Cecil Domville Wynter
| Rank: | Captain |
| Regiment: | Irish Guards (Special Reserve), 1st Batallion attd. to 2nd Battalion |
| Country: | France |
| Cemetary/Memorial: | Woodhouse Eaves (Saint Paul’s) Churchyard Extension, Leicestershire (Ref. 71) |
| Awards: | British War Medal Victory Medal 1914-1915 Star |
Born in October 1883, in Stanton Harcourt, Witney, Oxfordshire, Captain Wynter died at home in London, on 5th October 1915, of a gunshot wound he had sustained whilst fighting in France on 27th September 1915. He was 32.
He was the son of Colonel Andrew Wynter (retired, Royal Fusiliers, 1847-1924) and Anne Hippolyta Wynter (nee Rawson, 1848-1928). He had two brothers, Henry (1883-1959) and John (1885-1962) and two sisters, Violet (1884-1963) and Edith (1888-1920). The family home was at Little Rissington, Stow on the Wold, Gloucestershire.
He was married to Margaret Constance (nee Gibson, 1886-1950).
Cecil attended Saint Ronan’s, alongside his brothers, from 1894 until 1897. 1895 saw him succeed on the sports field, winning the Junior High Jump, the Junior Quarter Mile and came second in the Junior Obstacle Race. He also came first in the annual gymnastics competition.
In 1896, Cecil won the Senior 100 Yards, The Senior Long Jump (11ft 4in), the 100 Yards (Junior), High Jump Senior (3ft 9½in) and came second in the Hurdles Race Final and the Wheelbarrow Race. He was a member of the cricket team, upon which The Ronian noted that he was “A very good bat indeed for his age. Times the ball well”. He also played football for the school where he was described as “particularly being good, and at times quite brilliant”. He was also a Prefect as well as being member of the Football, Reading Room and Grub Shop Committees. In November 1896, he was awarded his Football Colours for “distinguished play”.
In 1897, Cecil was appointed to the Athletics Committee and that year won the 100 Yards Hurdles, the 100 Yards Senior, the Three Legged Race and came second in the Senior High Jump, despite having a sprained knee.
He was appointed to the Cricket Committee, but his absence from the team at the start of the season was very much noted: “The absence of Wynter has been our other handicap. This has been conclusively shown by the very much more confident batting of the team in general since his return. Ogilvie has beatted very well indeed, in fact, his innings of 51 in the Rottingdean return match was considerably the best piece of work seen done by any S. Ronan’s boy, but he is not absolutely reliable, and he has not that healthy contempt for bad bowling which Wynter seems not only to have himself, but to be able to inspire into his companions. All this has worked heavily agaist us. The success of the eleven, and culminated in the absurd fiasco at Rottingdean, when the whole team were dismissed for 6 runs. Still, we are not going to despair; the two matches which have been played since Wynter’s return, have been won handsomely, and before that, our old opponents, Arlington House, had gone down: moreover, we still have several matches to be played, in which we hope to give a thoroughly good account of ourselves”.
In March 1897, Cecil was confirmed by the Lord Bishop of Chichester and, in the Autumn, he followed his brother Henry to Eton College. He was in H E Luxmore’s house and resident at Barns Pool Terrace. He played as “Outside Left” in their Association Eleven.
On 23rd November 1901, he was appointed as Second Lieutenant to the Oxfordshire Light Infantry, 4th Battalion.
In 1902, he served as a Lieutenant with the Royal Sussex Regiment, attached to the Oxfordshire Light Infantry Regiment, in the Boer War. He was awarded the Queen’s South African Medal with Transvaal Clasp. It is assumed that he must have resigned this commission and returned to civilian life.
He married Margaret Constance Gibson and, in 1908, is recorded as residing in Venado Tuerto, Argentina with his wife. He was working on an estancia (farm) near Drabble.
In 1909, Cecil is recorded as playing on the Eton Ramblers Cricket Team (an Old Etonian side) playing against the Royal Artillery at Woolwich Barracks.
Cecil and his wife returned to England in November 1914 on the Royal Mail Ship “Arlanza”. On 16th August 1914, after the UK entered the War, “Arlanza” had been off the coast of Brazil with more than 1,000 passengers aboard when the German 14,349 GRT auxilliary cruiser “Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse” intercepted her with the order “Stop or I will open fire”. The German ship then ordered her to dismantle her radio aerials and throw them overboard. “Arlanza” was then asked how many women and children she had on board. When she replied “355 women, 97 children”, the German ship ordered her to proceed. She was requisitioned by the Admiralty in 1915.
