Charles Carson was my great grandmother’s second husband. I have two sets of army records for him (his 1914 enlistment into Grenadier Guards and his 1919 enlistment into Military Foot Police) plus their marriage certificate. Charles was a consummate liar and the personal information recorded in these documents is contradictory. There was a Charles Carson whose date and place of birth is a close match to the information given in Charles’ Grenadier Guards papers. Having followed up many men of the same or similar name and age from around the country all of whom sooner or later proved not to be him I am fairly confident that this is the correct man.
Charles Carson was the son of Charles Carson and Sarah Sweeney. He was born in Stockton-on-Tees on 13th April 1881 and baptised in St Patrick’s Catholic Church, Thornaby on 30th October. His birth does not appear to have been registered. When the 1881 census was taken at the beginning of April his parents and siblings Patrick and Mary Ann had been living in lodgings at 10 Black Bull Yard and it is likely that he was born there. Black Bull Yard ran from Stockton High Street down to the river. The census records Charles senior was a sailor.
In 1889 Charles and Patrick were admitted to Wentworth and Harley Infant School. His sister Mary Ann seems to have received no education as she was unable to sign her name when she married.
By the time of the 1891 census the family were living at 6 Harris Yard in Rotherham. Charles senior was described as being a general labourer (in the marriage records of his other two children his occupation was given as ironworks puddler). Charles senior died in May 1898.
The 1901 census records the widowed Sarah and Charles living in Harris Yard. Staying with them were 2 boarders. Charles’ occupation was recorded as iron worker. Charles was still living in Harris Yard with his mother in 1911 when his occupation was given as general labourer in the iron works. Although widowed, and so the information was struck through by the enumerator, Sarah provided information about the number of children she had borne. She had had 7 children of whom 3 (Patrick, Mary Ann and Charles) were still alive.
Charles enlisted into the Grenadier Guards at St Paul’s churchyard, London on 14th November 1914. with service number 20521. Charles signed up for a period of 3 years or the duration of the war whichever was the longer. Before signing he was cautioned that if he made any false answer he would be liable to punishment. Charles stated said that he was living at 19 Ethel Road, Custom House; that he was a seaman by trade; that he was born in Seton [sic] Carew, Co. Durham and was 32 years and 2 months of age (putting his date of birth as late August/early September 1882).
Charles was described as 5 foot 10 ½ inches tall with a fresh complexion, grey eyes, brown hair and a 40 inch chest. He had a tattoo of a woman on his right forearm and a scar on the front of his left elbow. He named his next of kin as his brother, Mr. E. Carson, whose address was Seattle, British Columbia which is, of course, nonsense.
If he was a sailor why did Charles join the Army? Why did he travel to London to enlist? Why give a fictitious next of kin? So many unanswerable questions. One possible explanation for him giving a false occupation is to allow him to enlist and go and fight. As an ironworker he had a Scheduled Occupation. If Charles had said he was a labourer in the iron works when he volunteered he would have been placed in the Army Reserve and not called up. Claiming a non-scheduled occupation would allow him to enlist. There is a strong likelihood that if Charles had tried to enlist in his home town he would have been recognised which is maybe why he travelled to London.
After enlisting Charles joined the Guards at Caterham on 16th November. He deserted from the 5th Battalion on 18th June 1915. He was still on the run when he married the divorcee Charlotte Rock (maiden name Welch) in Paddington Register Office on 24th August 1915. At the time they were lodging at 6 Windsor Gardens. Charles’ age was given as 35 placing his birth circa 1879/80. Charles gave his father’s details as Edward Carson, a foreman in a steel works, Surprisingly since he was a deserter, Charles gave his profession as a private in the Grenadier Guards. Charlotte’s details were added to Charles’ army record as the woman to whom he was married but there is no date to indicate when this was done.
Charles rejoined the Regiment on 16th November and was arrested. He was tried on 22nd by District Court Martial and was found not guilty of desertion but guilty of ‘when on active service absenting himself without leave’. He was sentenced to detention for 112 days. He served his detention in Aldershot Detention Barracks. 28 days of his sentence were remitted by his commanding officer and on 21st January 1916 Charles was transferred to the 3rd Battalion and embarked at Southampton to join the Expeditionary Force in France. On 3rd February Charles was transferred into the 7th Entrenching Battalion and he joined the Battalion in the field on 7th April.
The following extract from THE GRENADIER GUARDS IN THE GREAT WAR OF 1914-1918 Vol. III by Lieut.-Colonel The Right Hon. SIR FREDERICK PONSONBY describes the work undertaken by the Entrenching Battalion.
