Percy Toplis
Encyclopedia
Francis Percy Toplis was a British criminal and imposter active during the First World War. He is sometimes claimed to have taken a major part in the Étaples Mutiny
, as "The Monocled Mutineer", during the war, although there is some dispute as to whether he was actually present.
Toplis was born in Chesterfield
, Derbyshire
and christened on 25th September 1896 at Skegby. His parents, Herbert and Rejoice Elizabeth (née
Webster), were unable to support him and he was raised by his grandparents. In March 1908, aged 11, he was birched for acquiring two suits using false pretences. His grandparents were no longer able to control him and the court released him to his aunt, Annie Webster. Toplis kept out of trouble until he left school in 1910, aged 13. He became a blacksmith's apprentice at the Blackwell
colliery, but after a poor attendance record and an argument with the pit manager he took to an itinerant life in Scotland
. In 1911 he was sentenced to ten days imprisonment in Dumfries
for the non-payment of two train tickets. He returned to England, and in 1912, aged 15, he was sentenced to two years hard labour for the attempted rape
of a 15-year-old girl. He was released in 1914.
, where he served as a stretcher bearer, his first active duty being at Loos
. His unit was shipped to the landings of Gallipoli
, and when they returned Toplis was hospitalised for dysentery
. Afterwards he briefly worked in a munitions factory. His unit was later posted to fronts in Salonika and Egypt
, but he was sent back when he contracted malaria
. In September 1917 his unit was shipped to Bombay for some months and then returned to Britain.
In August 1918 Toplis' father died. Soon afterwards he deserted from Blackpool
. He was sentenced at Nottingham
Assizes
to two years in prison for fraud
. When released in 1920, he joined the Royal Army Service Corps
, and was stationed in Bulford
. He was soon selling rationed fuel on the black market, forging
false papers to gain access to other soldiers' salaries, and wearing a colonel's uniform
when he visited women in town. He often used a gold monocle
as part of his disguise.
. Toplis was seen in Bulford Camp
around 11.00 p.m. The inquest into George Spicer's death took place in a barn on Thruxton Down. The jury returned a verdict of 'wilful murder' by Percy Toplis, foreshadowing the possibility of his execution when caught; it was the first British inquest in modern times to declare a man guilty of murder in his absence.
Toplis spent the next couple of weeks in London posing as an officer. The police began to close in, and he fled to Monmouth
, in what is now Wales
but was part of England
at the time, and eventually to Tomintoul
, Scotland
. On 1 June a farmer near Tomintoul saw smoke in a lone gatekeeper's bothy
. He alerted Police Constable George Greig, and together they found Toplis sitting by a fire. Toplis fired his pistol, wounding them both and then fled on a bicycle. He cycled to Aberdeen
and took a train to Carlisle
, where he arrived on 5 June. He was seen in an Army base in Carlisle Castle
.
On 6 June, in Cumberland
, Police Constable Alfred Fulton met and questioned a man in "partial military dress" but let him go. Back at the station, he checked police circulars and noticed that this man matched the description of a man suspected of the Andover murder. He went back to apprehend Toplis, but retreated when Toplis threatened him with a Webley 6 pistol.
Two other policemen, Inspector William Ritchie and Sergeant Robert Bertram, joined Fulton. Ritchie and Bertram were armed with Webley revolver
s and for reasons still unexplained had also disguised their uniforms. It is believed that this may have been the result of orders from the Home Office to the Chief Constable
Norman de Courcy-Parry. They set off by car to apprehend Toplis and were joined en route by the chief constable's civilian son, Norman de Courcy-Parry, Jr., on his 1000-cc motorcycle. Parry was armed with a Belgian automatic pistol, which he had brought back as one of a number of firearms, 'unofficial souvenirs' from the war. They saw Toplis but did not recognise him until they had passed him and were some yards down the road. After quickly turning the car round, the group again approached Toplis, who could have escaped but chose not to. As the car neared Toplis they opened fire with their handguns. Toplis returned fire, but suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the chest, inflicted by the chief constable's son, though he later denied this was the case.
An inquest
was held on 8 June. The next day, Toplis was buried in an unmarked grave
near the top of Penrith
's Beacon Edge Cemetery. Toplis' belongings, including his monocle, were handed to Penrith Museum. Despite plans by Canadian, Frank Drayson, a childhood friend of Toplis, to erect a headstone on the grave in 1980, as of 2010 Toplis' grave remains unmarked.
as a consequence of him being among a band of deserters based in that area of France. Toplis was sought in France following the mutiny and posters for his arrest were issued. The fact that the British authorities went to such lengths to apprehend or silence Toplis is thought by Allison and Fairley to add credence to the view that he was one of the only leaders of the mutiny that escaped the retribution that immediately followed.
