Charles Chamier

[Mary C]

He was an actor and singer. He was born in Australia in 1883, went to England and toured with a theatre company until 1914 then joined up and won the military cross twice. After the war he went back on the stage as an actor manager. I am trying to find out why he got the military cross . In the second world war, he joined up again and became an aide to the Viceroy of India.

Does anyone have any information about this person please.

Mary, asking for a friend!

[Pam Downes]

There are five trees on Ancestry, some of which seem to have dubious information, but one correct fact is that Charles Chamier married Muriel Varna on 11 December 1909 in Christ Church, Woburn Square.
Charles seems to have knocked a couple of years off his age as he says he's 24. Muriel is 20, daughter of Heinrich William Varna, an actor. Charles' father is George Chamier, civil engineer.

The tree says that George was born in 1842 in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, and that he went to Australia in 1872. He married Emily Gardner (born in 1845, whereabouts unknown), in Adelaide in 1878.
George died in 1915, and his probate gives his address as 62 Queensborough Terrace, Hyde Park, Middlesex, with probate granted to Charles Chamier, lieutenant, 6th Bedfordshire regiment. There's a short newspaper report of George's death in China, but it confirms his occupation as a civil engineer.

The British Newspaper Archive has quite a few references for Charles Chamier between 1900 and 1949 (some may be the same thing reported in different newspapers), mostly referring to his stage roles, but one I spotted referred to the Military Cross.
Reported in the Grantham Journal (a Lincolnshire newspaper) on 5 January 1918, Military Cross awarded to Captain Eric Adrian Charles Deschamps Chamier, Lincoln Regiment, Special Reserves.
This is not your Charles, but he may be the person who won the MC twice.
Try searching the London Gazette. (Free online.)

Your Charles would have been 57 at the start of WW2, so it's therefore unlikely that he would have enlisted again. There are quite a lot of Chamiers connected to the military, so they do need careful sifting.

Your Charles seems to have died in Hove registration district in 1975.
https://www.ukbmd.org.uk/reg/districts/hove.html

[grisel]

https://bedfordregiment.org.uk/6thbn/6thbtnphotos2.html

This website has a photograph of the Charles Chamier of the Bedfordshire regiment, an officer in the 6th battalion. Described as Lieutenant Charles Chamier MC MID (transport officer)

[Jomot1]

The National Archives has the records for Charles Chamier of the Bedfordshire Regiment:
https://discovery.nationalarchives.g...ils/r/C1076647

His medal card states LGS (London Gazette Supplement) 4 Jan 1917 Vol 29890 Page 225 MID (Mentioned in Despatches). Found here: https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/...supplement/225

Also one for 11 Dec 1917, here: https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/...pplement/13232

The only Chamier I can see being awarded the Military Cross is the one mentioned by Pam, Captain Eric Adrian Charles Deschamps Chamier. His father is noted as Major AC Chamier.

I've also checked the list of soldiers serving in WW2 born before 1901 and the only Chamier of the right sort of age are:

JA Chamier born 26 Dec 1883, Numbers listed as 888448/28, 323240/22, 17319/30 & 01060. This is Sir John Adrian Chamier "Founding Father of the ATC"

CMG Chamier born 24 Dec 1883, Service No. 111900/21. This may be the same man, as Sir John Adrian Chamier was awarded the CMG (Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George)

[Jomot1]

The Register (Australia) has an obituary for Charles's father, George, in 1915 confirming that his son Charles was the one in the Bedfordshire regiment. No mention at that point of any MC. No mention in any later Australian papers either.

Also nothing in the UK newspapers except the Luton News and Bedfordshire Advertiser 27 Dec 1917 which mentions that several men of the Bedfordshire regiment - including Temporary Captain C Chamier - had been mentioned in despatches for gallant services on the western front.

I've had a quick glance at the war diary and it does mention specific people awarded the Military Cross (eg Walter Edgar Aylwin noted on 2 Jan 1917), so a more detailed read may reveal something, but all I can see so far is an entry on the same date for Lt C Chamier (and others) Mentioned in Despatches

Could the two Military Cross references actually be twice mentioned in despatches, both in WW1?

