Ernest Mather
- Family History
- Military History
- Extra Information
- Photographs
Ernest Mather was the son of Fred Mather and Emily Todd who married at Nottingham in 1883. Their children included: Emily (b.1884), Edith (b.1887), Ernest (b.1891) and Gladys (b.1894). The Mathers lived at: 2 Norton Street, Radford [C.1891]; 74 Mitchell Street, Radford [C.1901]. In 1902 Emily Mather died at Nottingham, aged 38. Fred Mather then married Mary Elizabeth Copeland in 1905 at Nottingham. In 1911 Fred, his second wife, two of her children from her previous marriage, Fred’s daughter, Gladys, plus Edna Lucy (b.1908), a daughter with his second wife, were all living at 20 Bernard Street, Carrington [C.1911]. By this time Ernest Mather was an Able Seaman onboard HMS Caesar at Devonport, Devon. Fred Mather, who worked as a printer and a compositor, eventually died at Nottingham in 1947, aged 85. His second wife, Mary Elizabeth, outlived him, dying in Nottingham, aged 85, in 1953. In 1915 Ernest Mather married Elsie Copeland at Nottingham. Elsie was the daughter of his father’s second wife. There don’t appear to have been any children. His widow lived at 6 Wordsworth Road, Radford [n.e.p.25.7.1916 & CWGC]. In 1923 she married George Smith.
Ernest joined the Royal Navy on 25 April 1907 and at the age of 18 on 25 April 1909 signed on a 12 year engagement. He served in the following ships and shore establishments: HMS Ganges, 25 April 1907-31 January 1908 (Boy 2nd Class, Boy 1st Class 18 January 1908); HMS Natal 1 February 1908-31 May 1908; HMS (-), 1 June 1908-11 September 1908; HMS Dido, 15 September 1908-11 November 1908; HMS Shannon, 12 November 1908-3 February 1909; Pembroke I, 4 February 1909—4 February 1909; HMS Bacchante, 5 February 1909-2 May 1910 (Ordinary Seaman 28 April 1909, Able Seaman 30 December 1909); Pembroke I, 3 May 1910-6 January 1910; HMS Caesar, 7 June 1910-31 March 1911; HMS Formidable, 1 April 1911-13 May 1912; HMS Commonwealth, 14 May 1912-10 October 1912. He was invalided out of the Navy on 10 October 1912 (hernia). He rejoined on 12 January 1915 (hostilities only) and served in the following ships and shore establishments: Pembroke I, 12 January 1915-20 March 1915 (Able Seaman), HMS Black Prince, 21 March 1915-31 May 1916. His Naval records were annotated: ‘NP 4065/1916. DD [discharged dead] 31st May 1916. Killed in action.’ His body was not recovered for burial and he is commemorated on the Chatham Naval Memorial
'HMS Black Prince was sunk at the Battle of Jutland on May 31st 1916. The circumstances surrounding her loss were unclear for many years because there were no positive sightings of Black Prince after 17.42. Recent historians hold to the German account of the ship's sinking. Black Prince briefly engaged the German battleship Rheinland at about 23:35 GMT, scoring two hits with 6-inch shells. Separated from the rest of the British fleet, the Black Prince approached the German lines at approximately midnight. She turned away from the German battleships, but it was too late. The German battleship Thüringen fixed the Black Prince in her searchlights and opened fire. Up to five other German ships, including battleships Nassau, Ostfriesland, and Friedrich der Grosse, joined in the bombardment, with return fire from Black Prince being ineffective. Most of the German ships were between 750 and 1500 yards of the Black Prince - effectively point blank range for contemporary naval gunnery. Black Prince was hit by at least twelve heavy shells and several smaller ones, sinking within 15 minutes. There were no survivors from Black Prince's crew, all 857 being killed.' Courtesy of Wikipedia Nottingham Evening Post, Roll of Honour, 8 June 1916: ‘Mather. Killed in action, on May 31st, on HMS Black Prince, Ernest Mather. AB. Deeply mourned by loving wife, mother, father, and sisters.’ (www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk) The Bundeswehr Museum of Military History, Dresden: Painting, oil on canvas: ‘SMS Thueringen destroys the English cruiser Black Prince in a night battle at 2am on 1 June.’ Clause Bergen (1885-1964). Caption: 'Present given by the commander of Thueringen, Captain Hans Kuesel, to his nephew in 1921. Bergen established his reputation as a marine painter with depictions of the Battle of Jutland (31 May-1 June 1916). When the Imperial German Fleet returned home, he was in Wilhelmshaven and asked officers involved in the battle to give him detailed accounts of the events.'
