Robert Reginald Davies was a welshman who married there in 1933. The following year the couple moved to Essex where they had three children. Robert worked for Essex County Council abd Brown & Sons before joing the army. He survived the Dunkirk evacuation and later went to north Africa where he was seriously wounded in 1943. He died as a result of those ounds in 1947. His home was in Springfield Park Avenue.

Robert was a Welshman, born in Pontypridd, Glamorganshire on 24th September 1909, the son of William David Davies (born 1881) and Hannah Maria Davies (nee Perkins) (born 1874).

In 1933 he married Annie Eileen Dunford in Pontypridd. She had been born there in 1910. By 1934  the couple are believed to have moved to Essex. In 1934 they had a daughter, born in the Rochford district; followed by a son born in the Chelmsford district in 1938; and a third child, Christopher Reginald Davies, born on 29th July 1941 in the Chelmsford district - he died in 1998.

Robert served in the army before the Second World War and came to Chelmsford where he worked for Essex County Council at County Hall and at the timber merchants Brown & Sons.

As a reservist he was called up at the outbreak of the war, where he served as Bombardier 794837 in the Royal Artillery, seeing action in France before the Dunkirk evacuation as well as in north Africa.

In 1943 he sustained serious wounds during fighting in north Africa and he was to succumb to them on 5th June 1947 in the Chelmsford district. He was 37 years old.

At the time of his death Robert's wife and children were living at 39 Springfield Park Avenue in Springfield. Robert was buried at Holy Trinity Church, Springfield on 9th June 1947 (grave 711).

A Chelmsford newspaper reported:

"TRAGEDY OF THE WAR—The funeral of Mr. Robert Reginald Davies, of Springfield Park Avenue, who died on June 5 at the age of 37 as a result of serious war injuries sustained in North Africa in 1943, took place at Holv Trinity Church on Monday.

Mr. Davies served in the Royal Artillery for 14 years and went through much of the heavy fighting in North Africa and also at Dunkirk. He worked for several years the County Hall.

He leaves a widow, a 13-year-old daughter, and two sons, aged nine and six. The Rev. E. H. O. Bennett officia\ed at the interment. Those cresent included: Messrs. Donald, Lance and Leslie Davies. brothers; W. Dunford. Doran. C. Stevens (senior and jun.), H. Edwards. J. Mahoney, H. Pugh. C. I Bridge, F. Bridge and L. Cokayne."

Robert's widow remarried in 1950 and died in the Chelmsford district in 1982.

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