Victor Kenneth MALLPRESS

VICTOR KENNETH MALLPRESS

(Information courtesy of Steve Parker)

BIRTH
Victor Kenneth Mallpress was born in March 1890 to William and Rosetta Mallpress, both 28 years old, in Skipton, Yorkshire in the civil parish of Bilton-with-Harrogate. They resided at No. 23 Regent Avenue. Victor had two elder brothers at the time, Hubert William, aged 4, and Robert Francis, aged 2. His father was a Concert Manager and living at the same address was a lodger, Fred Mills, aged 26, who was a “vocalist”. The family therefore appear to have been in the entertainment industry. How long the family had been in Yorkshire is unknown at this time as the 1890 census states that William had been born in Cambridgeshire and Rosetta came from Maidstone, Kent.

EARLY LIFE
Life could not have been easy for Victor and his family in the early years of his life as by the time of the 1901 census, Victor’s mother Rosetta was recorded as being head of the household at 38 years old. As she is recorded as being a widow then Victor’s father must have passed away before his 10th birthday. With no other source of income Rosetta became a self-employed washerwoman working from home whilst bringing up her young family. At this time Victor’s eldest brother Hubert, aged just 15, was a pupil teacher. The family had now moved to No. 5 Station Lane, Birkenshaw, Bradford.

CHESTER COLLEGE
At the age of 18 Victor was admitted to Chester Diocesan Training College (as it was known then) and left in 1913 as a qualified Elementary School Teacher and went to teach for West Riding County Council. Here he lodged at 44 Oxford Road Guiseley with a Mr. and Mrs. Frankland and 2 other boarders. Arthur Frankland was the sub-postmaster in the district and was also a confectioner with Mrs. Frankland being recorded as assisting in the business. It seems like they ran the general stores and post office in the area. The other boarders were not teachers – one was a designer in a wood factory and the other boarder was the Manager of a local rag Merchant.

ARMY SERVICE
Victor’s teaching career did not last long as on the 12th September 1914 he enlisted for 4 years’ service in the 23rd Battalion London Regiment of the Territorial Force, as 2876 Private Victor Kenneth Mallpress and was stationed at 14 St. Lawrence Road Brixton, London.
On 14th March 1915 Victor’s battalion embarked from Southampton for France on the ship “Copenhagen”, landing at 8am the following day at Le Havre and then marched for the next 3 days to their rest camp at Arques at 4am. They then continued marching to Lespesses arriving on the 19th March and then on to St. Hilaire arriving on the 20th/21st March.
There then followed an intensive week of training including drill, fire control, digging and filling in trenches and bayonet fighting –not forgetting the Divine Service which all soldiers had to attend. At the end of the week the battalion then marched again to Labeuvriere for more training in musketry and sniping.
After Easter on 8th April 1915 the battalion was on the march again, this time to Oblinghem where they stayed for further training for 3 days before moving on to Les Glaugmes and finally entering the trenches with the 1st Guards Brigade (Black Watch, Coldstream Guards, Cameron Highlanders and London Scottish) on 11th April. After just over a week and sustaining light casualties (2 killed and 11 wounded) the Battalion left the trenches at 8.30pm and billeted at Mesplaux and Les Facons. After more weeks of marching to Allouagne the Battalion re-entered the trenches at Rue du Bois at 6.30pm on 24th April.
The Battalion war diaries then go into further details of life in the trenches over the next few days, including training in using telescopic sights with their rifles, breakfast, parades, drill and even leaving the trenches for a short time to bath in a nearby canal.
On 11th May the 23rd Battalion then marched to Le Preol for 4 days and then on to Beuvry on 22nd May and then back in the trenches at Givenchy.

LEST WE FORGET
On 25th May 1915 the Battalion received orders to attack the German trenches at J.7 200yds south of their position. In doing so they incurred 499 casualties, including 3 officers killed and wounded. The attack had succeeded in so far as capturing the German occupied trench was concerned but conditions were so bad that the soldiers were confined to a very narrow section. German troops then regrouped and formed a pincer movement and using machine guns from either end of the trench inflicted such heavy casualties on the 23rd Battalion in what became known as the Battle of Festubert.
The following day the remaining soldiers were relieved by the 20th battalion London regiment and marched to Le Quesnol. On 27th May the names of just 122 of the soldiers who had been killed the day before were received by the Battalion from Division as being buried. Those remaining soldiers were addressed by General Sir C. C. Munro accompanied by Major-General Barter – G.O.C. London Division.
On June 10th 1915, 2876 Private Victor Kenneth Mallpress was declared as “Missing in Action – Presumed Dead”. Aged just 25.
Tragically, less than a week later, Victor’s brother Robert Francis Mallpress, Sgt in the Yorkshire Regiment was also killed in action, aged 28 years old.
Victor’s eldest brother Hubert survived the war and passed away aged 80 in Maidstone, Kent where their mother, Rosetta had returned to her birthplace some years earlier.
There is a memorial to the fallen at Le Touret Military Cemetery, Richebourg L’Avoue. No Graves exist for Victor or Robert. Their names are inscribed on a panel in the archways at Le Touret.