William Alfred Littledale Fletcher, DSO (25 August 1869 – 14 February 1919) was both a successful English

oarsman Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...

and coach, and soldier. Fletcher WAL Vanity Fair 1893-03-18

Fletcher was born at Holly Bank, Green Lane, Wavertree, near Liverpool, the eldest son of Alfred Fletcher, a Director of the London and North-Western Railway. He was educated at Cheam School and Eton. He went up to Christ Church, Oxford where he rowed to win the

Ladies' Challenge Plate The Ladies' Challenge Plate is one of the events at Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. Crews of men's eight-oared boats below the standard of the Grand Challenge Cup can enter, although international standard ...

and the Thames Cup at Henley Royal Regatta in 1889.The Rowers of Vanity Fair WAL Fletcher
/ref> In 1890 he stroked the

Oxford 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 ...

Eight in the

Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

to end a Cambridge run of four victories. He rowed in the

1891 Events January–March * January 1 ** Paying of old age pensions begins in Germany. ** A strike of 500 Hungarian steel workers occurs; 3,000 men are out of work as a consequence. ** Germany takes formal possession of its new Af ...

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies fo ...

and 1893 Boat Races. With Vivian Nickalls he won the

Silver Goblets The Silver Goblets & Nickalls' Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless pairs at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing club A rowing club ...

at Henley in 1892 and 1893 and both the Pairs and the Fours at Oxford. He rowed in winning

Leander Club Leander Club, founded in 1818, is one of the oldest rowing clubs in the world, and the oldest non-academic club. It is based in Remenham in Berkshire, England and adjoins Henley-on-Thames. Only three other surviving clubs were founded prior t ...

crews at Henley. He was a member of the Oxford Varsity Water Polo team and was on the Committee of Vincent's Club. Having access to considerable private wealth, Fletcher became a rowing coach. He had learned a technique at Oxford comprising a combination of swing and slide, together with a lightning entry, and he taught it to the Cambridge crews in 1898 and 1899, which led to the creation of a magnificent Cambridge crew in 1900. He missed coaching for the 1901 Boat Race as he was serving in the South African War. On return from South Africa he coached both the Oxford varsity crew and that of his old college, Christ Church, to great success and acclaim, reaching the peak of his fame as a coach. He afterwards coached many Oxford and House crews. Fletcher was also a big game hunter and explorer. He went hunting and exploring in Siberia, Kenya, and Tibet. He became part of the patriotic volunteer movement at the beginning of 1900, joining the 32nd Company

Imperial Yeomanry The Imperial Yeomanry was a volunteer mounted force of the British Army that mainly saw action during the Second Boer War. Created on 2 January 1900, the force was initially recruited from the middle classes and traditional yeomanry sources, but s ...

on 7 February 1900. The Company was raised in Lancashire by the

Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry The Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry (DLOY) was a yeomanry unit of the British Army from 1798 to 1992. Originally raised as part-time cavalry for home defence and internal security, the regiment sent mounted infantry to serve in the Second Boer ...

Cavalry and The

Lancashire Hussars The Lancashire Hussars was a British Army unit originally formed in 1798. It saw action in the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Second World War. In 1969, the regiment reduced to a cadre and the Yeomanry lineage discontinued. Histor ...

. He was appointed Lieutenant and served with the 2nd Battalion Imperial Yeomanry in South Africa. On return home he relinquished his commission and was granted the honorary rank of lieutenant in the Army from 10 July 1901. He had proved to be a very successful officer and was Mentioned in Despatches (MID) twice. First on 7 May 1901 for valuable services rendered in connection with operations, and second on 10 September 1901 for special and meritorious service in South Africa. He was made a Companion of 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 ...

(DSO) on 27 September 1901. He enlisted again on the outbreak of the Great War, joining the

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry ...

Reserve as a captain on 23 September 1914. He was appointed adjutant of the 6th (Rifle) Battalion

The King's (Liverpool Regiment) The King's Regiment (Liverpool) was one of the oldest line infantry regiments of the British Army, having been formed in 1685 and numbered as the 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot in 1751. Unlike most British Army infantry regiments, which were ...

on 10 November 1914; a position he held until 27 April 1915. On 6 August 1915 he was promoted temporary lieutenant-colonel and appointed commanding officer of the 2nd/6th Battalion, which was in training. It deployed to France on 14 February 1917, and he was one of the 457 casualties suffered by the battalion during the second mustard gas attack of the war, at Armentières on 29 July 1917. He had recovered sufficiently to return to duty on 11 September 1917.The King's Regiment (Liverpool) 1914-1919 Volume III, London 1935 His successful command was recognized on 1 January 1918 when, as a captain (temporary lieutenant-colonel) he was appointed brevet major for distinguished service in the field. On 2 May 1918 the French honoured his service by the award of the Légion d'honneur, Croix de Chevalier. "''On the 23rd of July 918 to everyone's regret, Lieutenant-Colonel W A L Fletcher proceeded to England, broken in health''." He became acting chairman of the Henley Regatta, putting forward a motion which was carried unanimously, to hold a scaled-down Regatta in the following summer. However, he never saw it to fruition, dying in the

1918 flu pandemic The 1918–1920 influenza pandemic, commonly known by the misnomer Spanish flu or as the Great Influenza epidemic, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. The earliest documented case was ...

from broncho-pneumonia which caught hold in his gas-weakened lungs. He is buried in a family grave in St Nicholas Church-yard Halewood.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fletcher, William Alfred Littledale 1869 births 1919 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford English male rowers British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British Army personnel of World War I People educated at Cheam School British military personnel killed in World War I Deaths from the Spanish flu pandemic in England Deaths from pneumonia in England Deaths from bronchopneumonia

See also

References