Joining The RFA 1905

I was born in Twickenham in 1888 to Richard Enos Coxen and his wife Alice. My father was a sailmaker by   trade so he needed to be close to the Thames in order to service the ships. Later we moved to Battersea where our family expanded to seven children.

In order to continue my education I decided to join the Royal Field Artillery in 1905 and in 1907 I received both my third and second class certificate of education in composition. At that time I was serving in the 55th Battery

By 1909 I held the rand of Bombardier and was a signalman. I was in Ireland  in the summer of 1909 training on how to use the new field telephones when my picture was taken.

My plan was to obtain an education and training so that I could leave the regular service and join the RFA reserves. By 1911 I had served the required six years of regular service but before I left, I received my Assistant Instructor's Certificate for Signalling.

With more time on my hands I joined the Electrician's Union and became an electrician. I was living with my family at 28 Berkley Street and meet the love of my life who happened to live at 32 Berkley Street. In 1912 we were married in the Perish Church in the Perish of St Mary Lambeth, London.

In 1913 my wife and I were blessed with a baby girl we named Doris and we moved to 93 Rectory Lane, Tooting Bec Commons.

The news papers were filled with talk of war in Europe and after the Arch Duke was assassinated it seemed certain that there would be war between Germany and France. Parliament and the people were against going to war to support France but when Germany invaded Belgium we were all in for supporting a neutral country, besides, if France lost the war German forces would occupy the French ports along the English Channel.

We I came home from work on August 4th my dear wife told me that Parliament declared "General Mobilization", which meant that we were at war with Germany.

JOURNAL ENTRY

August 4th
“General Mobilization”, will it be declared? This was the thought with me all day, after my dear wife first gave me the news. But then I could not believe it, until we walked to the post office and saw the official declaration.Then I knew I would have to leave my home and dear ones — for “Where”, that was my one great thought. Until then I never realized what it all meant.
With the conflicting thoughts of my dear ones, along with fascination that I was going to participate in a “real scrap”, my mind was in a real whirl, and was so until I left home the next day for Newcastle on the Tyne. And then — “Where?”
On August 5th I was to report for duty, so my wife and dear baby daughter walked with me to the train station where I was to catch the train to Newcastle.