Cyril Bunch

1st February 1894 - 26th March 1972

Cyril Bunch was the son of James Robert (Proprietor of J.R.Bunch & Son, Builders of Yateley) and May (nèe Tyler) Bunch. He was born in Yateley and completed his education at Kendrick School, Reading.

Cyril joined the Hampshire Territorials and was a Sergeant at the outbreak of WW1 when he volunteered for service with the 2/4th Hants (Territorial) Battalion. This Battalion was posted to Quetta for NW Frontier garrison duties in December 1914. It was based there from March 1915 to April 1917. During this period he became the first Territorial N.C.O. to be retained as an Instructor at any of the three schools of musketry in India, at Satara (near Poona).

The 2/4th Hants was transferred to Egypt in April 1917 becoming part of Allenby's Expeditionary Force. Sgt. Bunch trained men of the 2/4th Hants in the use of the Lewis Machine Gun during the advance into Palestine, then took part in the 3rd Battle of Gaza and saw action at Nebi Samwil, near Jerusalem.

In January 1918 he transferred as a Flying Officer Cadet to the RFC Training School at Abbasia in Egypt and was commissioned into the RAF as a Subaltern Flying Officer (2nd Lt) in July 1918. He joined 150 Squadron RAF at Salonica (Northern Greece) on the Macedonian front in October and flew Sopwith Camels until the armistice, and shortly afterwards.

Cyril became seriously ill with Asian Flu late in 1918, was invalided home, demobilised at the end of 1918 and rejoined J.R.Bunch and Son which he later took over from his father. He remained a Pilot Officer in the RAF Reserve from 1923 until 1925.

He took up shooting at Bisley etc. between 1931 and 1939. As a national shot he was in nearly every England or Mother Country team from 1933 until 1939, winning Grand Aggregate Silver Cross in 1934 and the Gold Cross in 1938. He was in the King's Hundred in eight of the nine years from 1931 to 1939.

Cyril Bunch took a leading part in St Peters Church restorations after WW2. He was a long serving member of the Yateley bellringing band.

Page written by Chris Bunch and created by Admin March 2008

Back to Hampshire Rifle Volunteers page