The 1986 BBC
series entitled The Monocled Mutineer
, an adaptation by Alan Bleasdale
of the book, fuelled accusations by the Conservative
government of the time of left-wing bias at the BBC. The British press denounced the accuracy of the series.
Official records show that Toplis' regiment was en route to India during the Étaples mutiny. No evidence exists to show that Toplis was absent from his regiment. However, neither is there evidence that Toplis ever went to India, only ever getting as far as Malta
. He was a deserter and regularly moved between regiments masquerading as an NCO
or an officer in order to get food, win money from gambling and for accommodation. The account of any involvement by Percy Toplis in the mutiny by soldiers in the training camp known as The Bull Ring at Étaples may be made clearer in 2018 when the official files regarding the mutiny are released into the public domain
by the UK's National Archives.
Étaples Mutiny
The Étaples Mutiny was a mutiny by British troops in France in 1917, during the First World War.-Background:Étaples, about south of Boulogne-sur-Mer, was at the time a small town with a thriving fishing industry and a fleet of sail powered wooden trawlers, a few miles up the river Canche...
, as "The Monocled Mutineer", during the war, although there is some dispute as to whether he was actually present.
Toplis was born in Chesterfield
Chesterfield
Chesterfield is a market town and a borough of Derbyshire, England. It lies north of Derby, on a confluence of the rivers Rother and Hipper. Its population is 70,260 , making it Derbyshire's largest town...
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
and christened on 25th September 1896 at Skegby. His parents, Herbert and Rejoice Elizabeth (née
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Webster), were unable to support him and he was raised by his grandparents. In March 1908, aged 11, he was birched for acquiring two suits using false pretences. His grandparents were no longer able to control him and the court released him to his aunt, Annie Webster. Toplis kept out of trouble until he left school in 1910, aged 13. He became a blacksmith's apprentice at the Blackwell
Blackwell, Bolsover
Blackwell is a village in Derbyshire, England. It is one of the four villages that make up the civil parish of Blackwell within the District of Bolsover - the other villages being Hilcote, Newton and Westhouses. The Parish Council meets monthly...
colliery, but after a poor attendance record and an argument with the pit manager he took to an itinerant life in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. In 1911 he was sentenced to ten days imprisonment in Dumfries
Dumfries
Dumfries is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth. Dumfries was the county town of the former county of Dumfriesshire. Dumfries is nicknamed Queen of the South...
for the non-payment of two train tickets. He returned to England, and in 1912, aged 15, he was sentenced to two years hard labour for the attempted rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
of a 15-year-old girl. He was released in 1914.
First World War
In 1915, the year after the outbreak of the First World War, Toplis volunteered to enlist in the Royal Army Medical CorpsRoyal Army Medical Corps
The Royal Army Medical Corps is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all British Army personnel and their families in war and in peace...
, where he served as a stretcher bearer, his first active duty being at Loos
Loos
Loos may refer to:Places* Loos, Nord, France* Loos-en-Gohelle, France* Loos Islands, also known as Îles de Los, Guinea* Loos, British Columbia, Canada* Los, SwedenPeople*Loos Other...
. His unit was shipped to the landings of Gallipoli
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
, and when they returned Toplis was hospitalised for dysentery
Dysentery
Dysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...
. Afterwards he briefly worked in a munitions factory. His unit was later posted to fronts in Salonika and Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, but he was sent back when he contracted malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
. In September 1917 his unit was shipped to Bombay for some months and then returned to Britain.
In August 1918 Toplis' father died. Soon afterwards he deserted from Blackpool
Blackpool
Blackpool is a borough, seaside town, and unitary authority area of Lancashire, in North West England. It is situated along England's west coast by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre estuaries, northwest of Preston, north of Liverpool, and northwest of Manchester...
. He was sentenced at Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
Assizes
Assizes
Assize or Assizes may refer to:Assize or Assizes may refer to:Assize or Assizes may refer to::;in common law countries :::*assizes , an obsolete judicial inquest...
to two years in prison for fraud
Fraud
In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...
. When released in 1920, he joined the Royal Army Service Corps
Royal Army Service Corps
The Royal Army Service Corps was a corps of the British Army. It was responsible for land, coastal and lake transport; air despatch; supply of food, water, fuel, and general domestic stores such as clothing, furniture and stationery ; administration of...
