Arthur Wellesley Morrell

Arthur Wellesley Morrell

Portrait of Paymaster-Captain Arthur Wellesley Morrellm, RN

Paymaster-Captain Arthur Wellesley Morrell, RN
Born 18 June 1862
Gillingham, Kent, England
Died 1 August 1944 (aged 82)
Wimbledon, Surrey, England
Allegiance United Kingdom United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
Service/branch Royal Navy
Years of service 1877–1921
Rank Paymaster-Captain
Awards

Khedive's Sudan Medal

China War Medal

Paymaster-Captain Arthur Wellesley Morrell RN (18 June 1862 to 1 August 1944) was a Freemason and British naval pay officer who served during the latter part of the Victorian era and through to the end of World War I, and who was also present at the Reconquest of the Sudan, the Relief of China, and the Blockade of Bangkok.

Family

Arthur Wellesley Morrell was born 18 June 1862; the eldest child of Commander George Truman Morrell, RN, and Ellen, and was a fourth-generation Royal Navy officer.

His uncle, who was also named Arthur, rose to become a Rear-Admiral, and his grandfather, another Arthur, retired as a Captain. His great-grandfather, John Morrell, had been a lieutenant in the Royal Navy.

He had many siblings, including Patrick, who would go on to become a vicar in Burton, Chester, and another, William, who would also join the navy. In his diaries, he wrote of occasionally encountering "Willie" while the two were serving at sea. His diaries also note his brother Douglas, who died in 1903, as serving in the navy.[1]

Arthur married quite late in life, marrying Beatrice Macdonnell Smith on 5 December 1911, aged 49. They had no known natural children of their own, but would adopt Douglas Wellesley Morrell in 1917 or 1918. It is thought that the name Douglas was chosen to honour Arthur's brother, who died in 1903.

Masonic involvement

It is thought that Arthur was active in freemasonry. In particular, he is known to have been addressed as "Bro. Arthur Morrell" by the Zetland Lodge, No. 525 EC, a masonic lodge in Hong Kong, and had received correspondence from the Oriental Lodge, No. 687, in Constantinople. In his diaries he wrote of attending Rose Croix ceremonies, and recorded the purchase of masonic accoutrements.[1]

Career

Arthur joined the Royal Navy at age 14 as an assistant clerk on 15 January 1877.[2]

In 1878, he served as a clerk aboard HMS Triumph. In 1893, he was aboard HMS Swift during a blockade of Bangkok. Three years later he found himself aboard HMS Melita during an expedition up the Nile River to Dongola, in Sudan, during the Reconquest of Sudan by an Anglo-Egyptian force. He would be awarded the Khedive's Sudan Medal for this expedition, his known only foreign honour.[3]

In 1900, he found himself a paymaster aboard HMS Aurora, when it was ordered to China to aid in the eight-nation alliance that suppressed the Boxer Rebellion. From his ship he saw first hand the taking of the Taku Forts and wrote in his diaries of the action, detailing the battles and casualties.[3]

After a lengthy period of serving in relative tranquility, Arthur found himself near the end of his career a Fleet Paymaster aboard HMS Leander, then HMS President, and finally HMS Impregnable during World War I, for which he would earn his last three medals.

His career spanned 36 years of service at sea, and saw the end of the golden age of sail and the full transition to the steam-powered, steel ships of war. Although only a paymaster, he was considered a trusted senior officer, judging by comments noted on his service record. In 1894, the captain of HMS Galatea described Arthur as having "done his work in a very efficient manner." Later that year, an Admiral named Freemantle noted that he was "trustworthy and zealous." Captain Simons, of the HMS Melita, called him "a capable paymaster, of good judgement."[3]

He retired on 1 January 1921 and was in receipt of a naval pension, initially £900 per year, and gradually reduced to £814 at the time of his death in 1944.[4]

Ships

Arthur served aboard the following ships during his career in the Royal Navy:[3][4]

Honours

Arthur attained the following honours and medals during his naval career, which spanned from 1877 until the end of World War I:

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Morrell, Arthur Wellesley. Diaries – 1888–1903 (Unpublished manuscript collection).
  2. ↑ HM Stationery Office (1877). The Navy List.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 The National Archives. ADM/196/81.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 The National Archives. ADM/196/12.
  5. ↑ The Times. The Home-coming of the Aurora. 16 April 1902.