Great War Theatre

William Price Drury, (Lieutenant-Colonel, Royal Marines) was born on 8th November 1861. He was educated at Brentwood School, Essex, and at Plymouth College. During his Royal Marines career, he served on the China Station and with the Mediterranean Fleet. He commanded the Royal Marines from HMS Camperdown and HMS Astraea who landed on Crete after local Christians and British soldiers were massacred by Turkish Bashi-bazouk forces in 1898. He was a member of the Naval Intelligence Department from 1900 until he resigned to pursue his literary career the following year. At the outbreak of World War I, he rejoined the Royal Marines and served as an intelligence officer at Plymouth. He married an actress, the daughter of the romantic novelist Mrs. Pender Cudlip, a close friend of the wife of Charles Dickens. Shortly afterwards he was invalided out of the service. In the years before the First World War, he was an enthusiastic supporter of Lord Roberts (1832-1914), who argued that Britain was unprepared for war. Drury travelled the country lecturing for the cause, and became chief organizer of the National Service League. He died in Cornwall on 21st January 1949.

Gender: Male

Served in the armed forces? Yes

Scripts associated with W. P. Drury