Captain Sidney Boucher (17 September 1899 – 4 August 1963), also known as Sam Boucher, was an English

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

officer who fought in both

World War I 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 ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He played

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

for

Royal Navy Cricket Club The Royal Navy Cricket Club is a cricket team representing the British Royal Navy and based at the United Services Recreation Ground, Portsmouth, Hampshire. The club was formed in 1863, although cricket is recorded as having been played by seamen ...

between 1923 and 1929 as well as playing one match for

Kent County Cricket Club Kent County Cricket Club is one of the eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Kent. A club representing the county was first founded in 1842 but Ke ...

in 1922.

Early life

Boucher was born in

Rochester, Kent Rochester ( ) is a town in the unitary authority of Medway, in Kent, England. It is at the lowest bridging point of the River Medway, about from London. The town forms a conurbation with neighbouring towns Chatham, Rainham, Strood and Gillin ...

, the second son of Franklin and Ada Boucher. His father was a solicitor who served as the Town Clerk of Gillingham and in the 1920s was Treasurer of Rochester;Lewis P (2014) ''For Kent and Country'', pp.116–117. Brighton: Reveille Press.Franklin Boucher
CricketArchive. Retrieved 2017-04-05. he was granted the freedom of the Borough of Rochester in 1932.A magnificent run of early Wisdens, bound in hardback style, 1879–1895
Christopher Saunders Book, London International Antiquarian Book Fair, 2016. Retrieved 2017-04-05. Boucher and his brother Noël were both educated at Dumpton House Preparatory School in

Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...

. From there Boucher went on to the

Royal Naval College, Osborne The Royal Naval College, Osborne, was a training college for Royal Navy officer cadets on the Osborne House estate, Isle of Wight, established in 1903 and closed in 1921. Boys were admitted at about the age of thirteen to follow a course lasting ...

in September 1912 where he became Chief Cadet Captain. In September 1914 he moved on to

Royal Naval College, Dartmouth Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

before being appointed to his first naval posting in June 1915.Lewis P ''

op. cit. ''Op. cit.'' is an abbreviation of the Latin phrase ' or ''opere citato'', meaning "the work cited" or ''in the cited work'', respectively. Overview The abbreviation is used in an endnote or footnote to refer the reader to a cited work, standing ...

'', pp.119–121.

Naval career

Boucher's first appointment in June 1915 was as a

Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

on the dreadnought battleship HMS ''Colossus'' stationed at

Scapa Flow Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern end in June 2009 Scapa Flow (; ) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S. C. George, ''Jutland to Junkyard'', 1973. South Ronaldsay and ...

as part of the Grand Fleet. He took part in the

Battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland (german: Skagerrakschlacht, the Battle of the Skagerrak) was a naval battle fought between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy ...

in 1916 before being promoted to

Sub-Lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...

in early 1918. He was on ''Colossus'' when the German High Seas Fleet surrendered on 21 November 1918. Promotion to

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

followed in 1920 and Boucher had qualified as a Physical Training specialist by 1924 before being promoted to

Lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

in 1928 and then

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

in 1934.Royal Navy (RN) Officers 1939-1945
Retrieved 2017-05-17. He commanded HMS ''Lowestoft'' in the Far East between 1936 and 1938 during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

and by the start of

he held the post of Assistant Director of Physical Training and Sports at the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral * Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings *Admiralty, Tr ...

. During World War II he worked as a liaison officer with the Army until 1941 when he was given command of HMS ''Highlander'', an

H-class destroyer The G- and H-class destroyers were a group of 18 destroyers built for the Royal Navy during the 1930s. Six additional ships being built for the Brazilian Navy when World War II began in 1939 were purchased by the British and named the ''Havant ...

, and assumed command of the 9th Escort Flotilla. He was promoted to

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in 1942 and took command of HMS ''Cormorant'', the Royal Naval

receiving ship A hulk is a ship that is afloat, but incapable of going to sea. Hulk may be used to describe a ship that has been launched but not completed, an abandoned wreck or shell, or to refer to an old ship that has had its rigging or internal equipmen ...

