For casualties whose surnames begin with other letters of the alphabet please visit the main Roath Virtual War Memorial page.

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WILLIAM HENRY PAUL KELLEHER

Sergeant (Wireless Op./Air Gunner), 97 Squadron, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (Service Number 1006928)

William Henry Paul Kelleher was born on 13 Oct 1916 to William Henry Kelleher, a dairyman and Mary Kelleher née Kingston, a shopkeeper, both from Cardiff.  The family lived at 45a Swansea Street, Splott. William attended St Illtyd’s College (1926-30) and afterwards became a milkman working for his father’s business.  He joined the RAF Volunteer Reserve and was part of 97 squadron.  He died on 17 Dec 1942 aged 26. He was the radio operator and gunner on board Lancaster bomber ED333 which took off at 17:22 from Woodhall Spa airfield, Lincolnshire for a mission to Neustadt, Germany.  It was shot down by a night-fighter and crashed some 5 km east of Urk killing all seven crew.   He is buried at the Amsterdam  New Eastern Cemetery ( Plot 69. Row D. Joint grave 3). He is remembered on the St Illtyd’s College memorial at St Alban on the Moors church in Splott.  Commonwealth War Graves Commission record.

WILLIAM PETER KELLY

Captain, 26th (Tyneside Irish) Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers

William Peter Kelley was born at 127 Price Street, Birkenhead on 27 Jun 1885 to William Kelley, a clothier, originally from Birkenhead and Margaret Kelley née Brierton, originally from Belfast.  His father died shortly after he was born and his mother remarried Henry Canning, a marine engineer, originally from Manchester.  By 1891 the family had moved to Roath and were living at 27 Glenroy Street. William attended St Bede’s Roman Catholic College, Manchester and St Peter’s Church in Tredegarville, Cardiff.   In 1901 they lived at 89 Arabella Street and in 1911 at 66 Amesbury Road when William, then aged 25, was working as a shipping agent.  Prior to the war he was a member of the Cardiff Exchange, being a partner in Vyvyan, Kelly & Co Coal Exporters.  His obit in 1916 states ‘Captain Kelly on the outbreak of war enlisted in the Dragoons, subsequently obtaining a commission, and being an efficient officer his promotion was rapid.  He had been in France for about 12 months. The gallant Captain first joined a cavalry regiment as a trooper, but when the Tyneside Irish Brigade was formed he applied to be posted to it.  It was characteristic of him that he declined a staff appointment, which would have kept him hundreds of miles from the trenches’. He was wounded on Nov 10^th 1916 on the Western Front whilst in temporary command of the 26^th battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers and died of wounds on 12 Nov in hospital at No 2 Casualty Clearing Station, Bailleul, aged 31.  He is buried at Bailleul Communal Cemetery Extension (plot III. A. 209).  In his will he left £4,791, a quarter to go to St Bede’s College and a quarter to St Peter’s Church.  He is remembered on St Bede’s College memorial, Cardiff Coal Exchange Memorial and St Peter’s Roll of Honour.   Commonwealth War Graves Commission record. (It seems William kept in touch with the Kelly family in Birkenhead after coming to South Wales.  His obit mentions Bridget Kelly who seems to have been the matriarch of the family, being a car proprietoress in Birkenhead for many decades).

JAMES CHARLES HENRY ALLEN KINSON

Private, 9th Battalion, Durham Light Infantry (Service Number 7342084)

James Charles Henry Allen Kinson was born in 1912 in Cathays, Cardiff to Henry Allen Kinson, a corporation labourer, from Cardiff and Minnie Elizabeth Kinson nee Stone, also from Cardiff.  He attended St Monica’s school.  In 1937 he married Takouhi Stepanian in Cardiff who lived at 47 Minny Street, Cathays in 1939. When WWII starts James and three of his brothers enlist.  He joined the Royal Tank Corps in 1939 but later transferred to the Durham Light Infantry. He was killed a week into the battle to retake Sicily on 17 Jul 1943 aged 21. He is buried at Catania War Cemetery, Sicily. Commonwealth War Graves Commission record. His wife Takouhi remarried in 1955 but passed away in 1960 in Croydon aged 49.

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EDWIN THOMAS KIRBY

Lance Sergeant,   240 Battery, 77th Heavy Anti-Aircraft. Regiment, Royal Artillery (Service Number 858166)

Edwin ‘Ted’ Thomas Kirby was born  on 7 Jul 1916 in Cardiff to Edwin Kirby, a dock gateman, originally from Darlington, County Durham and Elizabeth Kirby née Brooks originally from Penarth.  He was baptised in Grangetown on 27 Jul 1916, so likely born there too.  In 1939 Ted and the Kirby family were living at 6 Elaine Street, Splott.  Prior to the war Ted was employed by the Wellfield Coal Company.  He served in the Royal Artillery in the 77th Regiment which was a TA Regiment from South Wales comprising 239, 240 and 241 Batteries.  On 6 Dec 1941 they sailed from the Clyde. They reached Durban in South Africa early in Jan 1942. They arrived at what is now known as Jakarta, Indonesia  on 4 Feb 1942. 240 Battery were active in Java in March and surrendered to Japanese forces that month after being outnumbered.  POWs were concentrated in large camps, mainly in the Batavia area, where from about October 1942 regular drafts of ‘slave labour’ were sent to other destinations.  Some including Edwin were sent to Japan to work in the coal mine in Ube, Japan.  He arrived in Japan on 27 Nov 1942 on board the ship the Singapore Maru.  His time in Japan was short for he died on 7 Dec 1942 aged 26 of ‘Catarrh of colon & bronchitis’ as a Japanese Prisoner of War at the Ohama POW Camp. The soldiers that died in Japanese hands and were cremated.  After the war the Army Graves Service arranged for their ashes to be brought by H.M.A.S. Newfoundland to Sydney for interment at the Sydney War Cemetery in New South Wales, Australia. Commonwealth War Graves Commission record.

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JAROSLAV KULHAVÝ 

Sergeant, 311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (Service Number: 787115)

Jaroslav Kulhavý was born on 16 Aug 1919 in Mlada Boleslav, in the Central Bohemian Region of Czechoslovakia, now the Czech Republic.  His father was Vaclav Kulhavy, a businessman.  Jaroslav was Roman Catholic and prior to WWII worked as a mechanic. He joined the Czeck air force in 1938 and as the war progressed moved to the French air force in Jan 1940 and then the RAF in Jul 1940.   On 2 Aug 1944 he married Ceridwen Price, originally from Treharris, Glamorgan at St Cyprian’s Church, Cathays, Cardiff.   At the time of his marriage he was Flight Sergeant in the RAF and based at RAF Predannack, Cornwall.  Also, at the time of their marriage, Ceridwen Price was living with her married sister Brenda Furlong at 14 Tewkesbury Place, Cathays.  Soon after their marriage Jaroslav moved to RAF Tain, Ross, Scotland.  He was killed on 4 Dec 1944, together with 6 other Czechoslovak airmen, when their Liberator FL981 (O) crashed shortly after takeoff from the airport in Tain.  He was 25 years old.  Jaroslav is buried at Cathays Cemetery (grave EK 2795).  Commonwealth War Graves Commission record.  He is also remembered on a memorial in Prostějov, Czech Republic where samples of soil from the graves of Czech airmen killed when serving with the RAF have been interred.  Article in Friends of Cathays Cemetery Newsletter.