H PHILLIPS

5th Battalion, South Wales Borderers
Service Number: 14894
Born: November 1896, Troedrhiwfuwch, Glamorgan
Died: 21 January 1919 | Aged 22
Buried: St Catwg’s Churchyard, Gelligaer
Commemorated: United Kingdom Book of Remembrance

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Haydn Carlyle Phillips was born in November 1896 in the village of Troedrhiwfuwch, Glamorgan, the eldest son of Sidney and Lucy Phillips. He had a brother, Archibald (Archie), and a sister, Violet.

 

By 1901, Haydn was living with his father on Commercial Street, New Tredegar, where Sidney worked as a Grocer and Shopkeeper.

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By 1911, Haydn, now 14, resided at “Homelands,” Pengam, with his mother Lucy, maternal grandmother Margaret—then a retired publican—and other relatives. His mother continued to work as a grocer from home. The family was part of the tight-knit local community, and Haydn attended Lewis School, Pengam.

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In September 1914, shortly after the outbreak of war, Haydn enlisted at Newport. He joined the 5th Battalion, South Wales Borderers as Private 14894 and later rose to the rank of (unpaid) Lance Corporal in January 1918. During the German Spring Offensive of March 1918, Haydn was severely gassed. He was evacuated to Britain and spent time in a military hospital before being discharged from the Army on 23 July 1918.

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Sadly, Haydn never recovered from his injuries. He died at his home in Pengam on 21 January 1919, aged just 22. The cause of death was heart disease brought on by the effects of gas exposure. As his death occurred after the Armistice and at home, he was not initially recognised by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC).

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However, almost a century later, the staff and pupils of Lewis School, alongside author and historian Paul Williams, campaigned for his formal recognition. Their efforts were successful. Haydn was posthumously acknowledged by the CWGC, his grave restored, and a remembrance service held at St Catwg’s Church, Gelligaer on 9 November 2018. His name was read aloud among the fallen for the first time in 100 years on Remembrance Sunday.

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🕊️ “The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example.”