Tobias "Toby" Mortimer Moll (20 July 1890 – 15 July 1916) was a South African

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player from

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

. He was awarded a single cap for on 27 August 1910, against the British Isles team on its 1910 tour of South Africa. He played for Randfontein RFC, Transvaal, and Western Province. In the First World War, he first served with the South African forces in the

South West Africa Campaign The South West Africa campaign was the conquest and occupation of German South West Africa by forces from the Union of South Africa acting on behalf of the British imperial government at the beginning of the First World War. Background The ...

, then travelled to England where he joined the 9th Battalion

Royal Leicestershire Regiment The Leicestershire Regiment (Royal Leicestershire Regiment after 1946) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, with a history going back to 1688. The regiment saw service for three centuries, in numerous wars and conflicts such as both W ...

as a Second Lieutenant. He was hit by shrapnel during the Battle of Bazentin Ridge and died from his wounds the following day. He is buried at

Méricourt-l'Abbé Méricourt-l'Abbé () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography The commune is situated on the D120 road, some northeast of Amiens, on the banks of the Ancre The Ancre (; ) is a river of Picardy, ...

Cemetery.

Early life

Toby Moll was born on 20 July 1890 at Cape Town, Cape Province (today South Africa). He was the son of Tobias and Henrietta Moll of Potsdam, Cape Province. He was educated at

South African College The South African College was an educational institution in Cape Town, South Africa, which developed into the University of Cape Town (UCT) and the South African College Schools (SACS). History The process that would lead to the formation of t ...

Rugby career

Moll played club rugby for the Hamilton's Club, Cape Town, and was also the team captain. He played for the provincial side of Transvaal from 1908 to 1910. It was while playing for Transvaal that he earned his first and only cap for , against the British Isles team touring South Africa, on 27 August 1910 at

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha (), formerly Port Elizabeth and colloquially often referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality, Sou ...

. Later he played for Western Province from 1910 to 1914.

International appearance

Military service

At the start of 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 ...

, Moll first served in the

with the South African forces fighting for the British Empire against the Germans. At the conclusion of that campaign, he travelled to England and joined the 9th (Service) Battalion of the

. The 9th Battalion, as part of the 110th Infantry Brigade, was involved in the Battle of Bazentin Ridge on 14–15 July 1916, with the objective of taking

Bazentin le Petit Bazentin () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Situated between Amiens to the southwest and Arras to the north, on the D73 road. Population History * 1914–1918: The village, in the middle ...

village and wood, part of the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme ( French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

. Moll was wounded on 14 July and evacuated but died the following day. An eyewitness account of Moll's death was written by a teammate of his from Hampton's, Harold Lewis Silberbauer of Kenilworth, Cape Town, who was also serving as an officer in the Leicestershire Regiment: He is buried at

Cemetery Extension (Grave II. D. 5).

References

Bibliography

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Moll, Toby White South African people Rugby union forwards South African rugby union players South Africa international rugby union players British military personnel killed in the Battle of the Somme 1916 deaths 1890 births British Army personnel of World War I Royal Leicestershire Regiment officers Rugby union players from Cape Town Hamilton RFC, Sea Point players Military personnel from Cape Town