The story really starts midway along the road from Castlebaldwin to Ballymote in County Sligo, Ireland. For it was here in May 1854 that an incident occurred which tore a family apart and which reverberated through subsequent generations. Arthur Taylor, the eldest son of Richard Taylor, a farmer from nearby Clevery, had borrowed his fathers' favourite horse to ride to Ballymote market. Beneath a low escarpment at the Rock of Doonmeegan, on the Red Earls Road close to the midpoint between Clevery, Castlebaldwin and Ballymote, Arthur had urged the horse to jump a large boulder. The animal fell short, and the horse was killed. 'Old' Richard Taylor and his eldest son had a heated altercation and Arthur left, never to return to the family home.
However, knowledge of this incident came much later in my investigative journey, so let's start at the beginning.
At a very early age I remember that my grandmothers’ parlour was dominated by a large dresser, upon which was a plethora of family heirlooms, treasured ornaments and other intriguing items. One item which always caught my eye when I visited as a small child, was an exquisite green vase adorned with a white goat - the emblem of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers. The vase was one of a pair which were presented to my grandmothers' grandfather, Arthur Taylor, when he retired from the British Army having attained the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. The vase was part of a much larger collection of artefacts and documents relating to Arthur Taylor's army service. Other items which had been carefully preserved were Arthur's dress sword, his silver-topped swagger stick, his Crimean War medals and a large field mailbox marked 'RWF'. As well as these artefacts, in one of the drawers of the dresser there was an original copy of Arthur's service record along with a number of certificates and letters. Most precious of all was a head and shoulders portrait of Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Taylor wearing his dress uniform with his medal prominently adorning his chest.
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| Lieutenant Arthur Taylor, 25th Regiment of Foot, 1862 |
My Grandmother, Edna Price, the daughter of Gilbert Price, a Royal Marine who was married to Arthur's daughter Blanche Alma Taylor, kept a tidy home in Southsea (near Portsmouth) where her husband Charles (my grandfather) worked as a dental technician from a workshop he had purpose built in the garden. Edna had grown up to the sound of the Royal Marines military band at Eastney. Indeed, she was born in nearby Fort Cumberland where her parents were quartered. My grandmother was a woman who cherished her military roots and was especially proud to be the granddaughter of a Lieutenant Colonel - for that was the rank that Arthur Taylor had reached upon retirement from the Royal Welch Fusiliers in 1896.
Arthur's service record told a story of campaign honours, rapid promotions and postings across the full breadth of the British Empire. The schedule shows that he joined the British Army on 10th May 1854 and that within just a few months he was on a ship heading to the Crimea, as a Private in the 17th Regiment of Foot (the Leicester Regiment). Whether he knocked on the door of the Strand Barracks in Sligo (for that is where he attested) or whether he was approached by a Recruiting Sergeant whilst enjoying a pint or two in a local hostelry, I will never know. His service record shows that he was 24 years and 11 months and a single man at the time. Arthur's time in the Crimea was a baptism of fire - on his record there is a note confirming that he was 'at the Siege of Sebastopol from 7th February to 29th July 1855, including the assault on the Great Redan on 18th June 1855'. The regimental history recounts that in launching an assault from trenches in front of the quarries, the attacking troops faced a blizzard of fire. The 17th Regiment lost Captain John Croker, one sergeant, and twelve rank and file killed. Five sergeants and 27 rank and file were wounded. For his participation, Arthur received the Crimea medal with Sebastopol bar and the Turkish equivalent.
Arthur's schedule of appointments shows that he was promoted to Ensign in the 100th (Prince of Wales's Royal Canadian) Foot on 21 Feb 1860, and that he then purchased a Lieutenancy in the same regiment on 25 June 1861. He transferred by exchange to the 25th Foot on the 12th November 1861 and became an instructor of Musketry on the 1st February 1865. He was appointed Captain in the 25th Foot on the 1st April 1870 and transferred to the 23rd Regiment (The Royal Welch Fusiliers) on the 19th January 1876. He retired on the 1st July 1881. Whilst the service record records the particulars of Arthur's extraordinary rise from lowly Private to Lieutenant Colonel, it took a visit to the National Archive in Kew to uncover the reasons for Arthur's promotion to Ensign on merit - an unusual occurence in the days of purchased commissions.
