Biography

Family background

Harold Marsden was born on the 21st March 1898 in Leeds, the son of William Marsden and his wife Sarah Ann Marsden (nee Ingle). Harold was baptised on the 5th June 1898 when the family address was given as 23 St. Matthias Street, Leeds. Just a few years later, in 1901 at the time of the 1901 Census, William, Sarah Ann and Harold were living at 17 Rillbank Grove, Leeds. William was described as a 'Mechanic machine worker', Harold as a 'Scholar' even though he was only 4 years old, and Sarah was described as being 'At Home'. The family household was completed by Emily Ingle, William's sister-in-law who was aged 21, and was a "Tailor's Machine Hand". All the family members were said to have been born in Armley, Leeds.

Moving to 1911, the census record for Harold Marsden shows him living at 4 Wortley Lane, New Wortley, Leeds. He is still described as being at school, while the rest of his family are listed as: William, a furniture dealer; Sarah Ann; Harold; Emily Ingle, a machinist tailoring; and Susannah Thompson, aged 64, who was a widow and was visiting.

First World War Service record

The First World War started in 1914 when Harold was 16 years old. Harold had finished his education and clearly wanted to serve his country but he was too young to serve in the Army. However boys could join and serve in the Navy, and Harold joined the Navy with the rank of 'Boy 2' on the 17th March 1915 when he was 17. He was given the Service Number J39034 and he joined HMS Ganges. In the Royal Navy, "Boy 2nd Class" was a rank for boys aged 15-17 who were entering a training ship. They had to meet specific physical and character requirements to be accepted. This rank was a stepping stone to becoming a "Boy 1st Class" after demonstrating proficiency in seamanship and earning a good conduct badge, and Harold gained that step on the 18th June 1915 while at Ganges. The "J" prefix in Harold's number signifies that he had been taken into the Seamen and Communications branch, rather than Stokers and Mechanicians (who would have a "K" prefix), Officers' Stewards, some Officers' Cooks (L) or Others -Artificers, Electrical, Supply etc (M).

HMS Ganges was a training ship and later stone frigate of the Royal Navy. She had been established as a boys' training establishment in 1865, and by 1915 was a shore-based establishment at Shotley on the Suffolk coast, near Harwich.

After initial training, Harold was posted, on the 1st July 1915, to HMS Pembroke I. HMS Pembroke was another shore-based unit at Chatham. Harold left HMS Pembroke on the 27th October 1915 when he was posted to his first ship, HMS General Wolfe.

On the 21st March 1916, his 18th Birthday, while still serving with HMS General Wolfe, Harold was promoted from Boy Class to Ordinary Seaman. Then later in 1916, on the 1st September, to Able Bodied Seaman. He remained serving on HMS General Wolfe until the 30th November 1917.

HMS General Wolfe, also known as Wolfe, was a Lord Clive-class monitor (a shallow-draught vessel with long-range guns) which was built in 1915 for shore-bombardment duties in the First World War. Thus Harold joined a newly built ship for his first sea duty. HMS General Wolfe was in a class of eight ships, armed with modified 12-inch guns. Wolfe spent her entire war service with the Dover Patrol, bombarding the German-occupied Belgian coastline, which had been heavily fortified.

Between the 1st December 1917 and the 2nd April 1918, Harold spent more time back at HMS Pembroke, before his next ship posting to HMS Lord Clive.

HMS Lord Clive was another monitor built for the Royal Navy during World War I and was the lead ship of her class of eight monitors. The ship spent the war in the English Channel bombarding German positions along the Belgian coast as part of the Dover Patrol, often serving as a flagship. During the time that Harold Marsden served on her, HMS Lord Clive along with three other monitors, fired fifty rounds between them during the abortive first attempt to block the Bruges–Ostend Canal that led to the naval base at Bruges on the night of 11 April 1918 by bombarding the Tirpitz and Aachen Batteries at Ostend. The ship also supported the Inshore Squadron making the landing attempt during the First Ostend Raid on 23 April with about fifty rounds of 12-inch and some 6-inch shells.

At the end of the war, Harold returned to shore establishments being at HMS Pembroke again from 26th May until 15th February 1919, when he was demobilised. For his wartime services Harold was awarded the 1915 Star, the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. An interesting note on his Royal Navy service record, which we will make us of later, reads "Particulars of service to O.C. 66th (Leeds Rifles) A.A. Bde, R.A.(T.A.), Carlton Barracks, Leeds."

Between the wars

After the war Harold returned to the Leeds area to live with his parents. In 1920 they were living at Pogson's Cottages, Whinmoor, on the eastern side of Leeds and at the 1921 census the family unit consisted of Harold's parents, William and Sarah Ann, Harold and William's sister-in-law, Emily Ingle. William was a general dealer in hardware working on his own account. Sarah Ann looked after the house, Emily was a tailoress, working for J Buckley and Sons of Greek Street in Leeds, while Harold was now a commercial traveller in the paper trade working for James Spicer and Sons Ltd of 15 Wellington Street, Leeds.

It was almost certain that it was through his work that Harold met Lucy Marsden. In the 1921 census she is shown as being a shorthand typist for Spicer and Sons of Wellington Street Leeds, and Harold and Lucy married on the 23rd June 1926 at St. Bartholomew's Church Armley in Leeds. Lucy was a 26 year old spinster, and Harold was 28 years old and was described as being a Chief Clerk.

In 1931, Harold's mother died and then in 1933, only seven years after they had married, Harold's wife Lucy died.

In October 1933, Harold was fined for driving under the influence of drink, attributed to drinking whiskey as a treatment for a cold. The newspaper reports that Harold who lived at Park Place, Leeds, was fined £20 and costs at Otley but because his livelihood depended on him travelling over the whole of the north of England his licence was not suspended.

The following year a happier event took place, when Harold re-married. His bride in 1935 was Nellie Hunt from Otley and later in 1935 their daughter was born.

By 1939 Harold and family had moved to live in Collingham, their first connection to the village that they would make their home for many years. At the time of the 1939 National Registration Nellie and their daughter were registered at 19 Brookside Collingham, but Harold was missing from the list as he had already volunteered and was serving.

Second World War Service record

The later Medal Index Card for World War 2 identifies that Harold Marsden of Brookside Collingham served in World War 2 as Gunner 1432138 of the Royal Artillery. Perhaps his experience with the large guns of the World War 1 monitors was now bing put to use. His Royal Artillery attestation, and the medal card, both show he served with the Heavy Anti-Aircraft Artillery. This is where the note on his naval record is useful, as the 66th Leeds Rifles Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA (TA) became 66 (Leeds Rifles) (West Yorkshire) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA (TA) in June 1940 and it is likely that Harold served in this unit. The unit served in Leeds in 1939, then as part of the Orkney and Shetland Defence Force (OSDEF) at Scapa Flow, Orkney in September 1940; in Yorkshire again in 1941, and then in Birmingham in 1942. In June 1942 the unit sailed to India, but we don't believe that Harold went with them. By this time Harold was aged 44, and his record shows that he was discharged from the Army on the 16th October 1943. Harold was awarded the Defence Medal and 1939 War Medal to go with his First World War medals.

After the war

After the war Harold returned to live in Collingham and he and his wife, Nellie, appear on Collingham electoral rolls from 1945 to the early 1960s living at 19 Brookside, Collingham. Harold Marsden died on the 13th March 1969.

Biography last updated 29 July 2025 12:46:26.