BORN HULL 14/09/1892. SON OF ROBERT WILCOCKSON (1855-1937) & EMILY SARAH BLACKMAN (1858-1937). ONE OF EIGHT 8 CHILDREN, LIVING AT 84 MELROSE STREET, HULL. HE MARRIED OLIVE PARKINSON (1887-1958), AT HULL, ON 27/02/1916, LIVING AT 8, HAWTHORNE AVENUE, HULL (CWGC ADDRESS). THEY HAD ONE DAUGHTER, MARY (1916-1987).
HE ENLISTED IN THE ROYAL NAVY, ON 13/08/1912. SERVED AS A 1ST CLASS, STOKER, LOST ON HMS “QUEEN MARY”, AT THE BATTLE OF JUTLAND, ON 31/05/1916.
HMS Queen Mary was a Queen Mary class Battle Cruiser, lost at the battle of Jutland. At 16.25 Queen Mary exploded and went down in only 90 seconds after probably receiving a hit from the German Battle Cruiser Von Der Tann. Two destroyers on both sides were also sunk during this period.
The Battle of Jutland (Skagerrakschlacht) was the largest naval battle of World War I, fought between 31st May and 1st June 1916, in the North Sea near Jutland, Denmark. The Germans’ plan was to use five modern battlecruisers to lure the British through a submarine picket line and into the path of the main German fleet. The plan didn’t succeed, but the battle is considered to be won by the Germans, giving the Royal Navy a heavy blow.
Queen Mary HMS wreck was discovered in 1991 and rests partly upside-down, on sand, 60 metres down. Much equipment is scattered about the wreck. Queen Mary is designated as a protected place under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986.