Retrieving original documents from the National Archive can sometimes be a real thrill, but on other occasions it can bring disappointment. The name Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Taylor was referenced in the index and with great anticipation I ordered up the relevant files. In opening the box that was duly brought up to my research station I was amazed to find a substantial sheaf of documents relating to my Great, Great, Grandfather. I untied the red ribbon that held the papers together and with a growing sense of excitement sat down to review the contents. The record of Arthur's service confirmed what I already knew, and much more besides. Indeed, the documents relating to Sergeant Major Taylor's first commission proved to be a treasure trove of insight. Whilst serving in North America, his first posting after the Siege of Sebastopol ended, Sergeant Major Taylor was transferred to the 100th (Prince of Wales's Royal Canadian) Regiment of Foot on 13 May 1858. Two years later the Regiment was serving in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and it was here that he was appointed to Ensign - his first Officer's Commission on merit. Amongst the National Archive papers are half a dozen letters recommending Arthur's promotion. Several were from senior officers who had commanded Sergeant Major Taylor or who had knowledge of him. One letter of recommendation is signed by five senior members of the business and farming community in Sligo and attests to their acquittance with the family of Sergeant Major Taylor and refers to a 'respectable young man, and a brave soldier'. Clearly Arthur's free masonry contacts had proved useful too, for he had became a Grand Mason with the Grand Lodge of Ireland on 31 October 1857 and joined the Loyal Orange Lodge nine months later.
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| My Great Grandmother, Blanche, and my Great Grand Daughter, Nancy, posing with Lieutenant Colonel Taylor's sword which remains in my possession |
Unmarried when he left the Army at the age of 52, Arthur seems to have made up for lost time by quickly acquiring a partner who later became his wife. Eliza Alma Parker who was twenty-five years younger than Arthur was the daughter of a mariner from Boston in Lincolnshire. Born in 1854 her middle name celebrated the famous British Victory in the Crimean War, of that year. Prior to meeting Arthur - in 1879, Eliza had a son out of wedlock. Arthur got to know Eliza, whilst she was living with her sister Ellen Herbert (nee Parker), and Ellen's husband Martin and nephew Sidney in Isleworth, West London . Brother-in-Law Martin Herbert was a publican in the High Street, Hampton Wick, Kingston-upon-Thames and it may be that Arthur met Eliza in the hostelry in question - but that is just conjecture. However, by the time the couple had set up home together Eliza's son Edward had disappeared from the scene. It could be that the young lad stayed with his Auntie and Uncle allowing Eliza to start afresh with a well-off and 'respectable' husband and - eventually - marriage and a family (not in that order!).
Arthur Taylor and Eliza Alma Taylor were married in St John's, Isleworth, Middlesex on 8 July 1888. Three years later the census records show the couple renting a property in Havant, Hampshire. By the time of their marriage, the couple already had two children - my Great Grandmother, Blanche Alma Taylor (5 April 1884) and Bernard Arthur Taylor (21 August 1887). Two more daughters followed - Emily in 1888 (the year Arthur and Eliza got married) and Rachel Eliza on 14 March 1890. Arthur's pension as a Lieutenant Colonel would have helped maintain a home suitable for the new family. indeed, census record shows that Mr and Mrs Taylor employed a 'servant' Elizabeth White, who was taken on in order to undertake general domestic duties.
Notwithstanding his pension, Arthur was active in seeking employment in later life. A long letter to him from Lord Napier of Magdala (whom Arthur had served with in Gibraltar) dated 10 August 1885 acknowledges a request for help and includes a suggestion that Arthur contact the Association of Commissaires. Whether Arthur followed this up is unknown, and the Census for 1891 records his profession as 'Retired Lieutenant Colonel'. Arthur died of 'chronic nephritis and apoplexy' on 1 April 1896, with the death recorded against 76 London Road, North End, Portsmouth - then the family home. Strangely, he was buried in an ordinary unpurchased grave plot with no surviving marker. Being unpurchased, the grave was reused in 1991. In an attempt to understand why Arthur was buried in these reduced circumstances I searched the records of the HM Courts and Tribunals Service. The result served only to deepen the mystery. Arthur's estate was valued at just over £445, in excess of £45,000 by modern day value. Why then, no 'proper' burial? I suspect I will never know.
