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Private William Spence
Description
TitlePrivate William SpenceSummaryA soldier in World War One. DescriptionWilliam was born on 20th December 1884 at Killinchy, son of Jane Spence. His mother had remarried by the time she was listed as his next of kin, her name then given as Jean Taylor. Before enlistment he was a farm hand at Dunsandel working for James Spence, possibly his uncle. He was 5ft 7 ¼in tall with what was described as a sandy complexion, blue eyes and red hair.
William enlisted on the 6 January 1915 at Dunsandel and was assigned to the Canterbury Infantry Regiment. He embarked with the 4th Reinforcements on 17 April 1915. He was killed in action on 7 August 1915 during the August Offensive action on Bauchops Hill, aged 31. Like many others his body was not found and he is named on the Chunuk Bair Memorial to the Missing, Gallipoli. William is remembered on the Southbridge Plaque, Ellesmere County Memorial.
The eight month campaign in Gallipoli was fought by Commonwealth and French forces in an attempt to force Turkey out of the war, to relieve the deadlock of the Western Front in France and Belgium, and to open a supply route to Russia through the Dardanelles and the Black Sea. The Allies landed on the peninsula on 25-26 April 1915; the 29th Division at Cape Helles in the south and the Australian and New Zealand Corps north of Gaba Tepe on the west coast, an area soon known as Anzac. On 6 August, further landings were made at Suvla, just north of Anzac, and the climax of the campaign came in early August when simultaneous assaults were launched on all three fronts. Chunuk Bair was one of the main objectives in the Battle of Sari Bair, fought 6-10 August 1915. The attack was to be carried out by two columns of the New Zealand Infantry Brigade, starting from the outposts on the shore and proceeding up the Sazli Belt Dere and the Chailak Dere. Meanwhile the New Zealand Mounted Rifles were to clear the foothills. The New Zealand Infantry reached Rhododendron Spur, where they were joined by the 10th Gurkha Rifles, from further north, and reinforced by the 8th Welsh, the 7th Gloucesters, the Auckland Mounted Rifles, and the Maori Contingent. The Wellington Infantry and some of the Gloucesters and Welsh reached the summit, and were later joined by men of the Auckland Infantry and Mounted Rifles. These troops, after repulsing incessant Turkish attacks, were reinforced by the Otago Battalion and the Wellington Mounted Rifles. The 6th Gurkhas and the 6th South Lancashire Regiment came in on the left. The 6th Loyal North Lancashire Regiment relieved the force at Chunuk Bair on the evening of 9 August, supported later by part of the 5th Wilts, but on the morning of the 10th, the position was taken by a determined and overwhelming counter-attack, carried out by a Turkish Army Corps led by Mustapha Kemal Pasha. The loss of Chunuk Bair (New Zealand) Memorial is one of four memorials erected to commemorate New Zealand soldiers who died on the Gallipoli peninsula and whose graves are not known. This memorial relates to the Battle of Sari Bair and in other operations in this sector. It bears more than 850 names. Chunuk Bair Cemetery was made after the Armistice on the site where the Turks had buried some of those Commonwealth soldiers who were killed on 6-8 August. It contains 632 Commonwealth burials, only ten of which are identified.First NameWilliamLast NameSpenceFamilySingleSon of Mrs Jean Taylor (former Spence), Post-office, Timaru, New ZealandDate of Birth20 December 1884Place of BirthKillinchy, CanterburyDate of Death7 August 1915Place of DeathGallipoli, TurkeyCause of DeathKilled in actionAge at Death30
William enlisted on the 6 January 1915 at Dunsandel and was assigned to the Canterbury Infantry Regiment. He embarked with the 4th Reinforcements on 17 April 1915. He was killed in action on 7 August 1915 during the August Offensive action on Bauchops Hill, aged 31. Like many others his body was not found and he is named on the Chunuk Bair Memorial to the Missing, Gallipoli. William is remembered on the Southbridge Plaque, Ellesmere County Memorial.
The eight month campaign in Gallipoli was fought by Commonwealth and French forces in an attempt to force Turkey out of the war, to relieve the deadlock of the Western Front in France and Belgium, and to open a supply route to Russia through the Dardanelles and the Black Sea. The Allies landed on the peninsula on 25-26 April 1915; the 29th Division at Cape Helles in the south and the Australian and New Zealand Corps north of Gaba Tepe on the west coast, an area soon known as Anzac. On 6 August, further landings were made at Suvla, just north of Anzac, and the climax of the campaign came in early August when simultaneous assaults were launched on all three fronts. Chunuk Bair was one of the main objectives in the Battle of Sari Bair, fought 6-10 August 1915. The attack was to be carried out by two columns of the New Zealand Infantry Brigade, starting from the outposts on the shore and proceeding up the Sazli Belt Dere and the Chailak Dere. Meanwhile the New Zealand Mounted Rifles were to clear the foothills. The New Zealand Infantry reached Rhododendron Spur, where they were joined by the 10th Gurkha Rifles, from further north, and reinforced by the 8th Welsh, the 7th Gloucesters, the Auckland Mounted Rifles, and the Maori Contingent. The Wellington Infantry and some of the Gloucesters and Welsh reached the summit, and were later joined by men of the Auckland Infantry and Mounted Rifles. These troops, after repulsing incessant Turkish attacks, were reinforced by the Otago Battalion and the Wellington Mounted Rifles. The 6th Gurkhas and the 6th South Lancashire Regiment came in on the left. The 6th Loyal North Lancashire Regiment relieved the force at Chunuk Bair on the evening of 9 August, supported later by part of the 5th Wilts, but on the morning of the 10th, the position was taken by a determined and overwhelming counter-attack, carried out by a Turkish Army Corps led by Mustapha Kemal Pasha. The loss of Chunuk Bair (New Zealand) Memorial is one of four memorials erected to commemorate New Zealand soldiers who died on the Gallipoli peninsula and whose graves are not known. This memorial relates to the Battle of Sari Bair and in other operations in this sector. It bears more than 850 names. Chunuk Bair Cemetery was made after the Armistice on the site where the Turks had buried some of those Commonwealth soldiers who were killed on 6-8 August. It contains 632 Commonwealth burials, only ten of which are identified.First NameWilliamLast NameSpenceFamilySingleSon of Mrs Jean Taylor (former Spence), Post-office, Timaru, New ZealandDate of Birth20 December 1884Place of BirthKillinchy, CanterburyDate of Death7 August 1915Place of DeathGallipoli, TurkeyCause of DeathKilled in actionAge at Death30
Connections
CollectionSoldiers of Selwyn World War OnePlaceKillinchy
More InformationAuckland War Memorial Cenotaph
More InformationAuckland War Memorial CenotaphMilitary Service
Memorial or CemeteryChunuk Bair MemorialEllesmere County MemorialOccupation before EnlistingFarmhandRegiment or ServiceCanterbury Infantry BattalionEnlistment Details16th January 1915Service Number6/1984Rank Last HeldPrivateEmbarkation17th April 1915Place of EmbarkationWellingtonTransportWillochraWaitomoKnight TemplarTheatre of WarGallipoli
Attribution
Researched ByL. M. Seaton
Private William Spence. Selwyn Stories, accessed 16/01/2026, https://selwynstories.selwynlibraries.co.nz/nodes/view/482
