William Noel Hodgson
MC (3 January 1893 – 1 July 1916) was an English poet. During 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 ...
, he published stories and poems under the pen name Edward Melbourne.
Early life and education
Hodgson was the fourth and youngest child of
Henry Bernard Hodgson, the first
Bishop of Saint Edmundsbury and Ipswich
The Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich is the Ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich in the Province of Canterbury.
The current bishop is Martin Seeley. The Bishop's residence is the Bishop's House, Ipswich ...
. He was born at
Thornbury Thornbury may refer to:
Places
;Australia
*Thornbury, Victoria
* Thornbury railway station, Melbourne
;Canada
* Thornbury, Ontario
;England
*Thornbury, Devon
* Thornbury, Herefordshire
*Thornbury, Gloucestershire
**Thornbury Castle
**Thornbury (UK ...
, near Bristol, but the family soon moved to
Berwick-upon-Tweed
Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...
. He entered into ''The School House'' of
Durham School
Durham School is an independent boarding and day school in the English public school tradition located in Durham, North East England and was an all-boys institution until 1985, when girls were admitted to the sixth form. The school takes pupils a ...
in September 1905 on a
King's Scholarship. He steered in the second crew in 1907; was in the XI, 1910, 1911; and in the XV, 1910. He won the Steeplechase in 1909 and 1911. He left Durham in July 1911, with
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...
war poet and friend
Nowell Oxland, for
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
where he was an exhibitioner of
Christ Church. He took a first in Classical Moderations in March 1913 and decided to stay and do
Greats.
First World War
Known as "Smiler" to his friends, he volunteered for the British Army on the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 and served in the 9th Battalion of the
Devonshire Regiment
The Devonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that served under various titles and served in many wars and conflicts from 1685 to 1958, such as the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Second World War. In 1958 ...
. For the first year of the War he was training in England, before landing at
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...
on 28 July 1915 and being sent to trenches near
Festubert
Festubert is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. The village was on the Western Front during the First World War and was largely destroyed in the May 1915 Battle of Festubert.
Geography
A farming vil ...
. His first major offensive came on 25 September 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 was mentioned in dispatches and awarded the
Military Cross
The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries.
The MC i ...
for holding a captured trench for 36 hours without reinforcements or supplies during the battle and he was subsequently promoted 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 ...
.
Having returned to England after 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 was positioned with his battalion (now part of the
7th Division) in the front-line trenches at
Fricourt
Fricourt () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France.
Geography
Fricourt is situated on the D147 and D64 junction, some northeast of Amiens.
History
Fricourt is about a kilometre from Mametz. It was close to ...
in February 1916, before moving a kilometre or so to the trenches opposite the town of
Mametz in April. The trench was named Mansell Copse, as it was in a group of trees. He was killed on the
first day 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 ...
when attacking German trenches near Mametz. He was bombing officer for his battalion during the attack, and was killed by a machine gun positioned at a shrine whilst taking grenades to the men in the newly captured trenches. The bullet went through his neck, killing him instantly. His servant was found next to him after the offensive had ended. He is buried in Grave 3, Row 'A' at
Devonshire Cemetery in Mansell Copse.
Writings
Although he had been writing poetry since at least 1913, he started publishing stories and poems in periodicals at the beginning of 1916, under the pen name Edward Melbourne.
Hodgson's posthumous volume ''Verse and Prose in Peace and War'', published in London by Murray in 1917, ran into three editions. He is probably best remembered today for his poem 'Before Action', which was published two days before he died. It is a commonly held belief that the poem was written with the premonition of his death, from his knowledge of the German machine gun positions; the last line is "Help me to die, O Lord".
"Before Action"
By all the glories of the day
And the cool evening's benison
By that last sunset touch that lay
Upon the hills when day was done,
By beauty lavishly outpoured
And blessings carelessly received,
By all the days that I have lived
Make me a soldier, Lord.
By all of all man's hopes and fears
And all the wonders poets sing,
The laughter of unclouded years,
And every sad and lovely thing;
By the romantic ages stored
With high endeavour that was his,
By all his mad catastrophes
Make me a man, O Lord.
I, that on my familiar hill
Saw with uncomprehending eyes
A hundred of thy sunsets spill
Their fresh and sanguine sacrifice,
Ere the sun swings his noonday sword
Must say good-bye to all of this; –
By all delights that I shall miss,
Help me to die, O Lord.
Written on 30 June 1916, just two days before his death.
Books about W. N. Hodgson
Before Action: William Noel Hodgson and the 9th Devons – A Story of the Great War – http://www.w-n-hodgson.info/
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodgson, W. N.
1893 births
1916 deaths
20th-century English poets
English male poets
English World War I poets
Anglican poets
British military personnel killed in the Battle of the Somme
British Army personnel of World War I
Devonshire Regiment officers
Recipients of the Military Cross
People educated at Durham School
Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford
20th-century English male writers
Burials at Devonshire Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery
Deaths by firearm in France
Military personnel from Gloucestershire