Died
13th January 1917
Sources
Barrow News
The Regimental Museum of The Royal Welsh, Brecon
Place
Walks
Barrow 2 point 19
Themes
Company Sergeant-Major Henry Lynch
Accident or Murder?
The Royal Welsh Fusiliers were formed in 1881, previously they were the 23rd Regiment of Foot. In 1921 they were allowed to change their title to Royal WELCH Fusiliers. In 2006 they were amalgamated with the Royal Regiment of Wales to form a new regiment called The Royal Welsh. The 5th Battalion RWF were a Territorial Force battalion Most of this battalion stayed in the UK guarding barracks/docks /bridges, etc. and was called the 5th Garrison Battalion.
Company Sergeant Major Henry Lynch was a member of The South Wales Borderers, with the Number 4919 prior to the outbreak of WW1. He was sent to France with the 1st Battalion on 13.8.1914 as part of the British Expeditionary Force. He was awarded three campaign medals: 1914 Star, British War medal, Victory medal.
He was at some date unknown transferred to the RWF and renumbered 58764. Interestingly the original 1914 Star medal roll is annotated “CSM Henry Lynch died of wounds 5th Garrison Battalion RWF, No 58764”.
Information courtesy of The Regimental Museum of The Royal Welsh, Brecon
Where is the grave?
From the Catholic Chapel of Rest at the far end of the cemetery, the grave is in the centre of the area down the hill from the Chapel, slightly to the left.
Company Sergeant-Major Henry Lynch of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers met his death in tragic circumstances at the company office at Cavendish Dock. His assailant, Private Thomas Clinton, denied intent. Lynch was nearly 40, and had been in the RWF for 21 years 9 months.
Various accounts can be found in the local Barrow News:
Barrow News
- Inquest Saturday 20th January 1917: they found that death was due to ‘wilful murder’.
- Magistrates Court Appearance 27th January 1917
- Manchester Assizes Trial 17th February 1917
- Appeal fails 5th March 1917
- Hanged at Strangeways, Manchester 21st March 1917
“NOW THEN SERGEANT MAJOR!”
MURDER AT BARROW
PRIVATE SENTENCED TO DEATH
Thomas Clinton, aged 28, a private in the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, now stationed at Barrow, was charged before Mr. Justice Shearman, at Manchester Assizes, today, with the wilful murder of Company Sergt.-Major Lynch, of the same corps, at Barrow, by shooting him with a rifle on January 13th. Mr. A. H. Maxwell and Mr. Lyndon Riley were counsel for the prosecution, and the prisoner, who pleaded not guilty, was defended by Mr. Gilbert Jordan. Mr. Maxwell outlined the circumstances under which Lynch met his death with a bullet wound discharged from a rifle which the prisoner had pointed at his face as the sergt.-major sat writing. The only defence which counsel could see might be put forward was that the rifle went off by accident, and that defence, he said, was indirectly suggested before the magistrates. The facts, however, submitted Mr. Maxwell, did not suggest it. There was, it was true, no direct evidence of motive on the part of the prisoner towards the deceased, but certain statements made by Clinton to the police after his arrest made it clear that, to put it as mildly as possible, he had a strong dislike to Lynch – a dislike probably intensified that in November Lynch had reason to complain of the prisoner’s conduct in the guard-room, and had ordered him to be put under guard. He afterwards gave evidence against the prisoner, who was sentenced for the offence to seven days imprisonment and a fine of 7s 6d. Evidence in support of the prosecution was given by Captain Webb, the officer commanding the prisoner’s and the deceased man’s company; by Mr. Edward Muir Young, architect, of Barrow; Sergt. Job Barrow, and a number of other witnesses.
Second-Lieut. Bennett and Sergt. William David Jones spoke to the prisoner having complained about his food on January 13th. The latter said that Lynch was not concerned with these complaints. He was only concerned with matters of discipline.
EYE-WITNESS’S EVIDENCE
Pte. William Parry said he saw the prisoner carry his rifle to the company room, where Lynch was sitting. When he entered the room, he was holding the rifle on guard. Immediately afterwards witness heard the report of a rifle, and then the prisoner came out of the room holding his hands to his face. He had not then the rifle with him. Prisoner went down on his knee. The guard was summoned, and then Lynch also left the room. He had not gone three yards before he fell, exclaiming, “I am dead, I am dead!”
Pte. Parry took into the witness-box a rifle with a fixed bayonet, and illustrated how accused entered the office where Lynch was, holding the rifle directly in front of him in the ‘on guard’ position.
