William Hugh Holbech (18 August 1882 – 1 November 1914) was an English

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er who played at first-class level for

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...

and the

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

(MCC). He died of wounds following the

First Battle of Ypres The First Battle of Ypres (french: Première Bataille des Flandres; german: Erste Flandernschlacht – was a battle of the First World War, fought on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front around Ypres, in West Flanders, Belgium. Th ...

. Holbech was born in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

in 1882, in Murray Bay (now known as

La Malbaie La Malbaie is a municipality in the Charlevoix-Est Regional County Municipality in the Province of Quebec, Canada, situated on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River at the mouth of the Malbaie River. It was formerly known as Murray Bay. La Ma ...

). His father, Lt.-Col. Walter Holbech of the

King's Royal Rifle Corps The King's Royal Rifle Corps was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army that was originally raised in British North America as the Royal American Regiment during the phase of the Seven Years' War in North America known in the United St ...

, was on active duty at the time of his birth. The Holbech family owned

Farnborough Hall Farnborough Hall is a country house in Warwickshire, England near to the town of Banbury, (). Owned by the National Trust, but administered by the Holbech family; the house is a Grade I listed building. History Ambrose Holbech acquired the F ...

, near

Farnborough, Warwickshire Farnborough is a village and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. It is located on the border with Oxfordshire, around 6 miles (10 km) north of Banbury. The population taken at the 2011 census was 26 ...

, and Holbech's paternal grandfather,

Charles Holbech Charles William Holbech, J.P. (born Farnborough, Warwickshire 1816; died 1901) was Archdeacon of Coventry from 1873 until 1887. Holbech was educated at Eton and Balliol College, Oxford. He was ordained in 1840, and was curate at Chelsfield ...

, was

Archdeacon of Coventry The Archdeacon of Coventry is a senior ecclesiastical officer in the Church of England Diocese of Coventry. The post has been called the ''Archdeacon Pastor'' since 2012. History The post was historically within the Diocese of Lichfield beginning ...

from 1873 to 1887. His maternal grandfather, Sir John Walrond, Bt., was MP for Tiverton, in east

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

. John Walrond's son, William Walrond (later raised to the peerage as Baron Waleran), and grandson, The Hon. William Walrond, both later represented the same constituency, with the latter also killed in the First World War. William Holbech was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

, going on to the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infantry a ...

. He was made a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in the

Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the ...

in January 1902, and promoted

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 ...

in March 1904, passing into the reserve in February 1907. An MCC member, Holbech made his first-class debut for an MCC side in June 1908, against

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. He had earlier played non-first-class matches for the MCC and for Sandhurst. A right-handed

batsman In cricket, batting is the act or skill of hitting the ball with a bat to score runs and prevent the loss of one's wicket. Any player who is currently batting is, since September 2021, officially referred to as a batter (historically, the ...

, Holbech played once more the MCC the following season, against

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 ...

. He scored 21 runs in the MCC's second innings in that match, his highest first-class score. He also appeared once for Warwickshire, against

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

in the 1910 County Championship, but with little success. In August 1914, at the outbreak of the First World War, Holbech rejoined the 2nd Battalion of the Scots Guards, stationed at the

Tower of London The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...

. The battalion was attached to the 20th Brigade of the 7th Division, landing at

Zeebrugge Zeebrugge (, from: ''Brugge aan zee'' meaning "Bruges at Sea", french: Zeebruges) is a village on the coast of Belgium and a subdivision of Bruges, for which it is the modern port. Zeebrugge serves as both the international port of Bruges-Zeeb ...

in early October 1914. Holbech reached the frontline on 18 October, participating in the First Battle of Ypres. A week later, he was shot in the thigh, and severely wounded. He was repatriated to London, but died at the

Royal Herbert Hospital Initially the Herbert Hospital, renamed in 1900, the Royal Herbert Hospital was built as a restorative facility for British veterans of the Crimean War, and remained a military hospital until 1977. It was situated in southeast London, on the sout ...

Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...

on 1 November, after his wound became septic. Holbech was buried at St Botolph churchyard, following a lavish funeral at Farnborough Hall.LORDS CRICKET GROUND MCC MEMBERS WORLD WAR 1 MEMORIAL
Retrieved 29 December 2014.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holbech, William 1882 births 1914 deaths British military personnel killed in World War I Cricketers from Quebec English cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers Scots Guards officers Warwickshire cricketers Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst People educated at Eton College People from Stratford-on-Avon District British Army personnel of World War I Cricketers from Warwickshire

See also

References