My research had proved fruitful, but the circumstances under which Arthur left Ireland and details of his family remained a mystery. My late father, without the benefit of the documents retrieved from the National Archive, had surmised that Arthur left Ireland for a better life following the Great Famine of 1845-52. This gap in the story was spectacularly filled in 2013 when John Taylor from Riverstown near Sligo in the Republic of Ireland got in touch with me. John had seen a head and shoulders picture of Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Taylor on my website and thought that we might be related. The relationship was quickly confirmed when John produced a full-length picture taken in the same studio on the same day. A glance at the new image confirmed without doubt that we were both related to the same man.
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| Full Length Portrait of Lieutenant Arthur Taylor (with sword), 1862 |
What followed was a series of highly memorable experiences. From knowing nothing about my Great, Great, Grandfathers' Irish roots I was to learn everything in detail - and I mean 'everything'! Rather than share information piecemeal John invited my wife and I to what he described as a traditional family gathering - a reunion, and it was in the Folk Park in Riverstown that John and his wife Josephine introduced us to over fifty blood relatives. The town of Riverstown is a close-knit rural community bound together by strong family ties - indeed, it's something of an insular protestant enclave. Taylors had lived in the area since the time of Oliver Cromwell and the local economy is still dominated by people bearing that name. In entering the Folk Park my wife and I received a welcome that could not have been warmer. In a world where families are increasingly dispersed and inter-generational histories have often become opaque, we were astonished that when I was introduced to current members of the Taylor family as 'Arthur's Great, Great, Grandson', they knew exactly who I was and where I fitted into the family tree. The evening was an opportunity to celebrate the Taylor family and on a small stage members were encouraged to demonstrate their talents. at one point a table tennis table was set up so that a young lad called David Taylor could demonstrate his sporting prowess. Aside from the pleasure and delight in meeting so many relatives, the highlight of the evening was the story telling. The oral storytelling tradition has played a central role in Irish cultural and community life since ancient times. To hear my family history articulated in such an impactful way was a massive privilege, and one that neither my wife or I will ever forget. It was as though the incident on the Castlebaldwin to Ballymote road had happened yesterday.
The next day, John and Josephine took us to many of the sites associated with my Great, Great, Grandfathers' early years in Clevery and Ardloy. Taunagh Church where many family members including Arthur's parents are buried, the farmhouse (now a B&B) where Arthur and his siblings were brought up, the school where the young Taylors had been educated and the exact spot where the unfortunate incident with the horse had occurred. It transpired that the Taylors were relatively wealthy landowners - indeed
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| John Taylor (Stage Front) and the Taylor Family Tree, Sligo, August 2013 |
Arthur's father Richard Taylor had farmed an amalgam of three substantial holdings. Indeed, at the time of his death Richard farmed 293 acres of land - 116 at Clevery, 97 at Ardloy and 80 at Drumderry. Arthur was the eldest of five siblings - the other four being Rachel, John, Mary and James. After leaving home, Arthur had no contact with his immediate family aside from when he sent the aforementioned full-length photo home - an image which was captured on the occasion of his first commission in the British Army. It's almost as though he was sending a message to his father - 'I don't need you or your money, I can succeed on my own terms'. That's my interpretation anyway!
Since visiting Ireland, John and Josephine have become good friends. We continue to explore Taylor family history together and a few years ago my wife and I reciprocated their hospitality by hosting a visit to our home. It was a wonderful opportunity to strengthen family ties. My only regret is that my father, who had spent so much time trying to uncover the family's Irish roots, was so unwell with Parkinsons at the time of the visit that he was unable to hear John's wonderful stories first hand. Were he still alive today I have no doubt that he would have been delighted that the family has reunited after all these years.
I followed Arthur Taylor's footsteps in the Crimea click here for the story.
