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Fred joined the Royal Navy on 19 Nov 1900 when he was 22. His Service
Record describes him as being 5' 3" tall with brown hair, grey eyes
and a fresh complexion. He too had been working as a labourer in
Morchard Bishop and, like his brother William, won a series of good
conduct badges and promotions as his early training proceeded.
He was first sent to HMS Duke of Wellington II which was a shore
training establishment at Portsmouth before his posting to HMS Cressy*.
1903 saw him on HMS Firequeen followed by a return to Portsmouth, this
time to the Naval Barracks, then known as HMS Victory II, now named
HMS Nelson.
Then followed a series of promotions and moves. Like William he
trained as a stoker and by 1908 had worked up to the rank (and pay) of
Leading Stoker. He served on HMS Assistance, HMS Vernon,
HMS Fisgard and
HMS Hindustan before his initial 12-year contract ran out on 17 Nov
1912. |
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HMS
Cressy*
Courtesy
Steve Johnson |
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HMS
Fisgard
Courtesy
Steve Johnson |
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HMS
Hindustan
Courtesy
Steve Johnson |
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On 18 Nov 1912, Fred signed up for another stint in the
stokeholds but this time, it was a 5-year contract. He did not return to
sea immediately but in the August of 1914, when it became obvious that a
major war was brewing, he was posted to HMS Vindictive, at that time part
of the 9th
Cruiser Squadron based on Gibraltar. |
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He returned to Portsmouth briefly in the Autumn of 1916 before again returning to
Vindictive but, clearly, all was not well. He returned once
again to Portsmouth in June but on 6 Sep 1917, he was invalided out of
the Navy - just 2 months before his contract terminated.. The cause of
his departure was medical and is summed up in one word on his service
record - Dementia. |
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HMS Vindictive
Courtesy Steve Johnson |
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Countless men in World War 1 suffered mental disorders to a greater
or lesser degree as a result of what they had seen and experienced. This
was not the dementia associated with old age - it was the closing down
of the memory by young men for whom it had all been too much and from
which many
never recovered. Today we would call it post-traumatic stress and offer
sufferers support and supervised care - there was none of this for Fred
- he simply came home to Morchard Bishop and was expected to pick up the
threads of his life there.
On 31 October 1917, Fred (by now 40 years old and described as a
gardener) married Lucy May Brooker (25) in Morchard parish
church. Through the marriage register, we glimpse another member of
James and Lucy Stentiford's family - their eldest daughter Elizabeth who
was born in 1872. Aged 45 and unmarried, she was one of Fred's
witnesses on that happy occasion.
And after that, of Fred and Lucy
Stentiford there seems to be no further trace. |
| * HMS Cressy was torpedoed at the same time as HMS
Hogue while attempting to pick up survivors from HMS Aboukir in
September 1914. From the 3 ships, only 300 crew survived. A significant
number of the casualties were under 16 years of age and had not yet
completed their training. |
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