Page 38 • The HERALD • 2nd April 2026 v THE HERALD - ENCOURAGING LOCAL ENTERPRISE v Kitchen & Bathroom Showroom with free design service Tel: 023 8084 3787 Email: showroom@pcbuildingsupplies.co.uk Web: www.pcbuildingsupplies.co.uk • Re-Skimming • Rendering • Coving • Dry Lining • Tacking • Artex Covered • Floor Screeding www.tbrownplastering.co.uk Call: 07919 183989 Friendly • Reliable • Professional • Free Estimates The Square, Fawley, Southampton SO45 1DD T: 023 8112 3112 E: office@zebra-ltd.co.uk All Plumbing Works Undertaken Full Bathroom Installation Toilet Fix from £75 Fully Insured Free Quotes No Job Too Big or Too Small PLUMBING & BATHROOMS TALES FROM THE GRAVEYARD OF by Patricia Hedley-Goddard, Churchyard Archivist for the ancient parish of All Saints’ Fawley Colonel William Alexander Eden In an inconspicuous grave to the north east of the church lay the last remains of Colonel William Alexander Eden and his wife Jean (Giovanna Anna Malvina). He was the son of the Right Reverend Robert Eden and Emma (nee Park). He was one of ten children, 4 brothers, Frederick Morton, Henley, Robert Allen and Charles John and 5 sisters, Caroline, Lucy Hawkins, Alice Hunt, Emma Selina Olivia and Mary. All of his siblings held professional positions or married into them, either high ranking military or ecclesiastical vocations. His father was the third son of Sir Frederick Morton Eden, and as was the tradition of those times the third son usually went into the clergy. By the time William was born his father was an important member in the church, rising to Bishop and performing many good deeds. William was born on 16th June 1843, and baptised one month later at Saint Clements Church, in Leigh in Essex. At that time many important changes were taking place in England and throughout the world. The young Queen Victoria had come to the throne 7 years earlier and had married Prince Albert in 1840. is was also the year when the penny post was started, and New Zealand became established as a British Sovereignty while recognising Maori rights. Major political, technical and cultural changes were also taking place. By the time William had nished his education he joined the army, serving in the Royal Artillery. The American Civil War was taking place and on 1st January 1863 Abraham Lincoln issued the official Proclamation to free enslaved people in the confederate states. It was also the time of the Anglo/French invasion of China which was a part of a larger pattern of global con ict and the use of modern military technology and tactics. It is believed that William was a member of the Intelligence Service serving in India, and was involved in various roles including strategic planning, training of personnel and possibly involved in combat. He was a dedicated soldier who rose through the o cer ranks to become a Lieutenant Colonel, and eventually a Colonel. In July 1885 he married Giovanna Anna Malvina Macbean, a beautiful widow who had been born in Rome, Italy, in 1848. At that time William was serving in Bombay. is was at the time of the 2nd Sikh war which was a signi cant military con ict between the Sikh Empire and the British East India Company. is resulted in the fall of the Sikh Empire and the annexation of the Punjab including Bombay. Eventually despite military tensions in the region this led to the British Administrative Reforms in the Punjab. On leaving the military he became a local magistrate and records show him as living at Glen Road, Pokesdown, as a Retired Lieutenant Colonel. is role required him to maintain law and order within his Continued on page 39
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