Frederick Mace (1890-19xx)

Post date: Jan 12, 2016 11:13:9 PM

Frederick was born on 22^nd March 1890 to David and Mary Mace of Latters Buildings, Old Road, Wateringbury. David was born in Teston and is 1891 described as a "tanman" but later censuses make it clear that he worked in the brewery. Frederick was the second of 5 siblings- Emily, George, Beatrice and Ernest (although in 1911 Mary was said to have had 6 children all of whom were still alive). They lived in 4 rooms in Latters Buildings. All 3 boys went to Wateringbury School; all served during WW1 and all survived.

Frederick enrolled in the navy, aged 18, in April 1908 (service number K513) for 12 years. He gave his occupation as an agricultural labourer. He was 5 feet 6 ³/₄ inches tall with a 34 ¹/₂ inch chest , brown hair, hazel eyes and a fresh complexion. He served on many ships and on shore but from July 1914 until April 1916 was a stoker on H.M.S. Implacable, an old (completed 1901) battleship, which was sent to Lemnos in the Aegean in March 1915 and covered the main Gallipoli landings on 25^th April. After covering the landings she was detached to form part of a Mediteranean unit, based at Taranto, Italy (to support the Italians who had just entered the war against Austria), then briefly to Salalonka in November before being based in Port Said later in November. In March 1916 she returned to England for a refit at Plymouth where Frederick left the ship in April.

Frederick served the rest of the war, seemingly (his record is partially illegible) frequently changing between shore establishments and small ships.

He left the navy in April 1920, after the end of the war and his 12 year contract, and in his record is entered "Invalided (mental instab?)"