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Major Maurice Jospeh Lawson Turnbull
12/10/2023
Second World War Army United Kingdom Pre-war sportsman/woman D-Day and Invasion of Normandy
By CWGC
Major Maurice Joseph Lawson Turnbull
2341600

Maurice was born on 16 March 1906 in Cardiff, Wales, into a sporting family: his father was a hockey player who won an Olympic medal two years after his birth in London, and five of his brothers played rugby with the Cardiff club. As well as rugby, he also played hockey and cricket. 
 
In cricket, he captained the Cambridge University team in his final year and was also captain of Glamorgan County Cricket Club for ten seasons. He played nine international cricket matches for England between 1930 and 1936.  
 
A keen sportsman, Maurice also pursued a career in rugby: he played for his school teams, including Cambridge, and Cardiff's St Peters was one of his first clubs. 

He played mainly at scrum-half and played for the county in 1932. 

Maurice was called up to play for the Welsh national team in 1933, succeeding his brother Bernard, to play two matches in the Home Nations Championship. His first match was against England: The Welsh XV won 7-3 against the England for the first time in the legendary Twickenham stadium.

Maurice is thus the only person to have played international rugby for Wales - but also cricket for England. 
 
At the outbreak of the Second World War, Maurice served in the Welsh Guards.  A Major in the 1st Battalion, he was killed instantly by a bullet during intense fighting for the French village of Montchamp after the Normandy landings on 5 August 1944. 

His body was recovered from the battlefield by one of his men, Sergeant Fred Llewellyn. His personal effects were returned to his family, Elizabeth, his wife, and his three children Sara, Simon and Georgina.
  
He is buried in Bayeux War Cemetery, Plot XX. Row C. Grave 3.

 

Maurice Turnbull: The only man to play both international rugby for Wales and international cricket for England (copyright unknown)
Maurice Turnbull during his cricketing days (copyright unknown)