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Major Leonard William TURNEY
6th (Reserve) Battalion Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) attached to the 8th (Service) Battalion Date of birth: 1st February 1884 Date of death: 3rd May 1917 Killed in action aged 33 Commemorated on the Arras Memorial Bay 3
Leonard William Turney was born at Tulse Hill in South London on the 1st of February 1884 the only son of James Neeve Turney, a manufacturer, and Sophia Elizabeth (nee Hudson) Turney of Beckenham. He was christened, with his younger sister Elsie, at St Alban's Church, Streatham Park in South London on the 11th of October 1891. He was educated at Lancing College where he was in School House from November 1898 to December 1901. He was appointed as a House Captain in September 1901 and won his Sports Colours the same year. On the 26th of March 1901 he won the school half mile (open) race by ten yards in a time of 2 minutes 20 seconds. He was a member of the Officer Training Corps and was promoted to Corporal on the 20th of September 1901. He was a member of the 2nd Football XI in 1900 and 1901 and played for the 1st XI on more than one occasion in the 1901 season. He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 7th Battalion Royal Fusiliers (Militia) on the 26th of February 1902. He was promoted to Captain on the 31st of August 1906 and on the 28th of June 1908 he transferred to the Special Reserve of Officers, retaining the rank of Captain. He was an under-tenant at Walcotts Hall in 1915 Following the outbreak of war he rejoined the army and was promoted to Major on the 2nd of December 1915. On the 3rd of May 1917 the 8th Battalion Royal Fusiliers were part of an attack on German positions to the south of Roeux. In conjunction with the 9th Battalion of their regiment they were to attack the German trenches some 1,000 yards away although the strength of the two battalions was some 900 men between them. They attacked at 3.45am and quickly gained their first objective which was "Scabbard Trench" but were soon forced to withdraw by an enemy counterattack which left a number of the Fusiliers cut off in the darkness and surrounded by the defenders. At noon the British artillery fired a 12 minute barrage on the trench and the 7th Battalion Royal Sussex attacked again under machine gun fire and carried the position which they then consolidated. The Fusiliers had taken one German officer and 44 other ranks prisoner but their own casualties had been high with the 8th Battalion losing 282 officers and men in the attack. During this action Corporal George Jarrett of the 8th Battalion won the Victoria Cross. He was married to Christine Jorgensen Turney of Scrips Kelvedon, Coggeshall in Essex and is commemorated on the Coggeshall War Memorial.

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