In April 1916 preparations for the offensive operations on the Somme were begun, and the Entrenching Battalion played a great part during this battle, which lasted six months. The Guards Division was not employed in the initial stages of the battle, and it was therefore not until July that the Entrenching Battalion moved up to the vicinity of Fricourt, to take over the forward roads in the battle area. The constant shelling, combined with the heavy traffic, made it peculiarly difficult to keep the roads in sufficiently good repair for constant use, but in spite of all difficulties the roads were kept open all the time, and this was entirely due to the ability and energy of the officers and the efficiency and discipline of the men. Throughout the year the duties of the Entrenching Battalion were many and various, and at times the work was very heavy, but it was always cheerfully undertaken, because the men prided themselves on being part of the Guards Division, and knew that more than the average amount of work done by the other entrenching battalions was expected from them.
In January 1917 the Battalion was employed in strengthening the defences of Ginchy and Combles, and in the successful operations against the Germans early that year it participated in the various works, on which all arms were engaged. In April it was encamped for some months in the neighbourhood of Havrincourt Wood, and was employed in preparations for the offensive in the direction of Cambrai, which, however, did not take place till November. In June the Battalion made a farther move to Roisel, where for some months[205] it was busily employed in digging a line of trenches some nine miles long, from Epeley to within three miles of St. Quentin. The strength of the Battalion had now risen to over 2000 men. The work on these trenches was very interesting, as it was in sight of the Hindenburg line, and although works of some importance were undertaken, Major Ellice and his Entrenching Battalion were given complete charge of this area.
Although the Guards Entrenching Battalion had constantly worked in the forward areas, the other entrenching battalions had been employed mostly in rear on work which could as easily have been done by labour battalions or Chinese, and they had consequently diminished in strength. In September 1917 the attention of the military authorities was directed to these entrenching battalions, with the result that it was decided to disband them. General Feilding asked that the Guards Entrenching Battalion might be maintained, but this was not considered possible. In October the final disbandment took place.
After the disbanding of the Entrenching Battalion Charles returned to the 3rd Battalion.
In England Charlotte was receiving support from the Regiment’s family welfare committee. At a tea on 15th November Charlotte told the Secretary that she was very anxious as she hadn’t had a letter from Charles for 2 months. The Secretary requested if the Regimental Orderly Room had any information. Charlotte received a reply ten days later saying that as far as the R.O.R. knew Charles was still with his battalion and no casualty had been reported. On 27th Charlotte wrote to Lady St Cyres thanking her for making enquiries about her husband and saying that she had now received a letter from him. Charles, apparently, had not written because he had been ill.
Charles was granted Class 2 Proficiency pay (an additional 3d per day on his basic pay) on 14th November 1916 and Class 1 pay (an additional 6d per day) on 1st July 1917. He had 10 days leave from 20th August 1917 and leave to the UK from 28th September to 12th October 1918.
On 4th November Charles received a mild gun shot wound to the knee and was admitted to the 4th field ambulance which was with the Guards Division in and around Maubeuge. He was transferred to the 20th General Hospital in Dannes Camiers on 6th ; to the 6th Convalescent Deport at Etaples on 16th. and to the 10th Convalescent Depot at Ecault on 21st.
Charles joined the Assistance Provost Marshall in Boulogne on 30th December.
His Army Form 103 was annotated in red ink with the following demob information:
Group 30 (civil engineer) Code No. 466. M. date of birth 21/9/77 Med class “A” D of War (re-enlisted)
This information was probably taken from the Civil Employment Form that Charles would have completed at the end of the war. On this form he provided different information to that given when he enlisted. He gave a date of birth corresponding to an age of over 41 on 18th April 1918 and stated that he had been employed as a Civil Engineer which placed him in Group 30. Both of these ‘facts’ would have given him priority for demobilisation.
However he must have changed his mind about getting home quickly as on 22nd February 1919 Charles volunteered for service for one year with the Armies of Occupation. He was attached to the Military Foot Police at Police rates of pay and on 18th May was attached to the Military Police in Boulogne. Charles was given leave to the UK between 6th and 20th June.
Charles was discharged from the Grenadier Guards on 7th July to allow him to re-enlist into the Military Foot Police which he did in Boulogne the following day. He re-enlisted for 4 years and 3 months (to 8th October 1923) with Service Number 1509. Once again Charles was cautioned that if he made any false answer he would be liable to punishment. He gave Lottie’s address, 10 Woodfield Crescent, as his residence but he had created a whole new backstory for himself with a different place and date of birth and a different occupation. He gave his age as 34 years and 4 months, his place of birth as Port Maddock in Monmouthshire and his previous occupation as a civil engineer. Charles also claimed to have served with the Grenadier Guards for 3 years in the early 1900s but there is no evidence of this and he never made such a claim when he enlisted in 1914. The only reason I can think of him doing this would be to boost his pensionable time to be eligible for a pension at the end of his period of service with the M.F.P. He must have felt fairly confident that checks would not be made with his former regiment. Charlotte was not added to the married roll when he enlisted. For Lottie to have been placed on the married roll Charles would have had to have produced their marriage certificate and that would have carried the risk of someone noticing the age disparity between that which he gave when he enlisted and that shown on the certificate.
When he attested Charles was appointed an acting Lance Corporal. This was a common practice to afford the recruit the status to perform their duties among ordinary soldiers. He underwent a medical at Wimereux the following day. His date of birth was recorded as 21st September 1884.
