Company Sergeant Major Thomas William Capel
| Date of Birth | c. 1858 |
|---|---|
| Age at Death | 58 |
| Date of Death | 27 October 1916 |
| Service Number | 31673 |
| Military Service | 29th Battalion, Duke of Cambridge's Own, Middlesex Regiment |
| Merton Address | |
| Local Memorial | Streatham Park Cemetery |
Additional Information
Thomas William Capel was born in Malta in 1858.
He married Sarah Jane Crawford in Rangoon, India on 11 June 1881 and they had nine children – Nellie, Thomas, Lilian, Sarah, George, Donald, Annie, Victor and Eileen. At the 1901 census they were living in Brixton and Thomas was a Railway Signal Fitter.
By 1911 they had moved a short distance to 45 Thornton Street, Brixton and Thomas recorded his occupation as Verger (Army Pensioner).
As regular units from the further garrisons of Empire arrived back in England after having received recall orders soon after war was declared, many having waited until a Territorial unit had gone out to replace them, they were formed up into three Divisions, numbered 27th to 29th. The 29th, consisting of units that arrived from the most distant stations, was formed in the Stratford-Warwick-Leamington-Rugby-Nuneaton area of Warwickshire in January-March 1915. Originally intended for France, pressure on Lord Kitchener to launch a ground attack at Gallipoli forced him to deploy the Division there.
The 29th Division embarked at Avonmouth on 16-22 March 1915 and went via Malta to Alexandria. On 7 April the first units to have arrived at Egypt began to re-embark for the move to Mudros, the deep water harbour at the island of Lemnos that was going to be used as a forward base for operations at Gallipoli. The Division landed at Cape Helles on Gallipoli on 25 April 1915 and subsequently took part in action there.
On the nights 7-8 January 1916, the Division was evacuated from Gallipoli and all units returned to Egypt. Orders were received there on 25 February for a move to France. Embarking in March it arrived at Marseilles and moved to concentrate in the area east of Pont Remy between 15 and 29 March. The Division remained on the Western Front for the remainder of the war.
The only confirmed record that we have of Thomas’s war service is the Register of his Effects which shows that he was transferred to the 4th London General Hospital where he died on 27 October 1916 but it is possible that he was injured at the Battle of the Somme. He is buried in Streatham Park Cemetery.