Stoker 1st Class Harold Druce
HMS Victory 2, Royal Navy

Born on 31/08/1900 at St Peter Port, Guernsey, the son of Reginald Druce and Ellen Louise Stewart.

Having been discharged from Royal Fusiliers in 1916, he lied about his date of birth again (31/08/1899) and joined the Royal Navy as a stoker on 10/10/1917. He trained at HMS Victory II then served on HMS "Hecla" and HMS "Apollo"/HMS "Pincher" before going back to Victory II after being shipwrecked on 24 July 1918. This must have been HMS "Pincher" which was escorting the tanker "War Hostage" through the Western Approaches. She took a course that brought her dangerously close to the Seven Stones Reef between Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. She struck the reef at high speed due to errors in navigation and fog. The impact tore open her hull and she sank in 3.5 hours. Her captain was court-martialled and reprimanded.

He was finally discharged on 23 Sept 1919. In 1921, he was a docker in Guernsey working for the South Western Railway Company. He had married Ethel Chapman and was a firebrick layer living at 102 Wennington Road, Rainham , Hornchurch, Essex in 1939 with his wife, two sons and father in law.

Harold died in 1958 at Romford.

His Royal Irish service