Great Uncle Cecil was born on 13th January, 1886, in the Edinburgh Hotel, St Mary's Road, Southampton. He was the second of eight children of Edwin CHRISTMAS and Margaret Abigail, née Russell. His father, Edwin, was ex-navy - a captain's steward, on at least one posting - and the proprietor of the hotel. His mother, Margaret, was the daughter of the 'proprietor of the pleasure ground’ in Portchester Castle.

There seems to have been some difference of opinion as to what his name should be, because he was originally registered as "Edwin Vincent Russell Christmas", before his second name was changed to "Cecil" – the name by which he came to be known.

From 1898, Cecil was educated at the Banister Court School, where he proved himself to be something of a sportsman, with the local paper reporting on his successes at fives and cricket, amongst other sports. The school magazine described his school career, remarking that “Almost immediately after he came, his name begins to appear in the Magazine”, and it goes on to mention his achievements in football matches, in gymnastics, and in fives.

His newspaper obituary described him as “one of the best batsmen the school had in recent years”. In fact, he went on to play cricket for the Deanery and football for St Mary's Football Club (better known, now, as Southampton F.C. – The Saints).

In 1908, Cecil signed as an amateur league player with the Saints but, sadly, he was only 24, when his mother died in August 1910, and then his father died in January 1911, a week after his 25th birthday. Under this double blow, he and his elder brother, William, had to take on the running of the family hotel – though, later, William moved on to run the Shirley Hotel (also in Southampton).

Initially, that responsibility drew Cecil away from his footballing career but he was persuaded to return to the team, in 1912, running out for the first team in the Southern League – but he was badly injured on only his second outing and was forced to retire from football.

1915 brought the sharp contrast of life’s experiences. In May, Cecil "gave away" his aunt, Jessie Mary Russell, in marriage to local school headmaster, Richard Bennetts, when they married in St Mary’s – Portchester’s parish church, inside the ancient castle. Jessie was the church organist.

Then, on 6th July, 1915, he signed up for the Artists’ Rifles and six months later, he was backed by his own former headmaster in his expressed wish to transfer to the King’s Royal Rifle Corps. At the beginning of May 1916, a year after supporting his aunt at her marriage, he was a 2nd Lieutenant, en route for France, to go to war.

The King’s Royal Rifle Corps Chronicle records that, on 15th August, 'the Division received orders to take part in the Battle of the Somme'. Part of the journey was by train, and part by marching on foot. Training carried on at Dernancourt until 12th September. The Battalion was moved to the front lines by 14th September. They lost three quite senior officers almost immediately to a single shell. Early next morning, the attack was launched, supported by tanks – 'This was the first time that ‘Tanks’ had been in action.' [There is a very understated reaction, referring to their effectiveness in battle.]

The battalion remained there until 19th, when they marched back to Dernancourt, where they went through another couple of weeks’ training, before returning to the front on 3rd October. 

On 7th October, the Battalion was sent in support of the Hampshire Regiment in their attack. At some point, on that day, Cecil fell and died of his wounds. His remains have never been traced, and his name is amongst those 72,000 on the great memorial at Thiepval.

In a poignant coincidence, his younger brother, Herbert, was serving in the 9th Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment, in the same area, and was wounded and suffered shell shock – on that same day – and was sent home to England a few weeks later. Fortunately, Herbert survived but, though he later re-joined the army, in the Army Service Corps, in an effort to find his brother’s remains, he was not successful.

Although Cecil’s remains were never found, he is named in a number of places, to honour his service and sacrifice. These include:

• On the magnificent CWGC memorial at Thiepval

• In the KRRC Memorial Book, in Winchester Cathedral.

• On the War Memorial, inside St Mary’s Portchester.

• On the Christmas family’s grave memorial, in the graveyard of St Mary’s, Portchester

• On the Memorial Wall of the Cenotaph in Watts Park, Southampton

• Most recently, on the memorial plaque on the wall of the ground of Southampton Football Club.- On 10th November 2018, a new memorial plaque was unveiled at the Saints’ ground. Cecil’s great-niece, Christine, was privileged to be invited to attend on that occasion, along with her younger son, Martin.

2nd Lt E C R Christmas, former hotelier and Saints forward, was one of more than 300 Southampton footballers who served King and Empire, at home or abroad, in WW1, and one of 32 who never came home. ~~~

NB - Please note that David Bull, Saints' Historian (http://www.hagiologists.com), has assisted in compiling this account. Christine's own tribute page to ECRC can be found at http://www.christinebennett-soprano.com/ChristineBennett-Soprano/E._C._R._Christmas.html See “All the Saints” and, “Saints at War”, to be published.