The Rainham Hero of Lucknow

At the turn of the 19^th century a tall, upright and well-built man became a familiar figure on the streets of Rainham. He lived at 109 High Street, he took great pride in his appearance, people noticed that he polished his shoes every day and he wore a row of military medals on special occasions.

Born in Tarbert, County Kerry in Ireland in 1830, Cornelius Sparling joined the 81^st Regiment of Foot as a twenty year old. Sent to India he completed 21 years of service on the continent and played an important part in the Indian Mutiny of 1857.
Sir Henry Havelock

Serving under Sir Henry Havelock he took part in the march on Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh where Sepoys in the army had mutinied against their British rulers because during their gun loading process they had to bite cartridges believed to be greased with pork and beef fat for their Enfield rifles which violated the religions of Muslim and Hindu troops. During the ensuing conflict Sparling rescued a regimental officer named Lieutenant Roberts who went on to become a field marshal in the British army.

During the course of the rescue Lieutenant Roberts mounted the shoulders of Sparling and nailed the colours to the flag mast that had earlier been shot down from the British residency building. The men did this while under heavy fire from the Sepoys and they were lucky not to be killed or wounded. While the siege of Lucknow progressed Sparling could not escape until the British relief column arrived.

The siege and relief of the city cost the British 2,500 killed, wounded or missing. After this Sparling marched with his regiment to relieve Cawnpore which had been captured by Indian forces, but they arrived too late to prevent the massacre of 120 women and children based there. After the British had surrendered Cawnpore to the Indians in return for safe passage to Allahabad, the men were executed and the women and children hacked to death with meat cleavers and their remains thrown into a well to conceal the evidence. This led to retaliatory counter atrocities by the outraged British relief force soldiers who killed an estimated 7,000 Indian locals and executed many of the leaders of the mutiny.

After the siege and the massacre at Cawnpore Cornelius Sparling remained in India where he completed his service. As a result of his part played in the Indian Mutiny he received the Mutiny Medal with two clasps engraved ‘Lucknow’ and ‘Defence of Lucknow.’ He also received the ‘Good Conduct’ medal.

When Cornelius returned to England and lived in Gillingham former lieutenant Lord Roberts twice visited him. He then moved to Rainham where he became a familiar figure who regularly worshipped at St Margaret’s church and became a member of the Men’s Bible Class.

When Cornelius died aged 84 in 1914, 50 soldiers from Chatham accompanied by General Mullaly, Commandant of the Thames and Medway area, visited St Margaret’s church where Cornelius was given a full military funeral, the first in the village for about 30 years. With his coffin draped in the Union Jack and escorted by members of the West Kent Regiment, three volleys were fired over his grave as a final farewell to the Rainham hero of Lucknow.

Rainham and the Aftermath of World War 1

The war had dragged on for four years but with the end of the conflict on November 11^th 1918 everything slowly reverted back to normal in the village. New lighting for Rainham came under discussion at the parish council and preparations began to have a war memorial constructed to remember those who had died in the conflict while at national level the government called a General Election.

Men who had fought in the war gradually returned home, some recovering from wounds, others with stories of war experiences while a few unlucky ones were killed at the very end of the conflict. James Keutenius of Station Road died on November 10^th 1918, the day before the end of the war when a German submarine torpedoed and sank the minesweeper on which he was serving. He drowned with the rest of the crew. He left three children who were orphaned as his wife had died a short time earlier. Sergeant Archie Mattocks had better luck because after being badly wounded in the face and getting a chill which developed into pneumonia he made a full recovery.

As Christmas approached influenza remained a problem in Rainham and a coal shortage took place, but food could be bought without the restrictions of the war years and rations were doubled. A Christmas turkey could be bought without coupons, eggs could be bought for 5/6d a dozen and an additional ¼ pound of sugar could be purchased while there were no restrictions on the purchase of tea.

During the Christmas period fund raising activities continued as Rainham Ladies Choir toured Rainham and Hartlip singing carols to raise funds for St Dunston’s Hostel for Blind Soldiers in Regent’s Park. Accompanied by two violinists the ladies raised £11/2/0d.

Lots of freehold properties soon became available and an auction sale took place at the White Horse pub in December 1918. Only two properties were sold and these were situated in Station Road which reflected the worsening economic situation as many people were short of money. Wakeley Brothers purchased one of the houses for £150 and the other by Mr Grout for £250. Later in the year property owners and agents raised rents in Rainham.

In early January 1919 Reverend Tamplin read out the names of 88 men known to have died in the war, a combination 64 soldiers and 24 sailors while a variety concert organised by Mrs Brewer from Sittingbourne took place in aid of a memorial for fallen Rainham soldiers and sailors.

