Second Lieutenant Lionel Winnington Forde
| Date of Birth | c. 1899 |
|---|---|
| Age at Death | 19 |
| Date of Death | 8 June 1918 |
| Service Number | |
| Military Service | 6th Battalion Dorset Regiment |
| Merton Address | 7 Ridgway Gardens, Wimbledon |
| Local Memorial | Wimbledon Parish Church |
Additional Information
Lionel was born in 1899 to Lionel and Gertrude Forde (nee Pollen). He was baptised on the 25th of April at Wimbledon Parish Church. His father was a Colonel in the Royal Artillery and Lionel had two siblings, including an older sister, Blanche, who was born in India. The family seems to have moved back to Wimbledon shortly before Lionel’s birth, settling at 7 Ridgway Gardens. By 1911 the Forde family had transferred to Greenhithe, Kent, where they inhabited a 12 room house with two servants.
Lionel joined the army in November 1916, aged just 17. Described as 5’9”, 129 pounds, with a 32 inch chest, he was considered too thin by army standards, but was allowed to enlist anyway in the hope that he would eventually fill out. Sadly he was killed about eighteen months later, when a shell reportedly exploded during a night raid in Beaumont Hamel, France.