One book of Pigs makes the whole world kin

George Hammick

George Hammick was born on 24th September 1885 in Devonport, Devon. He was the son of Robert Frederick Hammick, the second son of the 2nd Baronet Hammick and Vice Admiral (retired) of the Royal Navy, and Grace Caroline nee Longman who was the daughter of William Longman of the Longman publishing company.

Robert and Grace married in 1884, shortly before Robert was promoted to Captain. George seems to have inherited his father’s affiliation towards the Royal Navy because the 1901 census shows 15-year-old George as a Naval Cadet on the HMS Britannia, a training ship based in harbour at Dartmouth.

When WW1 broke out, George joined the Royal Naval Division and fought at the Siege of Antwerp (1914). The Allied forces were severely compromised, and the decision was taken to retreat to the Netherlands and surrender rather than risk capture by German forces. During WW1, the Netherlands were a neutral territory thus under the Hague Convention had a duty to disarm and intern all military personnel. George was to spend the rest of WW1 interned in Holland, although does appear to have been given leave in order to return home and marry Eileen Laura Newton-King in 1916.

Eileen was destined to spend much of her married life alone – George was not demobilised and freed from internship until 1919, and tragically Eileen died aged 28 in December 1920.

On 5th May 1925, George married Mary Adeliza Welch-Thornton. This marriage produced one child, Stephen G Hammick born in 1927. In November 1927, George’s uncle, Colonel Sir St Vincent Alexander Hammick, 3rd Baronet Hammick of Cavendish Square, died. Because the only son of the 3rd Baronet had been killed in WW1, George became the 4th Baronet.

George Hammick featured regularly in the local papers, often in reports of cricket matches and write ups of local hunts, however he also appeared before the magistrates. In September 1928, George was fined £1 for causing an obstruction with his car in Newton Abbot, whilst in September 1932 George gave a witness account regarding a fatal traffic collision.

Until 1947, the Hammicks lived at several addresses in Chudleigh, including The Lawns and Culver House, with George being the land agent for the Ugbrooke Estate for many years. In October 1947, the Hammicks moved to Kilmington. They lived there until George’s death in 1964. Upon his death, his only son, Stephen, succeeded to the Baronetcy.