Introduction
Walter Marsh’s life was dramatically altered by the First World War. Before the war, he worked in a local factory and seemed destined for an ordinary working life in Hardington Mandeville. However, his military service ended with a discharge due to shell shock, and the rest of his life was overshadowed by mental illness.
Early life
Walter was born on 11 May 1892 at Hardington Mandeville, the second child of Francis George Marsh and his second wife, Elizabeth (née Marsh). His father worked as a carter. The family may initially have lived at Eastfield, a former farmhouse, but by about 1892, they had moved to Hardington Moor, where Walter spent his childhood.
As a young man, Walter found employment in the local hemp industry. By the age of eighteen, he was working as a hemp weaver in a web and twine factory.
War service and its aftermath
The outbreak of the First World War interrupted Walter’s working life. On 6 September 1914, he enlisted in the army.[1] He served as a private with the 5th and 6th Battalions of the Dorset Regiment, holding service number 12418. In January 1915, he was included on Hardington’s Roll of Honour.[2] On 13 July 1915, he landed in France.[3]
While little is known of his military service, its consequences were profound. On 25 May 1918, he was discharged from the army suffering from shell shock.[4] At the time, the term “shell shock” was applied to a wide range of nervous and psychological disorders associated with the strains and trauma of warfare. Following his discharge, Walter returned to Hardington, where he was cared for by his parents, who lived at 307 Hardington Moor. He was awarded the 1914–15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal, together with the Silver War Badge.[5]
His father died in September 1920 from heart disease, leaving his mother solely responsible for his care.[6] Later that year, she purchased their home in the estate sale, which provided greater security for Walter and herself. Although the surviving records reveal little about the following years, it appears that Walter never resumed a normal working life.
By 1939, he was a patient at Cotford Mental Hospital in Somerset, where he remained for the rest of his life. He died there in 1968 at the age of seventy-four.
Conclusion
Walter’s life illustrates one of the less visible legacies of the First World War. Before the conflict, he was a factory worker living with his family in rural Somerset; afterwards, he lived with the long-term consequences of shell shock. Although the surviving evidence is sparse, it suggests that his military service had a lasting impact and that much of his adult life was spent dependent on others’ care.
References
[1] UK, Silver War Badge Records, 1914-1920.
[2] Western Chronicle, 5 February 1915, p.6
[3] World War I Service Medal and Award Rolls, 1914-1920.
[4] World War I Pension Ledgers and Index Cards, 1914-1923.
[5] World War I Service Medal and Award Rolls, 1914-1920; World War I Pension Ledgers and Index Cards, 1914-1923.
[6] Death certificate of George Marsh.