Charles returned to the UK and served at Home from 25th July until 16th March the following year. He never returned to Charlotte. She remained living at 10 Woodfield Crescent until the 1960s. Charles was awarded the Victory and British War medals and four blue chevrons for his service during the war.
In 1920 Charles was transferred to Egypt. He disembarked in Alexandria on 28th March; reported for duty in Cairo on 13th April but was back in Alexandria on 16th. During 1920 his Service Number changed to 7681520 and he was issued with a National Health Insurance Card giving his d.o.b. as 21.9.1884. Some time later the 4 was crossed out and replaced with 2 in red ink (i.e. 1882).
Charles’s home address was given as 10 Woodfield Crescent, Paddington. Charlotte was listed as his wife and next of kin living at the same address. Charles appears on the Electoral Roll as an absent voter at that address between 1919 and 1925. Charlotte was finally added to the regiment’s married roll in October 1920. In the early 1920s, the British Army undertook a major centralization and consolidation of its First World War personnel and administrative records. Charlotte may have been added to the roll when Charles’s records were processed and it was found that she had been on the married roll for the Grenadier Guards. The details of the marriage would have simply been copied forward without the need to review the actual certificate. Being placed on the married roll would have entitled Charlotte to married accommodation with her husband or an Army Separation Allowance if Charles’s posting was to somewhere where wives could not accompany their husbands. When Charlotte was placed on the roll the Army would have invoked Section 145 of the Army Act to ensure she did not become a burden on public poor relief and mandatory “stoppages” would have been taken from Charles’s pay and paid directly to her.
On Census night 19th June 1921 Charles was at the Egyptian Military Police Headquarters in Ismailia.
In September of that year Charles was severely reprimanded for conduct to the prejudice of good order and Military Discipline i.e. endeavouring to obtain public accommodation for a woman not his lawful wife and 2), absent from Kantara until found in Port Said at 15.20 hours 11.9.21 (Absent 5 hours 20 mins). Charles had a mistress in Egypt. Having discovered that Lottie had been added to the married roll Charles decided to exploit this. He tried to pass off this other woman as his wife and obtain military accommodation for her. If he had succeeded it would also have stopped the deductions from his pay because his ‘wife’ was with him. On 12th September 1921 Charles was severely reprimanded for conduct to the prejudice of good order and Military Discipline i.e. endeavouring to obtain public accommodation for a woman not his lawful wife. This was an incredibly serious offence. It was fraud and a serious breach of military discipline. His punishment could have been much more severe. That he only received a severe reprimand may have been due to the fact that he was good at his job and the M.F.P. in Egypt were short of experienced men.
Charles spent some time in Palestine during the early part of 1922 with the place names Ludd (Lod) and Bir Salim appearing in his record. From 26th to 29th March 1923 Charles was in Ras-el-tin Hospital in Alexandria suffering with Pharyngitis. He was seen by a dentist in Mustapha, Alexandria on 6th April.
Charles left Egypt for home on 19th November 1923 and on the 21st was permitted to extend his engagement to 7 years in the Army followed by 5 years in the Reserve as a special case. This was confirmed on 10th December. At the time it was reported that his character was “very good” and that he was “a very good military Policeman and is very hard working.”
Charles was transferred to Malta on 6th February 1924. In Malta his superiors soon became wise to his true character. Charles was severely reprimanded on 4th June 1924 for “neglect of duty whilst caterer of N.C.O.s’ mess MFP Malta i.e. failing to keep proper account of cash takings. In November his commanding officer wrote that Charles was “lacking in trustworthiness”. Charles was severely reprimanded again on 10th February 1925 for drunkenness and creating a disturbance in Strada Sant’ Anna, Valletta at about 11.5pm. On this occasion it was also recommended that he be removed from the Military Foot Police.
Charles was recommended for discharge on 25th February 2025. His age was given as 40 years and 3 months. The discharge was approved two days later. He left Malta 10th April for Home.
Charles was discharged without gratuity “his services being no longer required” at Ash Vale, Surrey 24th April 1925. He was not transferred to the Reserve and his gratuity was forfeited under Article 958 (g) of the Royal Warrant. A copy of the Royal Warrant for 1925 has not been seen but in 1922 that Article stated: “To a soldier discharged in consequence of misapprehension or misstatement with regard to age on enlistment, or in consequence of his having been claimed as an apprentice or by the parish authorities for wife desertion.”.
On discharge Charles stated that he intended to live at the Union Jack Club, London. Charles remained on the Electoral Roll at 10 Woodfield Crescent until 1932 but the Electoral Roll in London for this time is highly unreliable e.g. Charlotte is listed on the Electoral Roll both in Woodfield Crescent and also, until 1928, with her first husband as Charlotte Rock, at an address at which she had never lived!
What became of Charles after his discharge is unknown. He re-invented a new back story for himself and disappeared. If he remained in England it was under a different name but it is more likely that he moved abroad.