A public meeting held in the church hall in January discussed a war memorial for Rainham. Chaired by Dr Penfold, George Quinnell from Broad Walk offered some land next to the Free Library. Other suggestions for a memorial included cottage homes, a cottage hospital, an extension to the library, baths, a public hall, a stained glass window, a memorial tablet in the church and an illuminated church clock tower. Eventually the committee decided on a monumental cross with the names of fallen Rainham men inscribed on it. The committee proposed to have it erected outside the church wall facing Station Road.

In June a public meeting took place in the Church hall to welcome about 250 returning soldiers and sailors to the parish. A decision was made to hold a dinner and concert at the Church of England school in Station Road on July 5^th. About 200 men attended the event. Local MP Major Granville-Wheeler gave a speech followed by Sergeant Pack, formerly of the 9^th lancers, one of the first men to arrive in France with the British Expeditionary Force in 1914 and who thanked the people of Rainham for organising and funding the event.

Peace celebrations took place in Rainham on July 19^th when residents decorated the village with Chinese lanterns, flags, bunting and six decorated arches were erected at various points in the High Street and in Station Road. Voluntary subscriptions raised £125 and a committee was formed with Dr Penfold elected chairman, Mr F Mattocks became honorary secretary and Mr H Heymer treasurer. A competition for the best decorations resulted in Mr Shaw, landlord of The Cricketers Inn winning first prize.

The celebrations began at 1-45 pm with an assembly of children at the top end of Station Road headed by the band of the Chatham Salvation Army and a bugle band of the Boy Scouts. They marched to Rainham Recreation Ground where a thanksgiving service taken by Reverend Webb and Reverend F E Perry took place. A full sports event followed which included a comic cricket match between ladies and gentlemen in fancy dress and a range of sports events. Concerts, swings and amusements were also provided. Over 1,000 children sat down to tea in the afternoon. Later widows and people over 60 were served dinner at the Council School where a fete took place. Meanwhile, Mrs Brunning’s Rainham Co-operative Society Maypole party of little girls performed maypole dancing. Over 2,000 people attended the fete at the Council School and a firework display held on a piece of ground in Hamilton Avenue (later Salisbury Avenue). A torchlight procession ended the day which finished at midnight.

Over 4,000 people attended a sports day at Rainham Recreation Ground later in July. The Rainham and District Branch of the National Federation of Discharged and Demobilised Soldiers and Sailors organised this in aid of a new social club for Rainham. Over 20 events took place which included a tug of war competition and a range of cycle races which turned out to be very successful.

Frank Marchant RN from Henry Street became the first Rainham resident awarded an OBE for services rendered during the war. He had served in the Dardanelles and held the position of warrant officer at the RN barracks in Chatham. Later in the year at the church hall special constables who had patrolled Rainham during the war years were awarded illuminated certificates for their services. These were presented by Mr Payne the supervisor for special constables in the district. Not all the original constables were present as 27 had already left Rainham, four were killed in the war and five had died. Later in 1922 77 medals were presented to the special constables from Rainham and 16 from Upchurch by Lieutenant Colonel R G Locke at a special presentation in Rainham Church Hall.

Periodic meetings about the proposed war memorial took place throughout the year. By the end of May £450 had been collected and a design and estimate for a marble cross submitted. At the end of November the committee decided on and ordered a granite cross from Millen and Chrisfield of Sittingbourne for a cost of £480 with a further £20 for expenses.

After preparation of the ground for the proposed war memorial in November, the dedication and unveiling of the monument took place on Sunday December 12^th 1920. The memorial cross, a replica of the Cross of Iona from the Isle of Iona in Scotland made of Cornish granite stood 18½ feet high with 100 names of fallen Rainham servicemen inscribed on it.

The dedication service was supposed to take place outside but because of freezing conditions and snow most of it had to take place in St Margaret’s church. About 1,000 people packed into the church for the service conducted by Reverend Tamplin then Dr Penfold, chairman of the parish council, read out the names of the fallen soldiers and sailors. After this boy buglers from the Royal Engineers played the Last Post. Finally, Major-General Thuillier, General officer commanding the Thames and Medway area gave a speech.

After the service about 2,000 people gathered at the memorial and watched as Major-General Thuillier pulled the cord which caused the Union Jack enveloping the cross to fall away. Relatives placed floral tributes at the base of the memorial as they remembered the dead. Finally, the hoisting of the Union Jack from a half mast position on the church tower and the ringing of the church bells ended the event.

Rainham Congregational Church situated in Chapel Lane (now Mierscourt Road) also decided to have a war memorial in the form of a tablet placed on the church wall with names of soldiers and sailors inscribed on it. To do this they needed to raise £100 to £150 which they succeeded in doing and the tablet was placed on the church wall at a special service in August. With 15 names inscribed on a brass tablet mounted on teak wood by courtesy of the Admiralty, a special` service conducted by Reverend E Scott-Wilkinson in front of about 100 people took place on Sunday February 13^th 1921 and the tablet unveiled. Silent prayers followed the unveiling and the service ended with the playing of the National Anthem.

