Captain Charles Algernon Fryatt’s grave at the parish church, Dovercourt, near Harwich.
Captain CA Fryatt was executed by the Germans during World War Iafter he attempted to ram a U-boat attacking the SS Brussels in 1915 – at the time, the U-boat was threatening to attack the steam-powered passenger ferry.
The SS Brussels was captured. Fryatt was court-martialled and sentenced to death, despite his civilian status.
It’s said that during interrogation, if he had said that he was acting under Admiralty orders, he would have been made a prisoner of war in the usual way – but it seems he was a non-combatant who acted only in self-defence. International outrage followed his execution near Bruges, Belgium.
In 1919, he was reburied at Dovercourt with full military honours.
He certainly has a grand headstone. My thanks to Malcolm Woods for the photo.