Photograph: Francis and his observer CC Hann in Morane Biplane
OVERVIEW
This site is dedicated to the memory of Francis George Wake Marchant, who gave his life during the First World War whilst serving with the Royal Flying Corps, 3 Squadron in France. He was just 19 years of age. This is a personal account of just one life lost during WW1. Tragically, there are thousands of individual stories, all with their respective families who will have experienced such loss during the Great War. This website aims to tell just one of those stories.
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Francis was born in Chelsea on 4 Mar 1897, the only son of Frank and Torfrida Marchant. He had four younger sisters. When he was still young the family moved to "Woodside" in Keston, Kent. His father was a distinguished gentleman cricketer who played for Kent for 22 seasons (Captain 1890 - 1897) and the Marylebone Cricket Club. His mother, Ethel Torfrida Baldwin Marchant was a member of the Wake family from Northamptonshire.
Francis joined the Army at the age of 18 and attended the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. On 19 October 1915 he was commissioned into the Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment and immediately seconded to the Royal Flying Corps for flying training at the Military School at South Farnborough. He gained hs pilot's certificate on 22 November 1915.
Following service at Netheravon, on 30 March 2016 he was posted to the 2nd Air Depot at St Omer in France to join 3 Squadron RFC on 30 April. The Squadron was then at La Houssaye, between Amiens and Albert. On 22nd October, during the battle of the Somme, Fancis was on an artillery spotting mission flying a Moraine Saulnier Parasol 1, serial number A247. His observewr was 2/Lt Cecil Collins Hann. Their aircraft was attacked and brought down over Seilly by a German Fokker Eindekker piloted by Oberleutnant Hans Berr of Jasta 5.
The squadrons Flight Commander was Captain Portal who enjoyed a close friendship with the Marchant family, it fell upon him the difficult task of writing to the Marchant family:
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‘...I must tell you that we have recovered your son's body and that of his observer, and that they are to be buried tomorrow, 26th October, at a small village called Heilly on the Somme, not far from here. I know that what I found today will to some extent comfort you in your great sorrow, namely that Francis was instantly killed, while flying, by a shrapnel bullet in the head. His machine fell just inside our lines, and the same evening some Australian troops, with very great gallantry, went out and took him from it. I went out today and brought his body back with me to the village of Heilly.'
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'It may be of some comfort to know that his body is not in the very slightest degree disfigured. I wish you could have seen his face. Never in the six months I have known him have I seen him look more happy and peaceful. I have never had a friend I loved more dearly than Francis and I know that this convincing proof that his death was painless and happy means as much to you as it does to me.'
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For a full account of Captain Portal’s letter and further notes on Francis’s military service, click read more below.