Birth: July-September 1859 Headley, Hampshire, UK
Father: John Croucher (Crowcher) 1834-1905
Mother: Elizabeth Baker 1835-1909
Christening: 10 July 1859 St Mary the Virgin, Frensham, Surrey, UK
Death: 1883 Egypt
Entry in FreeBMD for the birth of William Croucher in the Farnham District (2a 89) in July-September 1859. The birth in 1859 is also in my father's records. I assume it was at Barford Lower Mill.
The christening of an unnamed Croucher is in the IGI on 10 July 1859 in Frensham, Surrey, parents John Croucher and Eliza.
In 1861 census aged 1, born in Headley, and living with his parents, brother (James) and (step) sister (Maria) in Headley - they must have been living at Barford Lower Mill which is just in Headley by a few yards.
In 1871 census aged 12 born in Chute (sic) in index, Churt in original, employed as a farm labourer, and living with his parents, four sisters (including his stepsister) and two brothers at Frensham Pond (this would be Pond Cottage).
My father's records state that he enlisted with his brother James at Devonport in the 75th Foot, part of the 38th Brigade. After a year or so at Aldershot, they proceeded to Chatham and then on to Malta. Whilst there, the re-organisation of the army took place - the Carder system of 1881. The 75th were linked with the 92nd and became the 1st Battalion Gordon Highlanders. In 1882 the Egyptian Army rebelled against the Khedive and after the bombardment of Alexandria, a strong British force were landed and met the Egyptians at Tel-el-kebir at dawn on September 13th, routing them in hand-to-hand combat. Some months after this William died of enteric fever which carried off many men.
My father's records give both 1882 and 1883 as the year of death.
There is a lot of information on the Battle of Tel-el-kebir - for example this picture by Lady Elizabeth S Butler engraved by Richard Jobey Plate.
This site provides the following information (unfortunately this site chas been re-organised since and I can no longer locate the source of this information):
In 1881 the Egyptian army mutinied from the Khedive of Egypt, and forced him to appoint Said Ahmed Arabi as Minister of War. In March 1882 Arabi was made a Pasha and from this time on acted as a dictator. Impassioned demands of Arabi that the foreigner be driven out of Egypt and massacres of Christians prompted an armed British response, first in the form of a naval bombardment of Alexandria, and then as an expeditionary force under Lieutenant-General Wolseley. Sir Garnet Wolseley's campaign, completed in just four and a half weeks, was an almost 'textbook' operation, carefully planned and executed with masterly competence.
Minor skirmishes between British and Egyptian forces took place at Zagazig and Kassassin, but it was the battle at Tel-el-Kebir (strategically placed between Alexandria, the Suez Canal and Cairo) that proved decisive. Here, the Egyptian army had prepared defences consisting of a number of deep ditches and embankments constructed out of the desert sand. The desert around Tel-el-Kebir was extremely flat, so any approach by the British would easily be spotted. As a result, the British decided to march across the desert by night and attack the Egyptian positions at dawn.
This is a diagram of the Egyption defences
and the British positions
William Topaz McGonagall, poet and tragedian of Dundee, has been widely hailed as the writer of the worst poetry in the English language.
The Battle of Tel-el-Kebir
Ye sons of Great Britain, come join with me,
And sing in praise of Sir Garnet Wolseley;
Sound drums and trumpets cheerfully,
For he has acted most heroically.
Therefore loudly his praises sing
Until the hills their echoes back doth ring;
For he is a noble hero bold,
And an honour to his Queen and country, be it told.
He has gained for himself fame and renown,
Which to posterity will be handed down;
Because he has defeated Arabi by land and by sea,
And from the battle of Tel-el-Kebir he made him to flee.
With an army about fourteen thousand strong,
Through Egypt he did fearlessly march along,
With the gallant and brave Highland brigade,
To whom honour is due, be it said.
Arabi's army was about seventy thousand in all,
And, virtually speaking, it wasn't very small;
But if they had been as numerous again,
The Irish and Highland brigades would have beaten them, it is plain.
'Twas on the 13th day of September, in the year of 1882,
Which Arabi and his rebel horde long will rue;
Because Sir Garnet Wolseley and his brave little band
Fought and conquered them on Kebir land.
He marched upon the enemy with his gallant band
O'er the wild and lonely desert sand,
And attacked them before daylight,
And in twenty minutes he put them to flight.
The first shock of the attack was borne by the Second Brigade,
Who behaved most manfully, it is said,
Under the command of brave General Grahame,
And have gained a lasting honour to their name.
But Major Hart and the 18th Royal Irish, conjoint,
Carried the trenches at the bayonet point;
Then the Marines chased them about four miles away,
At the charge of the bayonet, without dismay!
General Sir Archibald Alison led on the Highland Brigade,
Who never were the least afraid.
And such has been the case in this Egyptian war,
For at the charge of the bayonet they ran from them afar!
With their bagpipes playing, and one ringing cheer,
And the 42nd soon did the trenches clear;
Then hand to hand they did engage,
And fought like tigers in a cage.
Oh! it must have been a glorious sight
To see Sir Garnet Wolseley in the thickest of the fight!
In the midst of shot and shell, and the cannons roar,
Whilst the dead and the dying lay weltering in their gore
Then the Egyptians were forced to yield,
And the British were left masters of the field;
Then Arabi he did fret and frown
To see his army thus cut down.
Then Arabi the rebel took to flight,
And spurred his Arab steed with all his might:
With his heart full of despair and woe,
And never halted till he reached Cairo.
Now since the Egyptian war is at an end,
Let us thank God! Who did send
Sir Garnet Wolseley to crush and kill
Arabi and his rebel army at Kebir hill.
I am his grandnephew.