Caffyn, Chaloner McCrae H.M.

Position : G

28-04-1891 South Yarra, AUS
28-03-1917 Avesnes-le-Comte, FRA

 
Full name was Chaloner McCrae Humphrey Mannington Caffyn. His family roots can be traced back to Matthew Caffyn born 1628. Born in South Yarra, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne, but came to England at the age of one.
Chaloner's family spent many years in Australia during which time he and his four older siblings were born. His father was a surgeon and inventor whilst his mother wrote novels under the pseudonym of Iota.
Chaloner used various different versions of his name at different times (When he joined up in WW I he signed himself as H M Caffyn).
The family moved back to England and the three boys had a good education. Grew up in Portsmouth. Attended the Cheltenham College in England. Part of the Officer Training Corps and became a sergeant. He then trained as a civil engineer at the University of Zürich in Switzerland, and Engineering College and was working for the Midland Railway Carriage and Wagon Company Ltd in Birmingham.
He was accepted as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 4th East Surrey Regiment on the 5th September 1914. 5ft 9" tall, he joined the East Surrey Regiment, and after 18 months in the trenches was seconded to the Royal Flying Corps before he was killed in action.
His brother and cousin were also killed in WW I. In 1922 his mother, who was living in Italy, wrote to the Army telling that she still hadn’t received the medals that her son had been awarded.
PH

 
De son nom complet Chaloner McCrae Humphrey Mannington Caffyn, sa généalogie remonte jusqu'en 1628 à son aïeul Matthew Caffyn.
Il est né à South Yarra, dans la banlieue de Melbourne en Australie, mais a rejoint l'Angleterre durant sa première année.
La famille Caffyn a vécu pendant une longue période en Australie, où Chaloner et ses quatre frères et soeurs virent le jour. Son père était chirurgien et inventeur, tandis que sa mère écrivait des romans sous le pseudonyme de Iota.
Chaloner déclina son identité sous différentes versions tout au long de sa courte vie (il signa son engagement dans la Grande Guerre en tant que H M Caffyn).
Les trois garçons Caffyn reçurent une éducation soignée. Après avoir grandi à Portsmouth, dans le sud de l'Angleterre, Chaloner fut envoyé au Cheltenham College. Il intégra l'Officer Training Corps et y devint sergent.
Diplômé d'ingénierie civile de l'Université de Zurich, il travaillait pour le Midland Railway Carriage and Wagon Company Ltd, à Birmingham, quand éclata la Première Guerre mondiale.
Dès le 5 septembre 1914, il fut accepté en tant que sous-lieutenant du quatrième régiment d'East Surrey. Haut d'1,74m, il passa 18 mois dans les tranchées avant d'être envoyé dans le Royal Flying Corps, où il fut tué au combat.
La même guerre lui vola un frère et un cousin. En 1922, sa mère, qui vivait en Italie, écrivit à l'armée pour réclamer les décorations dévolues à son fils.
PH-FBH

1914 LIHG ENG  4   3-0-1   160'00   3   2   Princes IHC London

               4   3-0-1   160'00   3   2