Roll of Honour 2023

P AGE 105

W ORLD W AR O NE (1914 - 1918) INCLUDING THOSE WHO DIED LATER AS A RESULT OF THIS WAR

S T . E DWARD ’ S S CHOOL , O XFORD R OLL OF H ONOUR

Name GILBERT JOHN STRANGE (Flt Commander)

Lef SES 1916

Roll Number 1436 Died 24:09:1918

Set / House D

Arrive SES 1912

Where NEAR COMBRAI, FRANCE Serving with 40TH SQR, ROYAL AIR FORCE

Age 19

Buried No known grave Remembered

Arras Flying Services Memorial at Faubourg, Pas-De-Calais, France, Spetisbury Roll of Honour, Dorset, The St. Edward’s School Chapel (Wooden Plaque) and The Cloisters Stone Memorial Born 1899 in Tarrant, Keynestone, Dorset the younger SES brother of Louis Strange, whose exploits as a pilot in WW1 were amongst the most famous of all. Gilbert’s School career was fairly uneventful, although he was in the Cricket XI of 1916 and in the Upper Moderns Form on leaving. He entered Sandhurst College in 1916, rising to Cadet Corporal and was then commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Dorsetshire Regiment in July 1917. In the following year he transferred to the Royal Air Force to join his brother and proceeded to create a distinguished career of his own. He was a member of the 40th Squadron and gained a reputation as ‘burgeoning fighter ace with several kills to his name’. He had just been given the Captaincy of the 40th Squadron when he was shot down in action in later September near Cambrai ‘leading his flight in great action over France. He was a daring and skilful flyer - not unworthy of his famous brother. His death occurred when the whole squadron was up on patrol about 6am and he was leading his Flight when a large enemy formation of machines was seen well east of our lines. The signal for attacks was given by the Senior Flight Commander and they all went straight for the enemy. Gilbert shot down one enemy machine almost immediately but two more simultaneously attacked him just as he was about to down another. His machine went out of control - no-one saw it hit the ground’ (Brother).