On 9th November 1914, Cecil was gazetted from the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry to the Irish Guards as a Lieutenant. On 10th September 1915, he was promoted to Captain and was transferred from 1st to 2nd Battalion.
The Irish Guards arrived in France in March 1914 and saw significant action on the front line. In 1914, they were engaged at The Battle of Mons (23rd August) and the subsequent retreat, The Battle of the Marne (5th-12th September), The Battle of Aisne (13th-28th September), and the First Battle of Ypres (19th October-22nd November).
In 1915, Lieutenant Wynter was assigned to No. 4 Company and the Battalion undertake Winter Operations (1914-1915), The Battle of Neuve Chapelle (10th-13th March), The Battle of Festubert (15th-25th May) and The Battle of Loos (25th September-8th October), where Captain Wynter was severely wounded.
Captain Wyner was a contemporary in the Irish Guards of Lieutenant John “Jack” Kipling, the only son of the author, Rudyard. Like many of those who fell alongside him, Loos was John Kipling’s first taste of war. He joined the fray two days into the battle as part of a reinforcement contingent of Irish Guards. Following his death on 27th September 1915 (the same day that Captain Wynter was injured) at the Battle of Loos, Lieutenant Kipling’s father extensively researched the Regiment, using war diaries of the battalions and first had accounts from the soliders involved.
In his book, “The Irish Guards in the Great War, Volume 2” Kipling notes Captain Wynter’s transfer from 1st to 2nd Batallion on 10th September. He goes on to describe how on 27th September 1915, the Commanding Officers of the four companies, including Captain Wynter as head of No.3 Company received instructions to push the Battalion forward to capture German trenches near Vermelles. No.3 Company were to advance from their trenches when the bombardment stopped and dig into the tough chalk on the further side of Chalk Pit Wood, and, with No.2 Company, hold the face of the wood. Subject to extensive machine gun attack, the Companies fell back and retired “into and through Chalk Pit Wood in some confusion”. Kipling writes: “The Battalion was swept from all quarters, and shelled at the same time, at the end of two hard days and sleepless nights, as a first experience of war, and had lost seven of their officers in forty minutes. They were reformed somewhat to the rear along the Loos-Hulloch road”.
A Guardsman is quoted as saying “Jerry did himself well at Loos upon us innocents. We went into it, knowing no more than our own dead what was coming, and Jerry fair lifted us out of it with machine guns. That was all there was to it that day”. The Battalion reformed the line determined to go up again exactly where it had come from.
Captain Wynter was severely wounded, by a gunshot wound to the head, during the fighting. He was invalided back to England but succumbed to his wounds on 5th October 1915 at his home in Park Lane, London. He is buried near the Wynter family home at Woodhouse Eaves, Leicestershire.
On 15th October 1915, “The Melton Mowbray Times & Vale of Belvoir Gazette” published the following article:
As a token of respect to the late Captain C.D. Wynter, of the Irish Guards,
brother of Mrs W.F. Martin, and to the local lads who have recently fallen in France,
a peal of grandaire doubles with bells half muffled, was rung at St. Peter’s Church
on Saturday evening. The peal was conducted by Mr T. Collins.
Cecil’s brothers also served and survived the War:
• John Rawson served as a Major with the Royal Field Artillery (Indian Army) 52nd Sikhs. He won the DSO for conspicuous gallantry. Though shot through the shoulder he continued to lead an attack on an enemy redoubt, entered it and held his position for some time against bomb attacks from both flanks. He then covered a flank with marked ability during the retirement, although again hit twice.
• Henry Walter served as a Major with the Royal Artillery, and also won the DSO.
Following her husband’s death, Margaret returned to Argentina in 1916. She remarried, to a gentleman named Alvan Penrice Little, an estanciera in Buenos Aires in 1923.
Captain Wynter is also listed on “Ireland’s Memorial Records, 1914-1918”.
