Sgt. Roy Wilson Lambert

Roy Wilson Lambert was the son of William Lambert and Elizabeth Lambert (Wilson) and attended Auckland Grammar School. He served with the Auckland Infantry Battalion during World War I. Roy was killed in action at Gallipoli. Roy is commemorated on the bell Chunuk Bair, given by his sisters and brothers for the National War Memorial Carillon, Wellington.

'Raced into the firing line. Our fellows had no trench, just an old and shallow water course and we were out-numbered five to one. It was death to put your head up to fire. machine guns and trenches about 200 yards in front. Poor old Roy Lambert tried but was killed instantly - hit in three places. I had just been joking saying that he would go into a charge as if he was scoring a try. Lieutenant Richardson was mortally wounded on my right and little O'Meara of our section was shot in the knee on my left.' (from 'War Diary of Pte F. E. McKenzie 12/190' -copy in Auckland War Memorial Library MS 96/13) [via Cenotaph].

Sources

1. Cenotaph: https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/...
2. New Zealand and World War One Roll of Honour: http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~sooty/genealogy/nzefrohL.html / Ref 11.4.2021

   ---

The following biography is from "REMEMBRANCE - Auckland Grammar School Great War Roll of Honour"
by Andrew Connolly and Peter Stanes https://ags.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/8644?keywords=

SERGEANT ROY WILSON LAMBERT, 1905
Auckland Infantry Battalion, 12/149
Died 25th April, 1915

Roy Wilson Lambert was born in Sydney Street, Wellington on 9th January 1890. His parents were William Lambert and Elizabeth Wilson.

Roy’s grandfather was William Lambert snr., who was born in Exeter, in Devon, England, in May 1811, probably to Samuel Lambert and Harriet Clower. William snr. was educated at the school of the Rev. John Mason in Exeter. Following this, he would have entered an apprenticeship at the age of about 12 years, probably in London, and, seven years later, he would have qualified as a printer and compositor. He married Marianne Winter, who was born about 1813 in Fownhope, in Herefordshire, in September 1834 in St. Martin in the Fields, London, and they initially lived in Brook Street, Holborn, in London, where their first three children, all daughters, were born. By 1841, they were living in Islington, about 2 kms to the north, where their next three children were born: a son, William, who died in infancy; another daughter; and a son, who they also named William, given that the first one died. This William Lambert jnr. was born in September 1847. William snr. worked for many years in Fleet Street on the Chronicle and the Post newspapers, before taking the family to Australia, arriving in Sydney in October 1852 on board the barque Francis Walker (116 days). Another son was born to them on the voyage, only fifteen days before arriving in Sydney. They lived there for almost three years, where William snr. worked for the Sydney Morning Herald. He gave up the job because of having to work on Sundays and, in July 1855, the family arrived in Auckland on board the mailer William Denny from Sydney. They settled in Princes Street, Auckland, and William snr. continued in the printing trade. In 1858, he was persuaded to move the family to Dunedin and start the Colonist newspaper. They lived in Stafford Street. Many years of night work had taken their toll on William’s health and, though successful, the strain of establishing a newspaper was too much. William Lambert snr. died of an aneurism in Dunedin in December 1861. Marianne died in November 1871, also in Dunedin.

William Lambert jnr., the only surviving son, married Elizabeth Wilson in November 1876 in Walton Park, Dunedin.

Elizabeth Wilson, born in St. Pancras, London, in August 1855, was the younger daughter of six children. Her parents were Frederick John Wilson (born in December 1820 in Marylebone, London, to Frederick William Wilson and Mary Ann Swale), and Elizabeth Howorth, born in St. Pancras in October 1817. Frederick John, a bookseller, married Elizabeth in August 1846 in St. Pancras and they lived in Great Russell Street in Holborn until 1851, when they moved a little northwest to St. Pancras, towards Camden Town. By 1860, they were living in St. Giles, Finsbury, a couple of kms to the east.

Elizabeth Howorth was the oldest of nine children of James Howorth, a barrister practising in London, and Mary Ann Jones Demer Walton. James and Mary Ann, and several of their children other than Elizabeth, emigrated to New Zealand in October 1856, arriving at Port Chalmers from London on board the sailing ship Strathmore (95 days). They settled just west of Dunedin in Walton Park, Green Island West. James set up a legal practice in Dunedin and, in June 1864, his fourth son, Henry, now also a qualified lawyer, joined him and George Elliott Barton, to form a new partnership named Howorth, Barton and Howorth. James died at Walton Park of stomach inflammation in March 1867 and Mary Ann died there in May 1876.

No doubt influenced by the experiences of the Howorth family in New Zealand, Frederick and Elizabeth Wilson also decided to emigrate. They were still living in London in April 1861, the date of the English census, and, by July 1862, they were established close to Dunedin on the edge of the Taieri Plains in Otakia (now known as Otokia), where Frederick was postmaster and ran a general store. In November 1867, Frederick was adjudged bankrupt, caused by “guaranteeing a debt for another, loss on farming produce, bad debts, pressure of creditors”. The stress was immense and he died in December 1868, aged only 48 years. Elizabeth remained living at Walton Park and died there in August 1885.

