Private Reginald Percy Marley

The Battle of Loos would pay a hefty toll on the men from the 8th Devons, not to mention the men from Great Torrington. Reginald Percy Marley would be the third victim. Born in Exeter in 1890, Reginald was part of a well travelled family. We first meet his family living in the Stonehouse area of Plymouth, 30 Hobart Street, to be exact. At this time his father, Samuel, has a profession as a “Writer R N”. The family also comprises of his mother, Elizabeth Jane, and their two first children, William and Edith. Reginald’s aunt, Harriet Field, a dressmaker, completes the family from the 1881 census.

The following decade finds the family having moved to Scanes Court, St Thomas, Exeter. Samuel is missing from the family at this stage and will be for the remainder of the census information; Elizabeth Jane now heads up the household. With Reginald being recently born, he is the youngest of the household of four more siblings, George, Edith, Winifred and Victor.

By 1901 we find the family on the move again, this time to Totnes with the family living at 8 Fore Street. Head of household, Elizabeth, has an occupation listed as “refreshment hose”, which presumably refers to their establishment, especially bearing in mind the address being centrally located in the traditional shopping area. The family also have a range of jobs including painter, draper’s assistant and carpenter’s apprentice for William, Edith and Albert. Winifred, Victor and Reginald (called Percival in this document) are all of school age. It is worth noting from the birthplaces of the children in the household that they would have lived in Liverpool for a number of years, which adds to the number of moves the family would have undertaken.

[1] devonheritage.org. TOTNES WAR MEMORIAL 1914 - 1918

[2] North Devon Journal. October 14th 1915. ‘North Devon War Items’.

Finding the whereabouts of Reginald by 1911 has proven difficult and, as far as I’m aware, no record exists of his movements at this time. Indeed, the same can be said for his mother, although there are later reports of her living at Fore Street in Totnes. [1] Indeed, his elder brother, William, can still be found living in Totnes, this time at 3 Bridgetown Road. As well as his new wife, Bertha, familiar faces from the family can be found living at the same address, including his siblings Albert, Winifred and Victor. However, we do know that between this time and the beginning of hostilities, Reginald would begin work as a chauffeur for the proprietor of the Globe Hotel, Mr Parnell, and lodged with a Mr R Ebsary in Great Torrington [2].

Having joined the colours shortly after the outbreak of the war, Reginald was aligned with the 8th Devons, his service number being 10630. Following the standard basic training, he was shipped to France and was in country for about four months before the commencement of the offensive at Loos. As with the two soldiers before, Reginald, too, would also be a victim in the first day of fighting at the Battle of Loos on 26th September 1915. Although initially reported wounded in mid October, it would not be till November that his family in Totnes would be officially notifies of his death. It was also reported that he was one of four brothers serving in the forces. Reginald is commemorated at the Loos Memorial. His name can also be found on the Totnes war memorial, as well as the memorial in Great Torrington.