Charles Beck Hornby, (7 February 1883 – 10 January 1949) was a British cavalryman. While serving as a captain in the 4th (Royal Irish) Dragoon Guards, he is reputed to have become the first British soldier to kill a German soldier in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, at around 6:30 am on 22 August 1914, near the Belgian village of

Casteau Casteau ( wa, Castea) is a village of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Soignies, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. With the other villages Chaussée-Notre-Dame-Louvignies, Horrues, Naast, Neufvilles, Soignies (town), ...

Early life and career

Hornby was born in

Bangalore Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

, on 7 February 1883. His father, Colonel John Frederick Hornby, served with the

12th Royal Lancers The 12th (Prince of Wales's) Royal Lancers was a cavalry regiment of the British Army first formed in 1715. It saw service for three centuries, including the First World War and the Second World War. The regiment survived the immediate post-war ...

. Hornby was educated at Harrow School and was commissioned as an

ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

in the 4th (Royal Irish) Dragoon Guards in 1901. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1903, and captain in 1909. He served in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South ...

and was the regiment's adjutant from January 1911 to January 1914.

First World War

Following the outbreak of the

in 1914, Hornby was sent to France with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), as second-in-command of C Squadron of the 4th (Royal Irish) Dragoon Guards, under Major

Tom Bridges Lieutenant General Sir George Tom Molesworth Bridges (20 August 1871 – 26 November 1939) known as Sir Tom Bridges, was a British Army officer and the 19th Governor of South Australia. Bridges had a distinguished military career, seeing servi ...

. His squadron became the first unit of the BEF to engage the German army outside Mons, Belgium on 22 August 1914. The squadron was guarding the road from Mons to

Soignies Soignies (; nl, Zinnik, ; pcd, Sougniye; wa, Sougniye) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It consists of the following districts: Casteau, Chaussée-Notre-Dame-Louvignies, Horrues, Naast, Neufvilles, ...

, near the village of

to the north-east of Mons (later to become the location of

Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) is the military headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) Allied Command Operations (ACO) that commands all NATO operations worldwide. ACO's and SHAPE's commander is t ...

). Two troops were dismounted in ambush, and two in reserve commanded by Hornby. Four patrolling German lancers— 4th Cuirassiers of the 9th Cavalry Division—were reconnoitring the route around 6am on 22 August, as the advance guard of General

Alexander von Kluck Alexander Heinrich Rudolph von Kluck (20 May 1846 – 19 October 1934) was a German general during World War I. Early life Kluck was born in Münster, Westphalia on 20 May 1846. He was the son of architect Karl von Kluck and his wife Elisabeth ...

’s

1st Army First Army may refer to: China * New 1st Army, Republic of China * First Field Army, a Communist Party of China unit in the Chinese Civil War * 1st Group Army, People's Republic of China Germany * 1st Army (German Empire), a World War I field Arm ...

which was about to advance on Mons. Sensing danger, the German cavalrymen retreated and were pursued by Hornby's two reserve troops, the 1st Troop leading with swords drawn and the 4th Troop following. The Germans retreated towards a larger force of German lancers, which Hornby charged with his men. Hornby is said to have been the first to kill one of the German cavalrymen, fighting on horseback with sword against lance, reputedly using a 1908 pattern trooper's sword now held by the museum of the

Yorkshire Regiment The Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) (abbreviated YORKS) is an infantry regiment of the British Army, created by the amalgamation of three historic regiments in 2006. It lost one battalion as part of the Army 2020 defence ...

. Historian Adrian Gilbert writes that he inflicted "the first casualty on the enemy by a soldier from the BEF." While author Douglas d'Enno was "the first British soldier to kill a German soldier." On the centenary of this action, in 2014, The Yorkshire Regiment museum wrote that Trooper Edward Thomas fired the first rifle shot of the British Army of WW1 and that Hornby's sword, "reputed to be the sword used in the very first encounter of WW1." Authors Desmond and Jean Bowen note that the historian of the 4th/7th Dragoon Guards says that Thomas "undoubtedly fired the first British shot of the war ...

hile Hile ( ne, हिले) is a hill town located in the Eastern Part of Nepal, 13 km north of the regional center of Dhankuta Bazar. At an elevation of 1948 meters, it is the main route to other hilly districts like Bhojpur and Sankhuwasab ...

Hornby was the first man to kill a German." After further pursuit, the Germans turned to shoot at the British cavalry, supported by a force of jägers. The 4th Troop dismounted to provide covering fire for the 1st Troop, and Drummer Edward Thomas is reputed to have fired the first shot of the war for the British Army, hitting a German cavalryman. For his efforts, Captain Hornby was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...

, gazetted in February 1915, but he was seriously wounded a few weeks after the engagement. He was promoted to major in March 1916, with effect from August 1915, and served in the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

in England as GSO Grade 3 in 1916 and 1917. He was mentioned in despatches twice, and awarded the French Croix de Guerre in 1917. He went on half-pay due to illness caused by wounds in July 1917, and retired from the army in 1922. A monument to the action was unveiled in Belgium on 22 August 1939.

Later life

Hornby married Dorothy Henderson in 1914. They had four daughters. He survived the war, and served as a Justice of the Peace from 1924, becoming vice-chairman of the bench of magistrates in Hexham. He served in the rank of captain with the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards in the

Royal Armoured Corps The Royal Armoured Corps is the component of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 Tank and the Scimitar Reconnaissance Vehicle. It includes most of the ...

the Second World War, from February 1941 to April 1943.https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/35202/supplement/3655, https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/35997/supplement/1947 Hornby died in Hexham in Northumberland, with an obituary published in ''The Times''.

Notes

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Early life and career

First World War

Later life

Notes

Further reading