Lance-Corpl. W. J. Davies, who was in the company room at the time of this affair, said the prisoner, as he entered the room, carrying the rifle on guard, exclaimed, “Now, then, Sergt.-Major!” and immediately discharged the rifle at a distance of two or three feet away from Lynch. The latter put his hands up to his neck, and the prisoner walked out of the room without saying a word. He dropped his rifle as he left the room, and he was then taken away in charge by the guard.
Cross-examined by Mr. Jordan, witness said the rifle was still on the “on guard” position when it was discharged.
Pte.Wilkins Smithies corroborated the last witness as to the circumstances under which Lynch was shot, and said that he himself was so much upset by the incident that he collapsed.
Sergt. David Edwin Palmer said that on Nov. 4th, when the battalion was at Bebington, Lynch had to order prisoner under arrest for drunkenness.
Dr. George Alexander, of Barrow, said that he was called in to Lynch, who was lying on the office floor. The man died shortly afterwards, and upon examining him, witness found a gunshot wound in the lower part of the throat. The wound might have been caused by the rifle produced in court. Death was due to gunshot wound.
Inspector Duckworth and P.C.s Townson and Goad the evidence they gave before the magistrates as to the statement made by the prisoner after his arrest.
Mr. Maxwell asked the jury to come to the conclusion that the statement prisoner was said to have made to Goad as to his having let go at Lynch, showed his intention of killing him.
At the police station, accused said to a police constable: “Did the bullet hit the sergeant-major? He is a swine! It is a wonder he has not been laid out before. I let go at him. He deserved all he got.”
A statement made by the accused in the police court was read, in which he said that when he went in, the sergeant-major gave him a ‘terrible look’, and before he knew what happened the rifle went off. He had no spite towards the dead man.
THE DEFENCE
Mr. Jordan, addressing the jury for the defence, argued that the prosecution had not disproved the prisoner’s statement before the magistrates, that before he knew where he was, or what had happened, the rifle went off. It was for the jury to decide whether this was a cold-blooded murder, or whether it was one of those extraordinary accidents that would happen from time to time with firearms such a little movement might bring about a terrible result, and he ventured to say that, taking all the circumstances into consideration, the jury could not fix upon any one act which showed an intention on the art of the prisoner to kill Lynch. There was practically no dispute as to the fact. Upon them he asked for the prisoner’s acquittal.
The Judge, in summing up, said this was a lamentable case, whichever way it was looked at. There was no question of manslaughter. It was either murder or acquittal.
The jury, after twenty minutes retirement, found the accused guilty of murder.
Asked if he had anything to say, the prisoner said: “I have only one word (sic!) to say. Although these gentlemen have found me guilty, there is only one judge – and that is the Great Judge –before whom I now say ‘I am innocent,’ although you have found me guilty.”The Judge said that a jury of his fellow-countrymen had found the prisoner guilty, and had it not been for what the prisoner had just said from the dock, he (the Judge) would not have added another word. As it was, he felt bound to say that he agreed with the verdict of the jury. He then pronounced the sentence of death in the usual form, and the prisoner was at once removed from the dock.
There are a number of inconsistencies in the 3 accounts, many of them spellings of names. At the inquest reported on the 20th January, it is reported:
Private Tom Barry said he was six or seven yards from the company office. He saw Clinton come from the guard- room in the direction of the company office. He carried the rifle ‘at the trail’ into the company office, and as he went in turned it at the ‘examine’.
Is this the Pte. Parry who uses the term ‘on guard’ in the trial? Is ‘examine’ the same as ‘on guard’?
In the report of the Magistrates Court appearance, Det.-Inspector Duckworth says that Clinton asked “Will you answer me one question? Did the bullet strike him? That is what I want to know. He has been a scamp to everyone in the company. I am sorry to say he has been a bad ‘un.”
The prisoner made the following statement to the court: On the 13th January I was warned by the orderly sergeant to mount guard at 2.30. I fell in with the new guard by the huts and marched to Cavendish Dock. I was told by the orderly sergeant that I would be the T. N. T. guard. I had a complaint to make to the orderly officer. After the orderly officer had inspected the guard, I motioned to the orderly sergeant to tell him that I wanted to speak to him. The orderly officer asked what was the complaint, and I told him that I had had no dinner. He told me to fall in again, then he told the orderly sergeant to change me from the T. N. T. guard to Cavendish Dock for the purpose of getting me a dinner. .......
He later said: ... If I had any spite against Sergt.-Major Lynch; if I had ever meant to do him harm, I could have done so many a time when I was on No. 2 post at Cavendish Dock. .... All I have got to say now is people in Barrow won’t look upon me as a murderer when they know the truth. They will understand things. The lads in the camp will also do (sic). I do not think I have one enemy in the whole camp.
