Douglas Francis "Service Corps"

Douglas Edward Francis

Captain Royal Army Service Corps

P/108315

Died 14/12/1939 age 39

Buried in Totteridge (St. Andrew’s) New Churchyard, Section 3

He was the husband of Ruth Francis and son of Arthur and Mabel Francis, who resided at Wendover Parkgate Avenue in Hadley Wood, Enfield.

Captain Douglas Edward Francis was one of the early deaths of the Second World War, dying on December 14, 1939, just over three months after the conflict began. As a Captain of the Royal Army Service Corps (RASC), he belonged to a crucial branch of the British military responsible for supply and logistics. His work involved planning and procuring supplies for the upcoming war. He was working at the War Office, where he collapsed and died.

Captain Francis served in the Royal Army Service Corps between the wars, particularly during the early phase of the Second World War.

The organization Captain Francis served in had a long and distinguished history. The Royal Army Service Corps traced its origins back to the late 18th century, evolving through several iterations including the Royal Waggoners (1794), the Royal Waggon Corps (1799), and the Land Transport Corps (1855). After further reorganisations, the Army Service Corps was officially formed in 1888 by merging the Commissariat and Transport Staff, the Commissariat and Transport Corps, and the War Department Fleet.

In recognition of its critical service during the First World War, the Corps received the "Royal" prefix in 1918, becoming the Royal Army Service Corps.

The fact that his wife Ruth lived until 1998 and was eventually buried with him speaks to the lasting personal impact of the war. Like many war widows of her generation, Ruth lived most of her life without her husband, yet maintained the connection through their eventual shared burial place.