By John D Ellis
William Perera was born in Columbo, Ceylon c.1899. He enlisted at the Central Recruiting Depot, Whitehall, 26th February 1917, for the ‘Duration of the War’. He was 5 feet 2” tall, single, a printer by occupation and his next of kin was given as his father: Laurence Perera of Katchcheri, Matale, Ceylon, India. Shortly after enlisting he was diagnosed with scabies and spent seven days at Hursley Camp. Between March 1917 and November 1917, he undertook training at Wimbledon with the 111th Battalion Training Reserve (Rifle Depot), and was on the strength of No.1 Coy, (as RR7110732 Private Perera, King’s Royal Rifle Corps). In November 1917 he transferred to the 22nd (County of London) Battalion, referred to as ‘The London Regiment’ and a territorial battalion of the Queen’s (Royal West Surrey) Regiment. He served as a private (being renumbered 66599) at Chiseldon Camp in Wiltshire, undergoing training for deployment to the Western Front.
Arriving in France on the 29th of March 1918, he was transferred to the 9th (North Irish Horse) Battalion, Royal Irish Fusiliers, (the regiment was officially titled ‘The Princess Victoria’s (Royal Irish Fusiliers)’), with whom he served as a private (being re-numbered 45814).
The regiment got its nickname, ‘the Faughs’, from its Irish war cry “Faugh A Ballagh” (meaning “clear the way” in English), gained during the Napoleonic Wars (1793-1815). Between 1801 and 1831, both the 87th and 89th Regiments of Foot, the antecedents of the Royal Irish Fusiliers, had employed Black soldiers as military musicians (bandsmen and drummers). However, it is unlikely that this was remembered by the regiment during the First World War, and instead he appears to have been transferred as one of over 120 soldiers sent to replace the casualties suffered by the Royal Irish Fusiliers in the retreat from St Quentin and at Ypres. Private William Perera was wounded by shrapnel to the face on the 18th of April during the fighting between Wulverghem and Kemmel, subsequently being treated at the 3rd Canadian General Hospital. He returned to the battalion the following month, and apart from being hospitalised for influenza (‘Spanish Flu’) in June 1918, served until the cessation of hostilities in November 1918.
Nick Metcalfe, the author of “Blacker’s Boys: 9th (Service) Battalion, Princess Victoria’s (Royal Irish Fusiliers) (County Armagh), 1914-1919”, has identified two photographs taken of men from D Company of the 9th (North Irish Horse) Battalion, Royal Irish Fusiliers at Mouscron, Belgium in late 1918. Both photographs contain the same ‘soldier of colour’, now believed to be Private William Perera.
Private William Perera is sat in the centre of the front rank. His positioning was probably at the direction of the photographer to ensure that the photo was symmetrical.
A second photo appears to depict a ‘section’, the basic unit of an infantry regiment. William Perera stands ‘at ease’ amongst his comrades.
Private William Perera went on leave, via Calais, between the 28th of February and 15th of March 1919. He was then posted as a private (being renumbered 35549), to the 5th (Service) Battalion (Pioneers) Royal Irish Regiment serving with the British Army of the Rhine. In August 1919 he re-enlisted and was posted to the Depot of the Royal Irish Regiment at Clonmel, Ireland. The regiment noted that he was 5 feet 5” tall with a “negro” complexion, dark brown eyes and black hair. There has long been an African presence in Sri Lanka, however, it is not known if William Perera was of African origin – hence the description “negro” – or if the description was used simply because his skin was very dark. He was a student by occupation (which was different occupation from that given when he enlisted), identified as Wesleyan (a Methodist) and had a tattoo of a Japanese girl on the interior of one of his forearms. An address in England was given, possibly that of the ‘Ceylon Association’: Mr A Whiting, 6 Laurence Pountney Hill, Cannon Street, London (the association is known to have provided support for servicemen from Ceylon during their time in Britain). It was in Ireland that William Perera received the only sanction of his military service; seven days loss of pay and fourteen days confined to barracks for being absent without leave. His sanction was probably mitigated by the fact that he had voluntarily surrendered himself to the Military Foot Police in Dublin. He joined the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Irish Regiment in November 1919 and accompanied it to India in February 1920. He was awarded the ‘British War Medal’ and the ‘Victory Medal’.
Private William Perera was discharged at Chakrata, India in September 1920 under Paragraph 392 (XXV) of the King’s Regulations – “His services being no longer required”. His character was noted as being “Good”. His fate remains unknown.
Notes and References.
I am grateful to Nick Metcalfe for his help in understanding William Perera’s service with the Royal Irish Fusiliers and identifying him in the photographs. They are reproduced with Nick’s permission. For a more detailed history of the battalion in which Private Walter Perera served, please visit Nick’s website www.nickmetcalfe.co.uk
Regiments and Corps (In the order of appearance): The King’s Royal Rifle Corps is an antecedent of ‘The Rifles’. The London Regiment were disbanded in 1938, however, the lineage of some of its former battalions were continued by the regiment of the same name between 1993 and 2022. The Royal Irish Fusiliers are an antecedent of ‘The Royal Irish Regiment (27th (Inniskilling) 83rd, 87th and Ulster Defence Regiment). The regimental motto is still “Faugh A Ballagh”. The Royal Irish Regiment (1684-1922) were disbanded in 1922. The Military Foot Police later became ‘The Royal Military Police.
Sources: The National Archives (TNA) WO 329, WO 363, WO 364 and WO 372/5. British Army, Irish Regimental Enlistment Registers 1877-1924. National Army Museum (NAM) www.nam.ac.uk/soldiers-records/persons Metcalfe, M. “Blacker’s Boys: 9th (Service) Battalion, Princess Victoria’s (Royal Irish Fusiliers) (County Armagh), 1914-1919”. (Nicholas Paul Metcalfe & Writersworld, 2012). For the historical Black presence in the Royal Irish Fusiliers see: www.academia.edu/44037186/The_Black_Soldiers_of_the_87th_and_89th_Regiments_of_Foot_1801_1831_Later_the_Royal_Irish_Fusiliers