, and was stationed in Bulford
Bulford
Bulford is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, close to Salisbury Plain. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 4,698.The name is derived from the Old English bulut ieg ford meaning 'ragged robin island ford'....
. He was soon selling rationed fuel on the black market, forging
Forging
Forging is a manufacturing process involving the shaping of metal using localized compressive forces. Forging is often classified according to the temperature at which it is performed: '"cold," "warm," or "hot" forging. Forged parts can range in weight from less than a kilogram to 580 metric tons...
false papers to gain access to other soldiers' salaries, and wearing a colonel's uniform
Uniform
A uniform is a set of standard clothing worn by members of an organization while participating in that organization's activity. Modern uniforms are worn by armed forces and paramilitary organizations such as police, emergency services, security guards, in some workplaces and schools and by inmates...
when he visited women in town. He often used a gold monocle
Monocle
A monocle is a type of corrective lens used to correct or enhance the vision in only one eye. It consists of a circular lens, generally with a wire ring around the circumference that can be attached to a string. The other end of the string is then connected to the wearer's clothing to avoid losing...
as part of his disguise.
Murder and pursuit
Toplis went AWOL again on 24 April 1920. After 9.00 p.m., taxicab driver Sidney George Spicer was found dead from a gunshot wound on Thruxton Down, near AndoverAndover, Hampshire
Andover is a town in the English county of Hampshire. The town is on the River Anton some 18.5 miles west of the town of Basingstoke, 18.5 miles north-west of the city of Winchester and 25 miles north of the city of Southampton...
. Toplis was seen in Bulford Camp
Bulford Camp
Bulford Camp is a military camp on the Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England.The modern day Bulford Camp is two camps separated by Marlborough Road. The camp on the eastern side contains Picton Barracks housing the headquarters of 3rd Division and Kiwi Barracks houses the 4th Battalion The Rifles...
around 11.00 p.m. The inquest into George Spicer's death took place in a barn on Thruxton Down. The jury returned a verdict of 'wilful murder' by Percy Toplis, foreshadowing the possibility of his execution when caught; it was the first British inquest in modern times to declare a man guilty of murder in his absence.
Toplis spent the next couple of weeks in London posing as an officer. The police began to close in, and he fled to Monmouth
Monmouth
Monmouth is a town in southeast Wales and traditional county town of the historic county of Monmouthshire. It is situated close to the border with England, where the River Monnow meets the River Wye with bridges over both....
, in what is now Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
but was part of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
at the time, and eventually to Tomintoul
Tomintoul
Tomintoul is a village in the Moray council area of Scotland; until 1975 it was located in the county of Banffshire.It is said to be the highest village in the Scottish Highlands, but at is still significantly lower than the highest village in Scotland .The village was laid out on a grid pattern...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. On 1 June a farmer near Tomintoul saw smoke in a lone gatekeeper's bothy
Bothy
A bothy is a basic shelter, usually left unlocked and available for anyone to use free of charge. It was also a term for basic accommodation, usually for gardeners or other workers on an estate. Bothies are to be found in remote, mountainous areas of Scotland, northern England, Ireland, and Wales....
. He alerted Police Constable George Greig, and together they found Toplis sitting by a fire. Toplis fired his pistol, wounding them both and then fled on a bicycle. He cycled to Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
and took a train to Carlisle
Carlisle railway station
Carlisle railway station, also known as Carlisle Citadel station, is a railway station whichserves the Cumbrian City of Carlisle, England, and is a major station on the West Coast Main Line, lying south of Glasgow Central, and north of London Euston...
, where he arrived on 5 June. He was seen in an Army base in Carlisle Castle
Carlisle Castle
Carlisle Castle is situated in Carlisle, in the English county of Cumbria, near the ruins of Hadrian's Wall. The castle is over 900 years old and has been the scene of many historical episodes in British history. Given the proximity of Carlisle to the border between England and Scotland, it...
.
On 6 June, in Cumberland
Cumberland
Cumberland is a historic county of North West England, on the border with Scotland, from the 12th century until 1974. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974 and now forms part of Cumbria....
, Police Constable Alfred Fulton met and questioned a man in "partial military dress" but let him go. Back at the station, he checked police circulars and noticed that this man matched the description of a man suspected of the Andover murder. He went back to apprehend Toplis, but retreated when Toplis threatened him with a Webley 6 pistol.
