North Nibley War Memorial
Below is a list of the twenty names listed on the North Nibley War Memorial who died in the Great War. I have additional research on all the men so please don't hesitate to contact me (warmemorial@northnibley.org.uk or comment below) if you would like to know more about any of them, or have information to offer.
The memorial is an obelisk design, built in the village cemetery. There are also three CWGC graves, as well as a civilian grave of four of the soldiers in the cemetery itself. Although the memorial is in the civic cemetery and not the churchyard, it it distinctly religious in its character, both in terms of the cross at the top and the inscription on the front.
The names are then listed on the base of the obelisk in (mostly) alphabetical order. P Capener on this panel is the only man not to have a regiment beside his name. Although he and his brother G Capener are listed under their father's surname, they actually served under the name of James, the name of their mother (or stepmother, I am unsure).
As expected, the regiment with the most North Nibley men was the Gloucestershire Regiment. Only two of those who died served in the same battalion (S Talboys and S Woodward in the 8th Glosters) although it is also known that WC Wyatt served alongside J Hale, also of North Nibley, in the 1st Glosters.
The memorial is an obelisk design, built in the village cemetery. There are also three CWGC graves, as well as a civilian grave of four of the soldiers in the cemetery itself. Although the memorial is in the civic cemetery and not the churchyard, it it distinctly religious in its character, both in terms of the cross at the top and the inscription on the front.
As you enter North Nibley cemetery this is the view of the memorial in front of you. Off to the right are the village graves and behind is the modern Garden of Rest. Plans for this memorial were approved by the district council in 1919, following the rejection of the orginal proposal of a lych gate which was deemed too expensive. Construction must have been completed a few years later as it includes the name of H Talboys who died of wounds in 1922.
"TO THE GLORY OF GOD IN LOVING REMEMBRANCE OF THE MEN OF NORTH NIBLEY who made the supreme sacrifice in the Great War 1914-1919"
Added below is "1939 - 1945 dulce et decorum est pro patria mori" and the names of the two men who died in the Second World War.
VH MARTIN Royal Field Artillery
J VENN Royal Navy
The names are then listed on the base of the obelisk in (mostly) alphabetical order. P Capener on this panel is the only man not to have a regiment beside his name. Although he and his brother G Capener are listed under their father's surname, they actually served under the name of James, the name of their mother (or stepmother, I am unsure).
C BENNETT Royal Horse Artillery
LE BULLOCK Machine Gun Corps
G CAPENER Royal Navy
P CAPENER
PA COOK Lincolnshire Regiment
ET CROCKER Royal Gloucestershire Hussars Yeomanry
F ELLIOTT Royal Navy
At the time of writing I have been unable to confirm whether the three Elliotts are brothers, but this seems likely. There are two other sets of brothers on the memorial: the Capener/James and the Talboys. The family from the village who appear to have had the most brothers in conflict were the Avery family, who had five of their six sons at war. Miraculously, they all made it home. They Talboys weren't as lucky. Two of their four fighting sons were killed.
GH ELLIOTT Gloucestershire Regiment
WG ELLIOTT Royal Fusiliers
T HARRIS Royal Navy
S JONES Machine Gun Corps
M LEONARD Gloucestershire Regiment
HF LONG Royal Army Service Corps
CWJ MARTIN Gloucestershire Regiment
As expected, the regiment with the most North Nibley men was the Gloucestershire Regiment. Only two of those who died served in the same battalion (S Talboys and S Woodward in the 8th Glosters) although it is also known that WC Wyatt served alongside J Hale, also of North Nibley, in the 1st Glosters.
HN TALBOYS Royal Engineers
PW PARSONS York and Lancaster Regiment
SW TALBOYS Gloucestershire Regiment
RG TELLING Gloucestershire Regiment
WC WYATT Gloucestershire Regiment
Some of these men are commemorated on more than one memorial, as many moved between the local towns and villages during their lives. G Capener is listed on the Dursley memorial and PW Parsons is on Stinchcombe.
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