Frank Edwards (29 September 1893 – January 1964), also known as The Footballer of Loos, was a British Army 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 ...

who served as a

rifleman A rifleman is an infantry soldier armed with a rifling, rifled long gun. Although the rifleman role had its origin with 16th century hand cannoneers and 17th century musketeers, the term originated in the 18th century with the introduction o ...

in the 1st Battalion,

London Irish Rifles The London Irish Rifles (LIR) was a reserve infantry regiment and then company of the British Army. The unit's final incarnation was as D (London Irish Rifles) Company, the London Regiment. On 1 April 2022 soldiers in the company transferred to ...

, during the

Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used poison gas and the first mass engagement of New Army units. Th ...

. He is distinguished for leading the London Irish across

no man's land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...

to storm enemy

trenches A trench is a type of excavation or in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a wider gully, or ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or pit). In geology, trenches result from eros ...

kicking a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

ahead of the troops. The successful capture of enemy positions that followed earned the London Irish Rifles their second

battle honour A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In European military t ...

, ''Loos, 1915''. The football is still preserved in the regimental museum of the London Irish and to this day the memory of Edwards is commemorated on Loos Sunday.

Biography

Edwards was born into a working-class family in

Chelsea, London Chelsea is an affluent area in west London, England, due south-west of Charing Cross by approximately 2.5 miles. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames and for postal purposes is part of the south-western postal area. Chelsea histori ...

. He married, but his wife and child both died in 1913. On the outbreak of the war in August 1914 he was working as a stationer's assistant, but promptly enlisted in the 1st Battalion, London Irish Rifles, who were based at the

Duke of York's Barracks The Duke of York's Headquarters is a building in Chelsea, London, Chelsea in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, England. In 1969 it was declared a listed building at Grade II*, due to its outstanding historic or architectural special i ...

on the

King's Road King's Road or Kings Road (or sometimes the King's Road, especially when it was the king's private road until 1830, or as a colloquialism by middle/upper class London residents), is a major street stretching through Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

, Chelsea. A keen footballer, Edwards soon became captain of his battalion's football team, and led them to victory in the Brigade Final, only days before they were sent to France in March 1915. The 1st London Irish first saw action during the

Battle of Festubert The Battle of Festubert (15–25 May 1915) was an attack by the British army in the Artois region of France on the western front during World War I. The offensive formed part of a series of attacks by the French Tenth Army and the British ...

in May 1915, and by September, were stationed close to the village of Loos. Concerns about the

Christmas truce ckb: ئاگربەستی کریسماس The Christmas truce (german: Weihnachtsfrieden; french: Trêve de Noël; nl, Kerstbestand) was a series of widespread unofficial ceasefires along the Western Front of the First World War around Christ ...

of 1914, and the football matches played by both sides, had led to the banning of footballs on the front line, with many senior officers regarding socialising with the enemy as something near mutiny. However, the 1st London Irish had several footballs concealed among the ranks, of which all but one were deliberately punctured by an officer the night before "the big push". Early on 25 September 1915, as the 1st London Irish were waiting to launch the attack, Edwards inflated his football and as they went "over the top" kicked it out into no man's land, calling "Play up London Irish!". The ball was kicked towards the German front lines by several of his fellow soldiers as they advanced. Edwards himself was wounded in the thigh after advancing only a short distance, and also suffered from the effects of the

chlorine gas Chlorine is a chemical element with the symbol Cl and atomic number 17. The second-lightest of the halogens, it appears between fluorine and bromine in the periodic table and its properties are mostly intermediate between them. Chlorine is ...

that the British were using for the first time to cover their advance. He was evacuated to a hospital in England. Edwards returned to active duty in late 1916, gaining Physical Training and Instructors certificates. He was discharged on 5 February 1919, but immediately re-enlisted into the

Military Foot Police The Royal Military Police (RMP) is the corps of the British Army responsible for the policing of army service personnel, and for providing a military police presence both in the UK and while service personnel are deployed overseas on operations ...

(which became the Corps of Military Police in February 1926) where he was promoted to Sergeant. On 24 September 1926, the eleventh anniversary of the battle was marked by a Torchlight Tattoo at the regimental headquarters, and included a recreation of the battle of Loos with Edwards again kicking a football to begin the charge. Edwards eventually left the army in 1935, and in 1937 became a

NSPCC The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) is a British child protection charity. History Victorian era On a trip to New York in 1881, Liverpudlian businessman Thomas Agnew was inspired by a visit to the New Yor ...

Inspector in

Bridgend Bridgend (; cy, Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in Bridgend County Borough in Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the Old Bridge, Bridgend, medieval bridge ...

, South Wales. He and his family returned to

Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...

, London, in late 1943, where Edwards worked as a swimming instructor, an office manager, and at the

Royal Military School of Music The Royal Military School of Music (RMSM) trains musicians for the British Army's fourteen regular bands, as part of the Royal Corps of Army Music. Until August 2021, the school was based at Kneller Hall in Twickenham, however it moved to HMS ...

. His second wife died in 1956, and the following year he moved to Whitton to live with his daughter. He died there in January 1964. In October 2012 Edwards was commemorated on the

pub sign A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

of "The Rifleman" pub in

The Football of Loos

Edwards' football was found after the battle, lodged in the German barbed wire, and was on display at the regimental museum in

Camberwell Camberwell () is a district of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles and a common of which Goose Green is a remnant. This e ...

, London, up until the 1970s, when it was put into storage in the sergeant's mess and forgotten. Enquiries about the ball in 2011 led to its rediscovery in a very poor condition, and at risk of disintegrating completely. It was sent to the Leather Conservation Centre in Northampton for repairs and restoration, and has since been on display at the London Irish Rifles Association museum. In October 2014 it appeared on the television programme ''

Antiques Roadshow ''Antiques Roadshow'' is a British television programme broadcast by the BBC in which antiques appraisers travel to various regions of the United Kingdom (and occasionally in other countries) to appraise antiques brought in by local people (g ...

'' where it was valued at up to £15,000. In May 2015 the

Royal Mail , kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga , logo = Royal Mail.svg , logo_size = 250px , type = Public limited company , traded_as = , foundation = , founder = Henry VIII , location = London, England, UK , key_people = * Keith Williams ...

issued a set of First World War commemorative stamps, one of which featured The Football of Loos.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Frank 1893 births 1964 deaths People from Chelsea, London London Irish Rifles soldiers British Army personnel of World War I Royal Military Police soldiers National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children people Military personnel from London