Two other policemen, Inspector William Ritchie and Sergeant Robert Bertram, joined Fulton. Ritchie and Bertram were armed with Webley revolver
Webley Revolver
The Webley Revolver was, in various marks, the standard issue service pistol for the armed forces of the United Kingdom, the British Empire, and the Commonwealths from 1887 until 1963.The Webley is a top-break revolver with automatic extraction...
s and for reasons still unexplained had also disguised their uniforms. It is believed that this may have been the result of orders from the Home Office to the Chief Constable
Chief Constable
Chief constable is the rank used by the chief police officer of every territorial police force in the United Kingdom except for the City of London Police and the Metropolitan Police, as well as the chief officers of the three 'special' national police forces, the British Transport Police, Ministry...
Norman de Courcy-Parry. They set off by car to apprehend Toplis and were joined en route by the chief constable's civilian son, Norman de Courcy-Parry, Jr., on his 1000-cc motorcycle. Parry was armed with a Belgian automatic pistol, which he had brought back as one of a number of firearms, 'unofficial souvenirs' from the war. They saw Toplis but did not recognise him until they had passed him and were some yards down the road. After quickly turning the car round, the group again approached Toplis, who could have escaped but chose not to. As the car neared Toplis they opened fire with their handguns. Toplis returned fire, but suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the chest, inflicted by the chief constable's son, though he later denied this was the case.
An inquest
Inquest
Inquests in England and Wales are held into sudden and unexplained deaths and also into the circumstances of discovery of a certain class of valuable artefacts known as "treasure trove"...
was held on 8 June. The next day, Toplis was buried in an unmarked grave
Unmarked grave
The phrase unmarked grave has metaphorical meaning in the context of cultures that mark burial sites.As a figure of speech, a common meaning of the term "unmarked grave" is consignment to oblivion, i.e., an ignominious end. A grave monument is a sign of respect and fondness, erected with the...
near the top of Penrith
Penrith, Cumbria
Penrith was an urban district between 1894 and 1974, when it was merged into Eden District.The authority's area was coterminous with the civil parish of Penrith although when the council was abolished Penrith became an unparished area....
's Beacon Edge Cemetery. Toplis' belongings, including his monocle, were handed to Penrith Museum. Despite plans by Canadian, Frank Drayson, a childhood friend of Toplis, to erect a headstone on the grave in 1980, as of 2010 Toplis' grave remains unmarked.
Related history
In 1978 William Allison and John Fairley published The Monocled Mutineer, in which they show Percy Toplis to be a leading participant in the Étaples MutinyÉtaples Mutiny
The Étaples Mutiny was a mutiny by British troops in France in 1917, during the First World War.-Background:Étaples, about south of Boulogne-sur-Mer, was at the time a small town with a thriving fishing industry and a fleet of sail powered wooden trawlers, a few miles up the river Canche...
as a consequence of him being among a band of deserters based in that area of France. Toplis was sought in France following the mutiny and posters for his arrest were issued. The fact that the British authorities went to such lengths to apprehend or silence Toplis is thought by Allison and Fairley to add credence to the view that he was one of the only leaders of the mutiny that escaped the retribution that immediately followed.
The 1986 BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
series entitled The Monocled Mutineer
The Monocled Mutineer
The Monocled Mutineer is a British television series made by the BBC in 1986, and shown on BBC1, the first episode being transmitted on 31 August 1986, intended to head BBC1's autumn season of drama...
, an adaptation by Alan Bleasdale
Alan Bleasdale
Alan Bleasdale is an English television dramatist, best known for writing several social realist drama serials based on the lives of ordinary people.The Bleasdales live in prescot,liverpool,wales and london.-Early life:Bleasdale is an only child; his father worked in a food factory and his mother...
of the book, fuelled accusations by the Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
government of the time of left-wing bias at the BBC. The British press denounced the accuracy of the series.
Official records show that Toplis' regiment was en route to India during the Étaples mutiny. No evidence exists to show that Toplis was absent from his regiment. However, neither is there evidence that Toplis ever went to India, only ever getting as far as Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
. He was a deserter and regularly moved between regiments masquerading as an NCO
Non-commissioned officer
A non-commissioned officer , called a sub-officer in some countries, is a military officer who has not been given a commission...
or an officer in order to get food, win money from gambling and for accommodation. The account of any involvement by Percy Toplis in the mutiny by soldiers in the training camp known as The Bull Ring at Étaples may be made clearer in 2018 when the official files regarding the mutiny are released into the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
by the UK's National Archives.
Books
- Jaynie Bilton: Chasing Percy (2002) Bilton's web page
- William Allison & John Fairley: The Monocled Mutineer (1978)