Shropshire heir whose body was brought home
For days the body of Lieutenant Maurice Darby, the last male heir of Shropshire's famous Darby dynasty, lay on the battlefield. It was destined, it seemed, to decay and disappear like so many others during the Great War.
But, very unusually, he did not join those who lie forever in a foreign field. His maternal uncle pulled some strings and got permission to hunt for the body in front of the German lines and bring it home to Shropshire.
It is one of the stories detailed in a new book by local historian Chris Owen, of Dawley.
"The Coalbrookdale Company was led by Alfred Darby, and his son Maurice was killed at Neuve Chapelle in 1915," said Chris, whose book is called Ironbridge In The Great War and is part of a series from military publisher Pen & Sword.
Maurice was 20 when he was killed on March 11, shot through the heart while serving in the Grenadier Guards.
"His maternal uncle, General Sir George Arthur, was private secretary to Lord Kitchener who grudgingly gave him permission to recover the body, and he went to the battlefield and brought it back to Shropshire."
The grave is at Little Ness, and includes the inscription "in proud and loving memory of Maurice Darby, whose body having lain for four days on the battlefield of Neuve Chapelle was after a long night search in front of the enemy's lines, recovered and brought home by his uncle George Arthur to be laid at rest on this spot."
His family was one of the last to be able to bring back a body of a fallen loved one from France - something only the wealthy could afford to do and in any event happened in relatively few cases - as shortly afterwards the practice was stamped out.
Another notable death described in Chris' book is that of Major "Cal" Yate, of Madeley, who was taken prisoner during a desperate rearguard action at Le Cateau in August 1914, and was awarded the Victoria Cross. He escaped from prison camp, but when rumbled by German civilians committed suicide rather than be recaptured.
Chris, 68, a retired motoring journalist, has cast the net in the book to include Ironbridge, Coalport, Coalbrookdale, Jackfield, and Madeley.
"A big selling point is that I have every casualty in the area, from A to Z, at the back of the book, which gives a starting point for anybody wanting to trace their family history and research anybody killed in the war."
Among other stories is the Owen family of Ironbridge - no relation - which sent six sons to the front.
"Mr Owen got a letter from the King thanking him."
There was however a cost.
"I definitely know one of them was killed, but don't know the fate of the others."
Chris says anyone wanting a signed copy of the book can email him at chris.w.a.owen@gmail.com and for every direct sale he will give £1 to the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal.
