Lycett William Ernest Ordinary Seaman J/43431 H.M.S "Cullist" Royal Navy Son of Edward and Winifred Lycett, of 61 Herbert St, Stafford St, Wolverhampton. Killed in action with submarine in Irish Sea. Died - 11 February, 1918. Aged - 18. Memorial - Portsmouth Naval Memorial - Hampshire, United Kingdom.
William was serving on HMS Cullist, a "Q" ship. These ships were used as decoy vessels to engage and, hopefully, destroy U boats preying on merchant shipping fleets. Unfortunately, the run of luck enjoyed by HMS Cullist ran out on Febrary 11th 1918 when, following a surprise attack, the ship was torpedoed and sank within minutes. The attacking U-boat, U-97, came to the surface and the crew tried to locate Lt.Cdr.Simpson. Although he was wounded and in the water, the submarine's crew could not locate him and thought he had been killed in action. The U-boat commander then took a number of prisoners of war on board to prove his victory and left the combat zone. The remaining personnel were later picked up by the trawler James Green. Of the total of 70 crewmembers, 43 were killed in action, amongst them was William Ernest Lycett (1st cousin, 2x removed). William's body was never recovered for burial..
