More about William Howie Cleghorn

William has no known grave but is remembered on the Chatham Naval Memorial. He was the brother of Second Lieutenant Allan James Cleghorn, 11th Battalion Gordon Highlanders, who died from wounds 07.09.1916 and Captain Herbert Stuart Cleghorn, Royal Flying Corps, whom was killed in action 02.09.1917.

William was serving aboard H.M.S. “Mary Rose”which was an M-Class Destroyer which had been launched in 1915 and had been part of the 12th Destroyer Flotilla at the Battle of Jutland, May 1916. The “Mary Rose” was sunk on 17th October 1917 while escorting a convoy of 12 Merchant ships from Norway. She was part of an escort with HMS “Strongbow” and two armed trawlers which were overcome by the German cruisers “Brummer” and “Bremse”. Two officers and eight men were saved. The sinking occurred 65 miles east of Lerwick.

For reasons unknown William Cleghorn is not included on the original Dundee Roll of Honour.

THE ALYTH GUARDIAN: 26.10.17 In the action in the North Sea on the 17th, when the destroyer “Mary Rose”, after a magnificent resistance against the fast and heavily-armed German ships, was sunk fighting to the last, the officers, including Engineer Lieut.-Commander Wm. H. Cleghorn, and men were officially reported lost. Lieutenant Cleghorn is the eldest son of Mr and Mrs John Cleghorn of Clifton, the third son to fall for King and country in this Great War. It is only five weeks since a brother, Captain Herbert Cleghorn, R.E. attached to R.F.C., was killed at the Front, while a little over a year ago, the youngest of the brothers, Lieut. Allan Cleghorn, Gordons, died in France, and two still remain, Lieutenants in the R.E., keeping the flag flying in the face of the enemy. The deceased officer was a member of the South Church, and the Rev J. Holburn, at the combined service of the North and South congregations in the North U.F. Church on Sunday, characterised the Lieut.-Commander as a typical example of a naval officer – tried, smart, keen, steady and chivalrous. Words, the reverend gentleman said, failed to express the sorrow he was sure they all felt for Mr and Mrs Cleghorn and family in this fresh grief; and to the young widow left to mourn her loss they extended their deepest sympathy.

—————————————————————————————————————————William H Cleghorn was the son of Mr John and Mrs Margaret Cleghorn of Clifton, Alyth, Perthshire and was born in Dundee. He joined the Royal Navy in 1902 and was serving in the battleship HMS Conqueror two years before the outbreak of war In October 1914 he was appointed to the destroyer HMS Gurkha and then to the destroyer HMS Mary Rose, being built at the Swan Hunter shipyard on the Tyne. He was the husband of Hilda White, 30 Great Kings Street, Edinburgh. The Mary Rose, a destroyer, was sunk defending a convoy on passage to Norway from two German Cruisers. HMS Strongbow, another destroyer, and nine merchant ships were also sunk. William Cleghorn is named on the Chatham Naval Memorial in Kent.

Iain Stewart and Iain Birnie