The following is the War Diary of the Irish Guards, which details the events surrounding the wounding of Captain Wynter’s death.
| 27th October 1915 – Near Vermelles | |
| 2:30am | In answer to “BM.48S” the Commanding Officer went to Brigade Headquarters and received verbal instructions to push the Battalion forward 500 yards to another line of captured German trenches, relieving any troops that might happen to be there. This was done, although it was nearly broad daylight before the move was completed. The Battalion was then disposed thus, from right to left No.3 [led by Captain Wynter], No.2, No.1, with No.4 in reserve in 1a back line joined to the front line by a communication trench. |
| 9:30am | In accordance with instructions received from the Brigade, patrols were pushed out by No.2 and No.3 Companies. They both reported being unable to get to the Hulluch-Loos road on account of rifle fire. Sergeant McLoughlin (No.3 Company) did especially good work on this patrol. |
| 10:00am | In accordance with orders received the 4 Commanding Officers of 2nd Guards Brigade met the Brigadier at 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards Headquarters. He took them to a point just North of Loos from which they could see the Chalk Pit and wood and Puits 14 Bis (Square H.25). He said that he proposed to attack these points as follows. At 2.30pm a heavy artillery bombardment was to be made on them. At 4.00pm 2nd Battalion Irish Guards were to advance on to the Chalk Pit and wood and to establish themselves on the North, North East and South East faces of the wood. 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards were to support this attack. The 1st Battalion Scots Guards were to advance echeloned to the right rear of 2nd Battalion Irish Guards and to attack Puits 14 Bis moving round the South side of Chalk Pit Wood, 2nd Battalion Irish Guards bringing a heavy covering fire on to the Puirs to assist them. Four machine guns from the Brigade Machine Gun Company were to accompany the 2nd Battalion Irish Guards and to assist them with this covering fire. The 3rd Battalion Grenadier Guards were to support the 1st Battalion Scots Guards in this operation. |
| 2:40pm | The Commanding Officer having returned from this conference issued orders as follows to the 4 Company Commanders, pointing out the places on the ground:- No.3 Company (Captain Wynter) to advance with its right flank directed on the Southern point of Chalk Pit Wood, try to establish itself on the further side of the wood and dig in. No.2 Company (Captain Bird) to advance on left of No.3, straight at the centre of the wood and to continue No.3 Company’s line on the further edge of the wood, right up to and including the Chalk Pit. These 2 Companies were to leave their trenches at 3.50pm and both to get into position in front of their trenches lying down, and ready to rise and advance at 4.00pm. Both Companies were to adopt the same formation viz. one platoon extended in front as a line of skirmishers, and the other 3 platoons of each Company, each platoon in column of fours and separated from one another. As soon as these 2 Companies had cleared the trenches No.1 and No.4 Companies were to close to their right up the trench and at 4.00pm when the leading 2 Companies advanced, they were to leave their trenches in the same way as No.3 and No.2 Companies had done and to advance in rear of these 2 Companies, No.1 in rear of No.3, and No.4 in rear of No.2. A few casualties occurred from shell fire during the process of deploying the 2 leading Companies but at 4.00pm they advanced to the attack keeping their direction and their formation perfectly. The other 2 Companies then deployed and followed. The Commanding Officer and Battalion staff went forward by an old German communication to the Hulluch-Loos road which runs parallel to and about 260 yards distant from the North West edge of Chalk Pit Wood and there they met the two supporting Companies as they came up. The Companies advanced rapidly and without hesitation and gained the further edge of the wood with small loss. No.1 Company was pushed forward to thicken No.3 Company’s line on the right, and 2 platoons of No.4 Company went in, in rear of No.2. While digging in on further side of the wood 2nd Lieutenant Pakenham Law was wounded in the neck and subsequently died from the effects of this wound in hospital. |
| 4:45pm | As the left of the line did not appear to have extended as far as the Chalk Pit the Commanding Officer ordered the 2 remaining platoons which were just coming up, to bear off to their left and to seize and hold the Chalk Pit. Meanwhile 1st Battalion Scots Guards had come up partly round and partly through the right flank of the 2nd Battalion Irish Guards and had captured Puits 14 Bis. 2nd Lieutenant’s Clifford and Kipling and some few Irish Guardsmen had also gone forward with this party, and had reached a line just beyond the Puits buildings. While there according to the evidence of No.6346 Corporal Russiter (No.2 Company) and No.5824 Private Power (No.2 Company) 2nd Lieutenant Clifford was shot and wounded or killed. Also while there, according to the evidence of No.5838 Private Green (No.2 Company) 2nd Lieutenant Kipling was wounded. These 2 officers were subsequently