Major Cecil Wedgwood, DSO (28 March 1863 – 3 July 1916) was a British soldier and partner in the

Wedgwood Wedgwood is an English fine china, porcelain and luxury accessories manufacturer that was founded on 1 May 1759 by the potter and entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood and was first incorporated in 1895 as Josiah Wedgwood and Sons Ltd. It was rap ...

pottery firm. He was the first

Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent The Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent was an executive mayoralty that existed from 2002 to 2009, when the executive of Stoke-on-Trent City Council was a directly elected mayor. The authority was unique in being the only authority in England with an electe ...

. Wedgwood was the only son of Godfrey Wedgwood and his first wife Mary Jane Jackson Hawkshaw, (daughter of the great civil engineer Sir

John Hawkshaw Sir John Hawkshaw FRS FRSE FRSA MICE (9 April 1811 – 2 June 1891), was an English civil engineer. He served as President of the Institution of Civil Engineers 1862-63. His most noteworthy work is the Severn Tunnel. Early life He was bo ...

, and the poet

Ann Hawkshaw Ann Hawkshaw (14 October 1812 – 29 April 1885) was an English poet. She published four volumes of poetry between 1842 and 1871. Early life Ann Hawkshaw (née Jackson) was born on 14 October 1812, third child of the Reverend James Jackson, dis ...

) who died shortly after he was born. He was the great-great-grandson of the potter

Josiah Wedgwood Josiah Wedgwood (12 July 1730 – 3 January 1795) was an English potter, entrepreneur and abolitionist. Founding the Wedgwood company in 1759, he developed improved pottery bodies by systematic experimentation, and was the leader in the indus ...

. Wedgwood became a partner in the firm in 1884 with his uncle Laurence Wedgwood and later his cousin Francis Hamilton Wedgwood. He married Lucie Gibson in 1888, and they had two daughters, one of whom married a brother of the Wedgwood pottery designer Daisy Makeig-Jones; * Phoebe Sylvia Wedgwood (1893–1972) remained unmarried. * Doris Audrey Wedgwood (1894–1968) married Thomas Geoffrey Rowland Makeig-Jones in 1928. Wedgwood was commissioned a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

in the 4th (

Militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non- professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

) Battalion,

North Staffordshire Regiment The North Staffordshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, which was in existence between 1881 and 1959. The 64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment of Foot was created on 21 April 1758 from the 2nd Battali ...

in 1883. He was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on 9 May 1887. The battalion was embodied after the outbreak of the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South ...

in late 1899, and he left Queenstown for South Africa on the with other men of the battalion in March 1900. Promoted to major on 12 September 1900, he served as Station Commandant in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

. After the end of hostilities he returned home in June 1902, and resigned from his commission the following month. He was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typi ...

(DSO) in the October 1902 South African Honours list for his services during the war. He was the first Mayor of the Federated County Borough of

Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement in Staffordshire and is surroun ...

in 1910 and 1911. On the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

in 1914 he raised the 7th Battalion,Wedgewood made peace medal stating 7th battalion.

. He was killed at the La Boiselle during the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

in July 1916. His body was found and identified by James Leather, a 21-year-old bandsman and stretcher bearer. He is buried at the Bapaume Post Military Cemetery in

Albert, Somme Albert () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. It is located about halfway between Amiens and Bapaume. History Albert was founded as a Roman outpost, in about 54 BC. After being known by various ...

. He was succeeded as chairman and managing director of Wedgwood by his cousin Francis Hamilton Wedgwood.

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20070928162340/http://www.wedgwoodmuseum.org.uk/biogresults.asp?BiographySelection=39 * https://englishlocalhistory.wordpress.com/staffordshire-people/cecil-wedgwood/ * http://www.cwgc.org/cwgcinternet/casualty_details.aspx?casualty=524016 {{DEFAULTSORT:Wedgwood, Cecil 1863 births 1916 deaths English potters People educated at Clifton College Darwin–Wedgwood family People from Stoke-on-Trent British Militia officers North Staffordshire Regiment officers British Army personnel of the Second Boer War British Army personnel of World War I British military personnel killed in the Battle of the Somme Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Wedgwood pottery