With the ending of the war peace prevailed but a decade of high unemployment and economic downturn made life tough for many Rainham residents who found work hard to obtain and difficulty making ends meet, the price paid for a long and costly war. David Wood.

Letter From a Rainham Prisoner of War in 1918

Private Frank Perry of the RAMC, Ist Northumberland Field Ambulance and son of Reverend F. E. Perry of Rainham Congregational Church had been missing in action for 11 weeks until he contacted his parents on June 12^th 1918, informing them that he had been taken prisoner of war and sent to Gefangenan camp in Lamsdorf, Germany. He wrote a more comprehensive letter on November 30th 1918 that the East Kent Gazette published.

‘I was taken prisoner on May 27^th and at that time was very concerned, and naturally am still, as to how things were going at home, seeing that three weeks had elapsed since last I received a letter from you. My last letter from home was posted on April 30^th, and I received it in the village of Ventelay on Saturday May 5^th. However, on May 22^nd I received a parcel from you, and as this was addressed by you both and posted on May 16^th. I take it that up to then you were alright, and trust that same still applies.

After five weeks work behind the lines, we entrained for Germany on Monday July 1^st, and having completed three days in the train, arrived in this prisoner’s camp weary and hungry on Thursday evening the 4^th. We were the first British and French prisoners to come to this camp, as until recently it had been composed of prisoners of other nationalities. You should see us, what a mixed assembly; men of at least 10 different nations, all jumbled up together. Attached to this camp is a very big hospital for prisoners and it is in this hospital that I am working. There are five nations represented in my barracks. – though we are mostly British and French. We are only two RAMC men here, both belonging to the same ambulance, though we didn’t know that the other was captured until we were behind the German lines. Although we have medical officer prisoners here, representing every one of the allied nations, up to now we have no British doctors. However, the Romanian doctor (who has the oversight of this barracks) speaks French and so I have been working as an interpreter between our men and the Medical Officer. By the way, Bulman is the name of our unit who is here with me; so you are waiting for Joe, who I hope is still safe and well, you might tell him that Bulman and I are both in the same camp.

We are rather unfortunate in the matter of comforts etc from the Red Cross Society, though we are hoping that emergency parcels as they are known announce the prisoners will soon be coming along. Seeing that we are only allowed to write a letter every second Sunday would you save me a letter by notifying the OC of my ambulance that I am safe and a prisoner? He knows where and under what circumstances I stayed though naturally he will not know what has become of me. You might also tell him that just after I was captured and immediately behind the dressing station, I came across a squad of four RAMC bearers, who, together with the wounded case they were carrying in, had all been killed, apparently by the same shell. I was only able to get one man’s particulars, though having his name they may be able to trace the other three. His name was Private W G Gibson, 1/3^rd Northumbrian Field Ambulance. Our OC will then be able to communicate with the lad’s parents and the some anxious minds will be set at rest.

Now to my needs. Firstly, I am longing to know that you know that I am alright and after that – well, they are numerous. Let me explain. I was captured just as I stood with not an atom of kit beyond my steel helmet and gas mask, which, needless to say, were soon of no use to me. I have not even bare necessaries. I had to prowl about for a share as I’d a beard like my dad. I have to wash without soap which is unprocurable, and when you get it, it costs several shillings a tablet. I managed to get a towel on the second day of captivity out of the haversack of a poor ‘Tommy’ who will have no further need of it. I have no tobacco, which is exceptionally rare in this country; and to sum everything up I know what the word poverty means. But though I am minus so many things I am still rich. There is a sort of canteen in connection with the camp where certain things can be procured, but it needs money, and a lot. Can you let me have some, please?

I understand from the old prisoners that money can be sent through alright although I receive a parcel or so. I expect it’s little money I’ll want; still I’ll like to have some on me in case I should have need of it. Naturally, I need socks, a razor and shaving tackle, soap, tobacco etc. I was not conversant with regulations regarding parcels for prisoners of war, still you will be able to find out about this. Five kilos is the limit in weight, I believe. As for letters, you at home can write when you wish, whereas here we are allowed to write a card every Sunday and on alternate Sundays a letter. On the 28^th I hope to write to Peggy and then on August 11^th another letter to you. Well, now there are lots more I could say, but must stop. After my first one or two letters I guess I’ll have little to tell for it will be the same old thing day by day, still, cheerio! We’re not dead yet. A book would be a great distraction. I’d love to get one, a paper backed copy of ‘Adam Bede,’ for example. You will now be in chapel and I hope having a real good time; as for me, I am behind barbed wire, with nothing but a waste of shabby land I gaze upon. Still my heart is good and in spirit I’m with you all in the dear old country so cheer up and keep smiling – always looking forward – My kindest regards to all the good people at Rainham. Best love to you – Ever your loving son. Frank Perry.’

After his release Frank Perry returned to Rainham at the end of the war and was presented with the Military Medal because he had volunteered to stay with wounded comrades in the face of an enemy attack before being taken prisoner of war.