Rectory Lane Cemetery, Berkhamsted

Arthur W. Greenwood

d.17/02/1942

1891 - 1942 Chief Engine Room Artificer (Ch. E.R.A.), C/M 7196 Served in both world wars.

  View CWGC record

• Janice Boakes

Arthur was born on 19 November 1891 in Battersea London. He lived with his parents, Edwin and Elizabeth, at 9 Havelock Terrace and attended Raywood Street School. His father and elder brother were employed as labourers with the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway. He joined the same company in December 1905 as a fitter’s apprentice.

On 29 January 1914 he joined the Royal Navy as an ERA4 at HMS Pembroke II. An engine room artificer (ERA) was a fitter, turner, boilermaker, coppersmith or enginesmith in the early days of steam-powered warships. Usually working under an engineer officer, they were able to read and write, competent in the workings of engines and boilers, and trained in the maintenance and operation and uses of all parts of marine engines. ERAs were the senior maintainers and operators of all warship mechanical plant.

After his initial training, he was placed on HMS Jason, a minesweeper in April 1914. On the outbreak of the war Jason joined the newly established Grand Fleet. She was employed carrying out daily sweeps of the Pentland Firth. In December 1914 she was on passage from Lowestoft to Scapa Flow when she was temporarily diverted to deal with a minefield laid off Scarborough. On 29 January 1917 Arthur was promoted to ERA3. Then on 3 April 1917 Jason struck a mine off Coll in the Inner Hebrides, Western Scotland, which had been laid by the German submarine U-78 on 12 February. Jason sank, killing 30 of her crew.

Arthur was one of the survivors and he returned to HMS Pembroke until 21 May 1917. He was then stationed on HMS Colleen (Cattistock) until May 1918. Cattistock was a small minesweeper operating from HMS Colleen, the shore establishment at Queenstown (Cobh today), Ireland. From here he was stationed on HMS Pekin until 7 August 1919, which was the Auxiliary Patrol base at Grimsby.

It’s not clear what Arthur’s connection was to Berkhamsted but he married Florence Agnes Everitt on 8 May 1922, at St Peters church. Both are recorded as of this parish on the Banns, although Arthur was still in the Royal Navy at this time.

Florence was born 28 May 1899, her father ran the Carpenters Arms in Park Street. Arthur and Florence had two sons, Robert born 1925 and Donald born 1927. Arthur remained in the Navy until he retired with a pension in 1936. In addition to the 1914 Star, the British and Victory medals he was awarded the Royal Navy Long Service and good conduct medal on 27 March 1929 and the King George V Silver Jubilee Medal in 1935. For his entire 22 years of service his conduct was recorded as very good.

Arthur found employment with Kodak in Wealdstone for three years until he was called up again in 1939 at the start of the second world war. He left his wife and family who lived at 8 Park Street, Berkhamsted.

Arthur was placed on HMS Calypso where he saw much active service. Two days after Italy declared war on Great Britain, Calypso was on an anti-shipping patrol against Italian ships travelling to Libya when she was struck by a torpedo from an Italian submarine about 50 miles (80 km) south of Cape Lithion in Crete in the Eastern Mediterranean. The sinking occurred at 00:59 on 12 June 1940. One officer and 38 ratings from Calypso perished in the sinking.

Arthur survived but his health was greatly affected. He died, aged 50, on 17 February 1942 at Royal Naval Sick Quarters, HMS Raleigh, Torpoint, Cornwall of Bronchial Pneumonia. A service with full naval honours was conducted at Torpoint in Cornwall before his body was returned for a service and burial in Berkhamsted.

Florence died in 1970 in Dacorum.