Lives of the First World War
Discover, explore and remember millions of personal stories from the First World War
We remember John Reginald Kempson
We remember John Reginald Kempson
Timeline
Timeline
1897
birth
Source:7638392
17th June 1897
1909
education
Gresham's School
Holt, Norfolk
United Kingdom
Source:8626469
May 1909 - April 1910
1909
location
Sheringham, Norfolk
United Kingdom
parents address
Source:8751630
1909
1910
service
Royal Navy
Midshipman
Source:7638392
May 1910
1914
service
Royal Navy
Midshipman
Cumberland
Source:8626469
May 1914
1914
service
Royal Navy
Midshipman
Hawke
Source:8626469
August 1914
education
Osborne and Dartmouth training college
Source:8751630
1914
death
Killed in Action
On 15th October 1914 Midshipman John Kempson went down with his ship HMS Hawke in the North Sea. He was seventeen years of age
North Sea
United Kingdom
Source:8522154
15th October 1914
Details
Details
Names
| Type | Name |
|---|---|
| First Names | John Reginald |
| Initials | JR |
| Last Name | Kempson |
| Source | 7638392 |
Locations
| Address | Country | Type | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sheringham, Norfolk | United Kingdom | parents address | 1909 |
Contribution
Military Service
Military Service
| Service | Number | Unit | Section | Rank | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Navy | Midshipman | ||||
| Royal Navy | Cumberland | Midshipman | |||
| Royal Navy | Hawke | Midshipman |
Family
Parents
| Name | Relationship | Dates | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| J.h. Kempson | father |
Media
Media
previous
next
-
PortraitOn 15th October 1914 Midshipman John Kempson went down with his ship HMS Hawke in the North Sea. He was seventeen years of age. John Reginald Kempson was born in Knighton, Leicestershire on 17th June 1897. At the tender age of thirteen John decided on a career in the Royal Navy and by May 1910 had been accepted as a cadet at Osborne. His training was completed at Dartmouth where he did so well that on his first posting, to HMS Cumberland, he was promoted after only a month and reallocated as Midshipman to the cruiser HMS Hawke in August 1914 as the ship’s crew was brought up to strength in preparation for war. On Thursday 15th October HMS Hawke was approximately 60 miles off Aberdeen when she was stopped in order to receive mails and signals from another cruiser, Endymion, via a cutter between the two ships. The manoeuvre was observed by the commander of a nearby German submarine, Otto Weddingen, and following the delivery of mail, Endymion got away but Hawke was struck by a torpedo
Contributed by:
Peter5151
Communities
Communities
Evidence
Evidence
IWM is not responsible for the content of external websites. Please note that some sources will require payment to view.
Official Records
| Title | Connected by | More information |
|---|---|---|
| Royal Navy Officers: 1899 - 1919 |
External Evidence
| Reference | Connected by | More information |
|---|---|---|
| Remembering Midshipman John Kempson | Peter5151 | |
| Gresham magazine December 1914 | Liz2629 | |
| Gresham's at war | Liz2629 | |
| History and Register of Gresham's school | Liz2629 |
Multimedia
| Title | Connected by | More information |
|---|---|---|
| Portrait | Peter5151 |
Stories
Stories
{{warning}}
No related stories were found.
-
{{story._source.description[0].value | trim:50}}
{{story._source.date.from.iso | displayDate}} - {{story._source.date.to.iso | displayDate}}
{{story._source.date.from.iso | displayDate}}
{{story._source.date.iso | displayDate}}
{{story._source.certainty.date.from.iso | displayDate}} - {{story._source.certainty.date.to.iso | displayDate}}
{{story._source.certainty.date.from.iso | displayDate}}
{{story._source.certainty.date.iso | displayDate}}
More about {{story._source.summary_title}}
We remember John Reginald Kempson
Also remembered by 3 people