William jnr. and Elizabeth Lambert continued living in Stafford Street, Dunedin, where William was a captain of the Dunedin Artillery Corps and had worked for twenty years for two wholesale businesses. They had four sons and four daughters, Roy Lambert being their youngest child. By 1885, William was running his own business as a custom house and commission agent operating from Vogel Street. In 1886, William relocated his business to Wellington and the family lived in Sydney Street, Thorndon, where Roy was born in 1890. Later that year, they moved the short distance to Hill Street. William ran his business from Lambton Quay, then Featherston Street, Custom House Quay and, finally, Grey Street, and was the New Zealand manager for the New York Life Insurance Company from 1886 until it closed in 1894. Elizabeth died in January 1895 and William moved the family to Auckland, where they lived in View Road, Mt. Eden. It was from this address that Roy attended Mt. Eden Primary School and Grammar. In July 1897, William married Bertha Caroline Greatbatch, a teacher born in October 1866. The family lived in View Road until at least 1911. By 1914, they were living at 2A Leamington Road, Mt. Eden and they remained there until William’s death in December 1920. William had attended morning service at St. David’s Church in Khyber Pass on the day of his death. He had unveiled a roll of honour, which included his son, Roy, said a few appropriate words, and returned to his seat, when he collapsed and died.

When he left Grammar, Roy Lambert worked for Macky, Logan, Caldwell and Co. as a Commercial Traveller in Wellington. He joined the Territorials in Wellington before returning to Auckland. He signed up for the N.Z.E.F. on 10th August 1914 and within a week he was promoted to Corporal in the 3rd Company, Auckland Infantry Battalion. He sailed with the Main Body in October 1914. On 14th April 1915, whilst on board the H.M. 52 AUCKLAND GRAMMAR SCHOOL Troopship Lutzow as it transported the troops to Lemnos, he was promoted to Sergeant. In the confusion of the early days on Gallipoli, Lambert was not reported missing, and indeed he was initially reported as being killed in action on 18th May 1915. However, as evidenced by his Chronicle obituary, it soon became obvious he had not survived the battle of the Landing.

His best friend, Kenneth Commons, who was himself to lose his life on 8th May, wrote to Lambert’s father, “I don’t know what I can write to you, only that I am heartbroken myself. Roy was the best friend I have ever known. Since the time we enlisted there has scarcely ever been an hour of leisure that we have not been together. Our company was scattered over the whole length of the line. We had to scatter on the way out owing to heavy shrapnel fire on the intermediate ground we had to cross. Roy’s party arrived at an advanced spot in the line where they were badly needed. I was some distance further on the right in the support trenches waiting all night for a bayonet charge which never came. I wish I had been with Roy. From what I can hear it seems that he was hit in three places and died almost immediately. The enemy must have brought enfilade fire to bear on that section of our line. After 36 hours we were relieved and it was then I heard about Roy. It is only constant work which has enabled me to keep my mind on other things and throughout the whole company there is no one more missed and grieved for than Roy. I have just been listening to a few words from Parson Taylor. He sticks to the boys right through and is a great help to us. Please convey my deepest sympathy to Roy’s sisters. He often spoke to me of them. If God permits I hope to see you myself.”

A Court of Enquiry in Egypt on 27th June 1916 formally established that he had been killed in action on the 25th April 1915. Roy Lambert has no known grave and is commemorated on the Lone Pine Memorial. He was 24 years of age.

Sergeant Roy Wilson Lambert, who was killed in action at the Dardanelles on April 25th, was the youngest son of Mr. W. Lambert, District Secretary 1 See page 71. in Auckland of the Mutual Life and Citizen Assurance Company. He entered School in 1905 as a member of the Modern III. Form, and after leaving us he went to Wellington for some years. At the time of his enlistment, Lambert was a member of the staff of Macky, Logan, Caldwell, Ltd., at Auckland. He was widely known as a footballer and cricketer, and was a prominent worker for the Y.M.C.A. He first achieved distinction as a footballer in Wellington, and last year played for the University Team, which won the championship. He was chosen as centre-threequarter for the Auckland Representative Football Team of last year. A comrade, writing from the Front, describes his death thus: During the desperate fight that followed the landing a section of the force got into a very tight corner, and sent a message, “For God’s sake, send us reinforcements!” Lambert got the message, and, without hesitation, responded to the call of duty, racing at the head of his men up an incline to close quarters with the enemy. Bullets wounded him in three places, and the last proved fatal in a few minutes. They buried him last night.
CHRONICLE 1915, V.3, N.1 P13Last edited by: Peter Stanes
Date of birth
9-1-1890Last edited by: Peter Stanes
Date of death
25-4-1915Last edited by: Peter Stanes
Year of entry
1905Last edited by: Peter Stanes