Rene Arthur Thompson Renshaw
Attended Queen Elizabeth School from 1927 and 1936. He played cricket for the school and his name appears on the 1935 shield.
- Family History
- Military history
- Extra information
- Photographs
Son of Arthur Bosher Renshaw and Patricia Renshaw of Charlton Kings, Gloucestershire, but in 1911 Arthur was living at 28 Church Street Mansfield and he had been baptised at St John's Church Mansfield in 1892.
Arthur was a career soldier and in 1921 he was stationed in Bombay, India with rank of Lieutenant with the RASC. Meanwhile in 1921 Rene was living with his mother Ethel at his paternal grandparents, at 19 Woodhouse Road, Mansfield.
Rene had 3 siblings all born in Mansfield, Peter (1922), Eve (1925) and Veronica (1929).
Rene, known as Arthur on IBCC site, flew in a Vickers Wellington , serial Z9040 as an air gunner. They were flying to the Middle East via Gibralter and Malta to deliver the aircraft. The plane crashed into the sea, 6.5km from Portreath. They had tken off from RAF St Eval further up the north Cornish coast from Portreath . The rear gunner was the only survivor.
Rene has enlisted in the RAF in October 1939 and trained as a wireless operator and air gunner. On one occasion he had to bail out of his aircraft and he needed hospital treatment for an eye injury.
On CWGC Rene's parents are noted as being Arthur and Patricia Renshaw but Rene's mother was Ethel so she may have died in 1930 and Arthur remarried later. Rene is also known as Arthur Thompson Rene on CWGC.
Mansfield Chronicle Advertiser: 1//1/1942: Local Man Missing Overshadows Well-Known Musician's Golden Wedding.
The celebrations of the Golden Wedding of Mr & Mrs T W Renshaw of 19 Woodhouse Road, Mansfield will be tinged with anxiety of their grandson Sgt Rennie Renshaw has been reported missing durin RAF operations. An Old Boy of Mansfield Grammar School Sgt Renshaw had been a wireless operative/air gunner for over 2 years.
No photos