Ball, Oswald Frederick Grevatte
Second Lieutenant Oswald Frederic Grevatte Ball was educated at the Brighton Grammar School whence he came up to King's, where he entered the Faculty of Arts. While at school he distinguished himself alike in the classroom and the playing fields where in football and athletic sports he made a great name for himself.
He joined the army after the outbreak of war, and in August, 1915, obtained his commission in the Royal Sussex Regiment. He was soon made bombing instructor to his battalion, but took the opportunity of transferring to the R.F.C., and went out to France, where he saw seven months of service before he met an untimely death at the age of 22 years.
Just as he distinguished himself in the contests in the playing fields at school, so also in France he distinguished himself as an intrepid airman - thus on one occasion he and three others attacked nine enemy machines. Ball's was hit, and badly damaged, but he piloted it in safety to the British lines.
He met his death on April 5th by a tragic misadventure. While returning from a reconnaissance he was compelled through atmospheric conditions to descend somewhat and in so doing was hit by an English shell, both himself and his observer being killed instantly.
He was buried at Aubigny, near Arras.
Quote from the magazine of his old school: "Brief though his period of service was, we rank him with those who 'cared greatly to serve God and their King ..... and passed content, leaving to us the pride of lives obscurely great.'"
King's College Review, Dec. 1917
Biographical
| Surname(s) | Ball |
|---|---|
| First name(s) | Oswald Frederick Grevatte |
| Date of birth | 1894 |
| Place of birth | Steyning District |
| Family details | Son of Oswald & Maud Ball of Glenthorne, Raven Road Shoreham by Sea, Sussex |
| Previous education | Brighton Grammar School |
| College | King's College London and/or King's College London Hospital |
| Dates at college | 1914 |
| Dept / course | Faculty of Arts |
| Military unit | 2nd Regiment Royal Sussex Corps then Royal Flying Corps 13th Artillery Observation Squadron |
| Date enlisted | Joined the army at the outbreak of war |
| War / conflict | World War One (1914-1918) |
| Campaigns | France and Flanders |
| Date of death | 5 April 1917 |
| Age at death | 22 |
| Rank at death | Second Lieutenant |
| Cause of death | Killed in action |
| Burial place | Aubigny Communal Extension |
| Commemoration(s) | King's College Chapel; Shoreham War Memorial |
| Sources | King's College London Archives; Commonwealth War Graves Commission; University of London OTC 1914-19 |