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Regiment: West Riding Regt.
Died: 03 April 1918 aged 34 in France. Killed in action.
Battle: German Spring Offensive. Cemetery: Bienvillers Mil XI C 13
Son of J. C. Willey, Newbould Lane, Sheffield, b. 1884.
Modern II—I. Chance Prize; English Essay. School Prefect.
B.A. (London) 1909.
In business, John Willey & Sons, Ltd.
Lieutenant 3rd West Riding Brigade R.F.A. (T.F.) 1914.
Great War, mobilised 1914; Major. Despatches (2).
'The worth of his character and his intellectual attainments made him a prominent person in his generation at Malvern. A quick and receptive mind, coupled with a strong sense of duty and steady application, soon carried him to the top of the Modern Side at a time when there was no lack of competition for the highest place. After leaving School he read for a London degree, in spite of the fact that he was called early in life, to take part in the management of an important industrial firm. He showed himself a business man of the best type, keenly interested in social problems, and devoting himself to the promotion of the happiness of those around him. He was a good speaker, and did effective political work in his native city, where his loss is much regretted. He went out to France in April, 1915, with the first draft of Sheffield Artillery, and—but for a short period in 1917, when, owing to an accident, he was invalided home—saw continuous service with the R.F.A., latterly as Major in command of a Battery. He was twice mentioned in despatches, first in 1916, secondly in the gazette recently published. He was killed on April 3rd by a shell splinter which struck him as he was directing the fire of his Battery from a forward observation post. Letters from the Front speak in high terms of his distinguished service and of the affection in which he was held by officers and men. "I have lost in him," says his Brigadier-General, "one of my best officers, and his death is also a great personal grief to me, for his constant cheerfulness and courage, and his pleasant, unaffected manner, had made me very fond of him."' (Malvernian, Jun 1918).