Military Chat

Hi. Can anyone help. I have just found a ancestor who was killed in the Battle of Jutland on board a ship which was lost with all hands. I know he is named on a memorial in Plymouth but what I am seeking knowledge on is would he have been registered and a death certificate issued as I am unable to find it on the web sites.
Thanks Frances.

not sure if this link will help
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-person/war-deaths.htm

This might give a bit of information:-

http://www.fhindexes.co.uk/samples/jutland.pdf

Kath. x

Although the GRO normally just holds d.certs for deaths in England & Wales, war deaths (i.e., Boer War, WW1, WW2) are an exception for those in the services. They are indexed seperately from normal deaths, and the info on a d.cert is usually nothing that's not on the CWGC site (except for cause of death - killed, died of wounds, missing (presumed dead) and sickness are separated out). Also, if the serviceman was born in, or enlisted in, Ireland or Scotland, the d.cert is probably held there.

Frances, why not give us his name and details so we can take a look and see if we can turn anything up?

I'll remind Frances of how to find her replies..... :-)

Hi everyone
Sorry I have not replied sooner been off for a while poorly. but I am back now.
My ancestors name was Edwin Moss who was born in Plymouth in 1887 and was on board the Defiance when it went down at the battle of Jutland in 1916. His name is on the memorial at Plymouth Hoe and his name has been added to his parents grave in Ford Park Cemetery. Plymouth. What I would really like is a copy of some form of death certificate for him. I would also like to find out what time the ship went down. Edwin was an Electrical Artificer on board the ship.

Thanks everyone for you replies,

From FMP


First name(s) Edwin
Last name Moss
Gender Male
Birth year 1887
Birth date 9 Dec 1887
Birth place Plymouth
Birth county Devon
Death year 1916
Death date 31 May 1916
Age 28
Departure port -
Series ADM 242
Box 0009
Service RN
Record set Deaths at sea, 1781-1968
Category Birth, Marriage, Death & Parish Records
Record collection Deaths & burials
Collections from Great Britain

Looking at that image on FMP it says HMS Defence

Will forward a copy

Time the vessel went down

"Four minutes after crossing the Lion's bows the Defence was hit by two heavy salvoes in quick succession, and the Admiral and his flagship disappeared in a roar of flame (6.20)."
http://goo.gl/wnA9In

Not sure if that is AM or PM :-S

HMS Defiance was the last wooden line-of-battle ship launched for the Royal Navy.
She was a 91-gun screw propelled second rate launched in 1861. She became the Navy's torpedo school ship in 1884 and was sold in 1931.
(HMS Defiance was the Royal Navy's torpedo school, established in 1884 in the second rate HMS Defiance, and in subsequent ships that were renamed HMS Defiance.)

===============

The ship sunk at Jutland was HMS Defence.
Escorting the main body of the Grand Fleet, the ship was fired upon by one German battlecruiser and four dreadnoughts as she attempted to engage a disabled German light cruiser. She was struck by two salvoes from the German ships that detonated her rear magazine. The fire from that explosion spread to the ship's secondary magazines, which exploded in turn. There were no survivors.
At the time, it was believed that Defence had been reduced to fragments by the explosion, but the wreck was discovered in mid-1984 by Clive Cussler and a NUMA survey of the North Sea and English Channel at coordinates 56°58'02?N 05°49'50?ECoordinates: 56°58'02?N 05°49'50?E. It was dived upon in 2001 by a team led by nautical archaeologist Innes McCartney and found to be largely intact, despite the incredible violence of her sinking. Defence, along with the other Jutland wrecks, was belatedly declared a protected place under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986, to discourage further damage to the resting place of approximately 900 men.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Defence_(1907)

The discovery of the wreck:
http://www.numa.net/expeditions/north-sea-and-english-channel-hunt/

This article has wreck & pre-sinking pics:
http://tinyurl.com/lr5k5eq

EDIT - See also
http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_HMS_Defence.html

It was p.m. (from Wikipedia)

List of those aboard

http://northeastmedals.co.uk/britishguide/jutland/hms_defence_casualty_list_1916.htm

This is the death record from Findmypast:-

First name(s) Edwin
Last name Moss
Gender Male
Birth year 1887
Birth date 9 Dec 1887
Birth place Plymouth
Birth county Devon
Death year 1916
Death date 31 May 1916
Age 28
Departure port -
Series ADM 242
Box 0009
Service RN
Record set Deaths at sea, 1781-1968

It gives his wife as Ethel M. Moss of 59 Wolsden Street. Plymouth, Devon

Not sure whether there is a death certificate or not. Perhaps you could contact the GRO in Southport or the National Archives and ask them.

EDIT - Sorry Glitterbaby, just realised you found this record a few days ago.

Kath. x