[Pam Downes]

The National Archives has the records for Charles Chamier of the Bedfordshire Regiment:
https://discovery.nationalarchives.g...ils/r/C1076647

His medal card states LGS (London Gazette Supplement) 4 Jan 1917 Vol 29890 Page 225 MID (Mentioned in Despatches). Found here: https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/...supplement/225

Also one for 11 Dec 1917, here: [url]https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/30434/supplement/13232[/url

If you go back to the first page 13225 of that list of names, it begins
"The following is a continuation of Sir Douglas Haig's Despatch of 7th November, submitting names deserving special mention, published in a supplement to the London Gazette of Friday 14 December 1917.
(Bit in bold is my emphasis.)

The only Chamier I can see being awarded the Military Cross is the one mentioned by Pam, Captain Eric Adrian Charles Deschamps Chamier. His father is noted as Major AC Chamier.

I've also checked the list of soldiers serving in WW2 born before 1901 and the only Chamier of the right sort of age are:

JA Chamier born 26 Dec 1883, Numbers listed as 888448/28, 323240/22, 17319/30 & 01060. This is Sir John Adrian Chamier "Founding Father of the ATC"

CMG Chamier born 24 Dec 1883, Service No. 111900/21. This may be the same man, as Sir John Adrian Chamier was awarded the CMG (Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George)

Wikipedia entry for Sir John Adrian Chamier. https://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Adrian_Chamier

[Mary C]

Thank you for this information Pam. I have been asked by a friend to see what I could find about Charles Chamier so will pass this on to her. Incidentally he actually died in 1975 and is buried in Hemyock,
Devon with his wife and her nephew.

[Mary C]

https://bedfordregiment.org.uk/6thbn/6thbtnphotos2.html

This website has a photograph of the Charles Chamier of the Bedfordshire regiment, an officer in the 6th battalion. Described as Lieutenant Charles Chamier MC MID (transport officer)

Thank you grise. will check that out

[Mary C]

The National Archives has the records for Charles Chamier of the Bedfordshire Regiment:
https://discovery.nationalarchives.g...ils/r/C1076647

His medal card states LGS (London Gazette Supplement) 4 Jan 1917 Vol 29890 Page 225 MID (Mentioned in Despatches). Found here: https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/...supplement/225

Also one for 11 Dec 1917, here: https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/...pplement/13232

The only Chamier I can see being awarded the Military Cross is the one mentioned by Pam, Captain Eric Adrian Charles Deschamps Chamier. His father is noted as Major AC Chamier.

I've also checked the list of soldiers serving in WW2 born before 1901 and the only Chamier of the right sort of age are:

JA Chamier born 26 Dec 1883, Numbers listed as 888448/28, 323240/22, 17319/30 & 01060. This is Sir John Adrian Chamier "Founding Father of the ATC"

CMG Chamier born 24 Dec 1883, Service No. 111900/21. This may be the same man, as Sir John Adrian Chamier was awarded the CMG (Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George)

Many thanks Jomo. Will follow those links up.

[Mary C]

The Register (Australia) has an obituary for Charles's father, George, in 1915 confirming that his son Charles was the one in the Bedfordshire regiment. No mention at that point of any MC. No mention in any later Australian papers either.

Also nothing in the UK newspapers except the Luton News and Bedfordshire Advertiser 27 Dec 1917 which mentions that several men of the Bedfordshire regiment - including Temporary Captain C Chamier - had been mentioned in despatches for gallant services on the western front.

I've had a quick glance at the war diary and it does mention specific people awarded the Military Cross (eg Walter Edgar Aylwin noted on 2 Jan 1917), so a more detailed read may reveal something, but all I can see so far is an entry on the same date for Lt C Chamier (and others) Mentioned in Despatches

Could the two Military Cross references actually be twice mentioned in despatches, both in WW1?

Thanks Jomo. The inscription on his headstone does have MC after his name so I guess he had at least one!