missing, shortly before 5.00am the men in and beyond the Puits commenced to retire, and fell back into and through Chalk Pit Wood in some confusion. The Commanding Officer and Adjutant went forward through the wood to clear up the situation, and while going through the wood, Captain and Adjutant, The Honourable T. Vesey was wounded and carried away. Almost at the same moment and before the Commanding Officer had reached the further edge of the wood, the men from the Puits came streaming back through the wood, followed by a great part of the Irish Guards line which had been digging in on the further side of the wood. Efforts to stop them in the wood or on the near edge of the wood proved futile, but the line was reformed along the Hulluch-Loos road. Two Companies of 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards had in the meantime arrived in the hollow just North West of this road, in response to a message sent by the Commanding Officer to 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards asking for support. |
| 5:15pm | Orders were now issued for the line to again advance up to and through the wood to re-establish themselves in the line which was thought to be abandoned when a message arrived by hand from Captain Alexander stating that he was still in the trenches and required more men up there. A portion of the line was therefore sent up from the Hulluch-Loos road to the further side of the wood and the remainder of the line was sent up to the near side of the wood in support. The front line was divided into 3 sections from right to left under Officers as follows:- Captain Alexander, Captain Bird, Captain Hubbard. |
| 6:00pm | 2 Companies 1st Coldstream Guards came up on left of 2nd Battalion Irish Guards and seized and established themselves in the Chalk Pit. During the night the men got well down into the hard chalk soil although they had few tools to do it with other than their entrenching implement. Support trenches were also dug in rear of the wood, and some 100 men of various regiments were collected by the Commanding Officer and blocked in an old German communication trench as there was a gap between the left of 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards and the troops next to them (1st Guards Brigade) through which the enemy might attack the 2nd Battalion Irish Guards in rear. |
| 28th September 1915 – Near Vermelles | |
| 11:15pm | Commanding Officer sent a message to Brigade Headquarters explaining the position in front in detail. The 2nd Battalion Irish Guards trenches were subjected to a very heavy but luckily, not very accurate shelling at intervals throughout the day. 2nd Lieutenant Sassoon was wounded early in the morning of Thursday by a rifle bullet. |
| 3:45pm | 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards attacked Puits 14 Bis but without success. The situation therefore throughout the night was as before working. It rained throughout the night. |
| 29th September 1915 - Near Vermelles | |
| Heavy and accurate shelling throughout the morning. Many shells pitched actually on to the trenches burying many men and blowing a few to pieces. Despite this the casualties for the day amounted to only about 20, all of which were caused by shell fire. | |
| 4:30pm | Message received from 3rd Guards Brigade (on 2nd Battalion Irish Guards right) to say that Germans were massing in Bois Hugo and front of the Battalion. All ranks were warned but no attack took place. The artillery claimed to have broken up this German attempt by their shell fire on to Bois Hugo. |
| 6:00pm | 2nd Brigade sent a message to say that Chalk Pit Wood must be held at all costs, that there would probably be no reliefs for 2 days, that certain modifications in the Brigade line were to take place. As it transpired these did not affect 2nd Battalion Irish Guards. |
| 30th September 1915 – Near Vermelles | |
| Shelling was again as accurate and heavy as yesterday. | |
| 11:00pm | The welcome news arrived that the Brigade was to be relieved. Norfolk Regiment relieved 2nd Battalion Irish Guards. The night was dark and wet, it was nearly midnight before the relief was completed. On relief the Battalion marched via Sailly La Bourse to billets at Verquigneuil where they arrived very wet, dirty, and exhausted. Before leaving a fatigue party of 50 men under 2nd Lieutenant Tallents was detailed to dig a communication trench from near the southern edge of Chalk Pit Wood North West to a line of trenches and dugouts just North of Loos (ie; from G.30.B.5.1. to G.30.A.4.9.) This party dug from about 8.00pm till nearly midnight when 2nd Lieutenant Tallents decided to stop as the men were physically incapable of further effort. |
The total casualties in the Battalion during the period 27 – 30th September were:
2nd Lieutenant Pakenham Law, died of wounds.
Captain and Adjutant Hon. T. Vesey, wounded.
Captain Wynter, wounded.
Lieutenant Stevens, wounded.
2nd Lieutenant Clifford, missing probably killed.
2nd Lieutenant Kipling, wounded and missing.
2nd Lieutenant Sassoon, wounded.
2nd Lieutenant Grayson, wounded (shock).
Other ranks: Killed - 25 Wounded - 198 Missing - 101 Total - 324
The majority of the 101 “missing” were eventually found to have been admitted to some Field Ambulances wounded.
