military Institute, Winnipeg, was gazetted Lieut. to the 32nd Battn. He left for England in Feb. 1915, and in April went with his company to reinforce the 10th Battn. in France, took part in the Second Battle of Ypres and was killed in the Battle of Festubert, leading his platoon in a night attack on the German position K. 5 (or Bexhill), 21 May following. He was _unm._, and was buried in a shell hole near K. 5. His men said that "he died like a hero, leading his men, on a rush attack right into a murderous fire," and his commanding officer describing the attack on K. 5 wrote: "Lieut. Thompson in his quiet unassuming way led his platoon out to return no more--no better little soldier graced the 10th." A brother officer wrote: "He was a soldier with few superiors, and a courage that knew no limits." [Illustration: =John A. M. Thompson.=] =THOMPSON, ROBERT=, Stoker, R.N.R., 759V, H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914. =THOMPSON, SAMUEL VINCENT=, Signalman, 237351, H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914. =THOMPSON, THOMAS=, Private, No. 5690, 2nd Battn. Scots Guards; _b._ co. Kerry; enlisted 14 Nov. 1904; served with the Expeditionary Force in France, etc.; killed in action, 12 March, 1915. =THOMPSON, WALTER DARCY=, Private, No. 4843, 2nd Battn. Coldstream Guards, _s._ of the late John Thompson, engineer; _b._ Elswick, Newcastle, 1883; educ. Southwick Board School; enlisted at Elswick, 26 Sept. 1902; left with the 1st Expeditionary Force for the Front on the outbreak of war, and was killed in action in France, 16 Sept. 1914. Private Thompson _m._ at Southwick, 21 Feb. 1906, Martha Alexandra, dau. of Robert Whyte, of Perth, and had two sons and one daughter: Vernon, _b._ 3 Nov. 1912; Walter Darcy, _b._ 11 Nov. 1914, and Edna, _b._ 21 April, 1909. His widow died 12 March, 1915, leaving the three infant children without any known relations. Capt. John Smith, of the Salvation Army at Southwick, took temporary charge of them, and Queen Alexandra hearing of the sad story wrote to Capt. Smith for particulars and expressed herself as anxious to assist in some way. The story was submitted to Her Majesty, and in reply a handsome money gift was sent for each child to be banked in trust for them. =THOMPSON, WILLIAM JOHN HENRY=, Corpl., R.M.L.I., Ch./15133, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914. =THOMSON, ALEXANDER=, L.-Corpl., 6378, 2nd Battn. Scots Guards; _b._ Strickey, co. Aberdeen; enlisted 6 Jan. 1906; served with the Expeditionary Force in France, etc.; killed in action, 20-26 Oct. 1914. He _m._ Jennie (51, Esslemont Avenue, Aberdeen), dau. of (--) Anderson, and had two daus.: Mary Anderson, _b._ 20 April, 1910, and Joan, _b._ 25 June, 1915. =THOMSON, ALEXANDER CAMERON=, Sergt., No. 1380, D Coy., 13th Battn. Australian Imperial Force, 6th _s._ of James Thomson, of 57, St. Andrew Road, Pollokshields, Glasgow, by his wife, Elizabeth, dau. of the late Alexander Cameron, of Rothes; _b._ Glasgow, 30 March, 1892; educ. Kinning Park Public School; was two years in the 7th S. R. Glasgow before going to Australia, 25 Nov. 1912; volunteered on the outbreak of war and joined the Commonwealth Expeditionary Force in Sydney, N.S.W., 26 Sept. 1914; left for Egypt about 24 Dec.; took part in the landing at the Dardanelles, 25 April, 1915, and after being promoted Corpl. and Sergt. was killed in action there, 3 May, 1915; _unm._ His Officer Commanding, Lieut. C. B. Hopkins, wrote: "Your son was killed on the night of 3 May, doing his duty in a most gallant manner, in a charge against some Turkish trenches." [Illustration: =Alexander C. Thomson.=] =THOMSON, DUNCAN TURNER=, Private, No. 118, 9th Battn. (Glasgow Highlanders) Highland Light Infantry (T.F.). _s._ of Alexander Thomson, of 8, Hamilton Park Terrace, Glasgow, M.B., C.M., Edinburgh, by his wife, Mary J. McKean, dau. of the Rev. Duncan Turner, M.A.; _b._ Huntly, co. Aberdeen, 23 Dec. 1888; educ. Glasgow Academy, and the Royal Technical College, Glasgow; was a fully qualified and diplomated architect, and was in the employment of Mr. P. Macgregor Chelmers, Glasgow; joined the 9th Highland L.I. Territorials in 1908; volunteered for active service on the outbreak of war; went to France in Oct. 1914, and died in the General Hospital, Northampton, 30 July, 1915, of wounds received in action on 19 June. He was shot by a sniper when on duty in the trenches at Vermelles; _unm._ Capt. A. K. Reid wrote: "He was a man for whom I had the highest regard, especially since we came out here, and he was one of the most popular members of the company. His good humour even under the most trying circumstances caused him to be liked by all. He could be trusted at all times to do his duty as a soldier and as a man. I saw him in the Vermelles trenches a few minutes after he was hit, and he left us to walk back to the dressing station with a cheery good-bye to us all"; and one of his comrades, writing to a friend, said: "You doubtless have heard of Duncan Thomson's death. Man! Why is it that all those splendid sportsmen get knocked out, and the rest of us go free. He was an awfully decent chap and I saw quite a lot of him in the G.H. at Dunfermline and in France. A more thorough, straighter, cleaner chap you could not meet. Five of the old 1st Battn.--friends of his--and myself carried the coffin into the Kirk, and then again to the grave. It wasn't a military funeral (military honours having been paid when the body left Northampton), so we could only salute his grave, but if ever a man deserved honours at his graveside he did. We called him 'Sniper' out there, for the simple reason that he was so delightfully cool and casual. He never fired a shot at anything unless he was absolutely certain. If ever you wanted a hot drink, or anything to cheer yourself up with, you went to Duncan, and sure enough then you got it." =THOMSON, HENRY=, L.-Corpl., No. 2713, 2nd Battn. Royal Scots (Lothian Regt.); served with the Expeditionary Force in France, etc.; killed in action, 13 Nov. 1914. =THOMSON, LESLIE=, Rifleman, No. 1877, F Coy. 1/16th Battn. (Queen's Westminster Rifles) The London Regt. (T.F.). _s._ of Walter Thomson, of 18, Lorne Street, Reading, by his wife, Emma; _b._ Reading, co. Berks, 9 Feb. 1893; educ. Christ's Hospital, West Horsham; volunteered and joined the Queen's Westminsters, 5 Aug. 1914; went to France, 1 Nov. 1914, and was killed in action by a rifle grenade which burst just behind him in the trenches at Houplines, near Armentières, 18 March, 1915; _unm._ Buried in the hospital cemetery, Rue Carnot, Houplines. Major Tyrwhitt wrote to his parents: "Your son was always such a bright cheerful boy and such a good soldier," and a letter signed by 42 men |