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

. He was

Mentioned in Dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

during this command. Towards the end of 1944 Boucher was appointed Captain of HMS ''Tyne'', a Hecla-class Destroyer depot ship in the British Pacific Fleet. He served as Chief Staff Officer and then

Flag Captain In the Royal Navy, a flag captain was the captain of an admiral's flagship. During the 18th and 19th centuries, this ship might also have a "captain of the fleet", who would be ranked between the admiral and the "flag captain" as the ship's "First ...

to the

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

(Destroyers) of the Pacific Fleet until the end of the war in the Pacific. He was appointed a

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

for his war service. Boucher saw out the remainder of his Navy career as Senior Officer of the

Reserve Fleet A reserve fleet is a collection of naval vessels of all types that are fully equipped for service but are not currently needed; they are partially or fully decommissioned. A reserve fleet is informally said to be "in mothballs" or "mothballed"; a ...

and then as Director of Physical Training at the Admiralty. He was made Aide-de-camp to

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

in January 1951 and retired from the Navy later the same year.

Cricket career

Boucher played cricket alongside his brother Noël for

The Mote Mote Park, also known as The Mote, is a cricket ground in Maidstone in the English county of Kent. It is inside the grounds of the Mote Park and is owned by The Mote Cricket Club.first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

debut for

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

in 1922 after impressing in a match for Band of Brothers. His naval career meant he was unable to play again for Kent, but he appeared in first-class matches for the

between 1923 and 1929 when the club played its final first-class match. He continued to play for the Navy until 1936, captaining the team for a number of years.Carlaw D (2020) ''Kent County Cricketers A to Z. Part Two: 1919–1939'', pp.21–22.
Available online
at the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. Retrieved 2020-12-23.)Sidney Boucher
CricketArchive. Retrieved 2017-04-05. He was a left-arm opening bowler for the Navy and batted left-handed.
Obituaries in 1963, ''

Wisden Cricketers' Almanack ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', or simply ''Wisden'', colloquially the Bible of Cricket, is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom. The description "bible of cricket" was first used in the 1930s by Alec Waugh in a ...

'', 1965 (sic). Retrieved 2017-04-05.Sidney Boucher

CricInfo ESPN cricinfo (formerly known as Cricinfo or CricInfo) is a sports news website exclusively for the game of cricket. The site features news, articles, live coverage of cricket matches (including liveblogs and scorecards), and ''StatsGuru'', a d ...

. Retrieved 2017-04-05. As well as his role in Navy cricket, Boucher was also the Secretary and a selector for the

Royal Navy Football Association The Royal Navy Football Association, also simply known as the Royal Navy FA, is the governing body of football for the Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English an ...

and the

Royal Marines Football Association The Royal Marines Football Association (RMFA), also known as the Royal Marines FA, is the governing body for association football in the Royal Marines. History :''See footnote.'' Inter Services Championships :''See footnote.'' Inter Regional C ...

Later life and family

Boucher's brother Noël served in

in the Royal West Kents, the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

and, later, the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

. After the war he qualified as a lawyer working in his father's firm in Rochester. He played several times for the

Second XI and played alongside Sidney for The Mote. He was President of Kent County Cricket Club in 1964.Lewis P (2014) ''

'', pp.117–119.Boucher, Noel
Obituaries in 1968, ''

'', 1969. Retrieved 2017-04-05. Boucher was married twice during the inter-war period, first to Phyllis Ellershaw in 1924 and then Betty Holt in 1938. He died in 1963 aged 63 at his home in

Wadhurst Wadhurst is a market town in East Sussex, England. It is the centre of the civil parish of Wadhurst, which also includes the hamlets of Cousley Wood and Tidebrook. Wadhurst is twinned with Aubers in France. Situation Wadhurst is situated on ...

in Sussex.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boucher, Sidney 1899 births 1963 deaths English cricketers Kent cricketers Royal Navy cricketers Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College People educated at the Royal Naval College, Osborne Royal Navy officers of World War I Royal Navy officers of World War II