238744 Stkr PO Samuel Charles Iles Royal Navy HMS Arabis from:Mangotsfield, Gloucestershire (d.10th February 1916) Stoker Petty Officer Samuel Charles Iles was born on 26th July 1882 in Mangotsfield to Tom and Eliza Iles and was christened on 1st October 1882 at St James Church. By 1901 he was a coal hewer in a local pit. He joined the Royal Navy on 12th August 1903; the 1911 Census shows him as a Stoker on HMS Vivid in the China Seas and the East Indies. He married Lilian May Nicholls on 29th July 1908. They had one child in their marriage, daughter Lilian Mary, born on 13th January 1910 ; they all lived in St James Place.
The final vessel that he served on was HMS Arabis, an Arabis class minesweeping sloop which he joined on 11th December 1915. She was built by D. and W. Henderson and Company of Glasgow at yard No. 497 and was launched on 6th November 1915.
Admiral Reinhard Scheer took command of the German High Seas Fleet in 1916 due to the illness of Admiral Hugo von Pohl and immediately began to take a more offensive strategy in the North Sea. This resulted in more frequent raids and incursions into British dominated areas. One of these occurred on 10th February 1916 when the Germans sent the 2nd, 6th, and 9th Torpedo-Boat Flotillas to the Dogger Bank in an attempt to intercept Allied shipping. At least 25 torpedo boats were deployed. The only British vessels operating in the area were the British 10th Minesweeping Flotilla, consisting of HMS Arabis, Poppy, Buttercup, and Alyssum.
The Arabis-class sloops were armed only with two 4.7 in (120 mm) guns as well as two 3-pounder anti-aircraft guns and were little match to the large numbers of German torpedo boats. Arabis - along with the other three sloops of her division - had been engaged in sweeping a clear channel east of Dogger Bank when they were sighted by a large number of German torpedo boats. The Germans at first hesitated in attacking them as they were not familiar with the new Arabis-class vessels and thought they were much more powerful cruisers. However, with their numerical advantage the Germans decided to launch their attack anyway. The British attempted to flee back to the safety of the coast with Poppy, Buttercup and Alyssum succeeding. Arabis was not so fortunate. She was caught and engaged by three of the German torpdeo boats. After fighting off this attack, Arabis was attacked by six of the German boats and finally went down after being struck by a torpedo. Thirty of Arabis' crew were pulled from the sea by the Germans, but four of them died shortly afterwards due to exposure to the elements. The British caused some minor damage to a few of the German destroyers and the only losses from the action was HMS Arabis along with 56 of her crew killed (amongst them being Samuel Charles Iles) and another 24 captured by the Germans
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