‘Northumberland’ killed in Flanders.

The 9th Duke of Northumberland, Henry George Alan Percy, Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Lord Privy Seal, was killed on 21 May 1940, whilst fighting in the thick of a grim rearguard action in Flanders. Not much is written on how his death occurred, although I did find the following entry in ‘Dunkirk – Fight to the Last Man’ by Hugh Sebag-Montefiore:

“By 11.30 on 21 May they [Germans] had already beaten off two British counter-attacks. A third attack was made by the Grenadier Guards, 3 Company which had been held back to deal with a German breakthrough. The infantry were backed up by a group of carriers also manned by the Grenadier Guards. 

Lieutenant Tommy Reynell-Pack was in command of the carriers. He and his men silenced one German machine gun position and decided to overpower another. He ordered his driver to charge the gun, but the thin skin of his carrier was no match to the power of the German guns and just 50 yards from Poplar Ridge, Reynell-Pack was killed along with as the Duke of Northumberland, who was leading a platoon. He failed to take cover, preferring instead to stand up in the face of the German fire, so that he could wave his men forward using his ash walking stick.”

The Newcastle Journal on Monday 3 June reported that at 11.30 “yesterday”, a flag was seen flying at half-mast from the Keep at Alnwick Castle.  The Sunday worshippers streaming out of church wondered what it all meant. Occasionally in the breeze, it would unfold itself to reveal the blue lion rampant on a gold field, the Duke of Northumberland’s flag. It was a shock to the residents of the town and countryside when the news broke of his tragic death.  

The British Expeditionary Force (BEF) was involved in the later stages of the defence of Belgium, following the German invasion and suffered many casualties whilst covering the withdrawal to Dunkirk. Those buried in Esquelmes War Cemetery died defending the line of the River Scheldt; the Germans attempted to cross the river near Esquelmes during the morning of 21 May, but were repelled by heavy fighting. They eventually crossed on 23 May, when the BEF withdrew to the Gort Line. Casualties buried in various places in the neighbourhood were brought to Esquelmes by the Belgian authorities in September 1940. There are 233 commonwealth soldiers buried within this cemetery; the Duke is one of them. He was aged 27 and was just a month away from his 28^th birthday.

Sources –

Commonwealth War Graves Commission 

Hugh Sebag-Montefiore “Dunkirk”

Newcastle Journal.