Private Robert William Hewitt Capell

Robert Capell’s family roots can be traced to Devon with his father, William Henry Capell, being born in Cullompton in 1865. From here, there are strong links to Sussex. He would marry Robert’s mother, Ada, born in Keynsham. Robert was born in 1894. The 1901 census data finds the family living at 39 Caledonian Road, Chichester, Sussex. As well as Robert, there are four of his siblings in the household, these being Percy H, Florence M, Dorothy A and Winifred M. Sister-in-law Alice Mary Hallett completes the family. The birth places of the children provide an insight into the movements of the family since their birth. This includes Robert, born in Melksham, Wiltshire; Percy being born in 1896 in Shaftesbury and the youngest three born from 1896 to 1901 in Winchester, Sussex. The other piece of information we can see is the William’s occupation is listed as a “commercial traveller (grocer)”.

When they moved to Great Torrington cannot be precisely determined from the information available. However, we know they were resident in the town from the early 1900s. This includes both Percy and Robert’s school records, they were registered to the Great Torrington Council School (Boys) in 1904. There are also a number of newspaper articles from 1905 to 1906 referencing the family with Percy being regularly mentioned in drawing competitions. They are regularly linked with Weare Giffard and a presumption would be that they live in the village.

The 1911 census is also revealing. Their address is 49 South Street, Great Torrington. The family have also expanded, whilst we still see the parents and Percy, Florence, Dorothy and Winifred in the household, there are also two new additions with brothers Cecil and Ernest now joining them. With regards to occupations, William is employed as a “plumbers clerk and cycle agent”, Percy as a “chemist assistant” and Florence as a “drapery apprentice”. Most revealing of all is that Robert is not part of the household at this point. To find him we need to look further afield to Christchurch, London; his address is listed as 95 Southwark Street. At 18 years old his occupation is a “Wholesale Manchester Warehouseman”. It’s worth noting that the word “Manchester” in this is a bit of a red herring and doesn’t directly refer to the city. At that time, the city of Manchester was the leading area for the cotton trade, so the finest cotton cloths were given this trade name. Therefore, Manchester Warehouses referred to the product and trade, rather than the location. We can also see that before his move to London, Robert served his apprenticeship with Messrs S Webber and Son of Great Torrington. It is reported once this was completed and moving to London he commenced employment with Messrs Cook’s Warehouse, St Paul’s Churchyard [1].

Robert’s exact enlistment date is not recorded. We know that he enlisted with the 1/15th (County of London) Battalion (Prince of Wales's Own Civil Service Rifles). His Service Number was 3718 and he held the rank of Private. This was one of three battalions formed, which would add to the ranks of the 4th London Brigade. These would in turn be part of the wider 2nd London Division, although in 1915 it became known as the 47th Division. The first troops from the battalion would land in Le Havre, France on the 18th March 1915. They were part of the ‘great push’ and engaged in continuous combat since the beginning of the Somme offensive.

Battle of Flers-Courcelette

One of the battles that made up the overarching Somme offensive was the Battle of Flers-Courcelette. The full scale assault started on the 15th September 1915 and the opening gambit would be the attempted capture of High Wood. The wooded area had been subject to a number fierce exchanges in the prelude to the battle. By the time the 15th September had come, it was estimated that some 6000 Allied casualties had been sustained in this fighting.

The customary artillery bombardment, originally planned for 3 days, was eventually dropped as the two front lines were considered too close together to be effective. With this part omitted, the plan would see four tanks leading the infantry across no-man’s-land. On point would be the 47th Londoners, including Private Capell, with the 50th Division on their left and the New Zealanders to their right. Reservations were raised about the use of tanks for this operation because of their vulnerability to conditions such as getting hoisted on the vast number of tree stumps or floundering in craters that already scarred the landscape. These concerns were dismissed.

Zero hour was 6.20am, which saw the commencement of the attack. The previously raised concerns about the suitability of the use of tanks in the terrain before them sure enough came to fruition. All four met with difficulty and played no effective part in the attack, which left the infantry dangerously exposed. The crossfire of the German machine gun positions was withering and this was compounded by their artillery fire, which also opened up in the early stages of the assault. The ranks of Civil Service Rifles mounted up devastating casualties in a short period of time with around 80% of their number being affected; this included two of the Company Commanders being killed. The survivors had no chance but to make their way back to their trench line.

Other battalions were thrown into the mixer to try and push an advantage. By mid morning, British forces had reached the woods and the 8th Londoners (the Post Office Rifles) had reached the enemy trenches. Artillery support and further reinforcements bolstered the attack; these included the remnants of the Civil Service Rifles who were sent into fight again after their earlier pummelling. By 1pm High Wood had been captured, although the cost had been high.

Amongst the casualties was Private Capell, who was reported as being killed in action. Robert's grave is unmarked but, as well as being remembered on the Great Torrington war memorial, he is also remembered on the Thiepval Memorial, which located in the Somme area of France.

The Thiepval Memorial, France

[1] North Devon Journal. October 19th 1919. ‘Torrington Soldier Killed In Action’.