Photograph of Edward in Tameside Local Studies and Archives Centre. Reference: MR1/23/11
(L to R) Distinguished Service Order; Military Cross; 1914-15 Star; British War Medal; Allied Victory Medal; India General Service Medal with clasp 'Burma 1930-32'
Edward was born on the 6th July 1885 at 8 Loudown Villas, Tamworth Road in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Derbyshire. His father was called William Alfred and his mother was Anne. He had at least 3 older siblings, William Pratt, Edith Annie and Mary Beatrice, and one younger sibling that we know of: Mabel Frances. The family were members of the Church of England.
Edward was educated at Ashby-de-la-Zouch Grammar School between 1895 and 1898, and then he was sent to Repton School in Derbyshire. After leaving school in April 1902 he went to West Wratting Park in Cambridgeshire. We don't know what Edward did there.
William Alfred was a solicitor. By 1901 the family had left Loudown Villas and moved to 'Fernleigh' on Tamworth Road. At this time William Pratt had begun training to follow in his father's footsteps, but Edward clearly wanted something different. In February 1903 he applied to become an officer in the Army. Edward was accepted and entered the Royal Military College at Sandhurst during 1904.
After he completed his training Edward was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Manchester Regiment on the 28th January 1905. He was 6 feet 4 1/2 inches tall. He was attached to the 2nd Battalion in the Channel Islands until September, when he sailed to Secunderabad in India to join the 1st Battalion.
The Battalion moved to Kamptee during 1908, and during this year Edward passed a course of instruction in musketry, or rifle shooting. He was promoted to Lieutenant on the 12th June 1909. Between November 1909 and May 1910 Edward was on leave in the UK.
During 1911 Edward passed several more courses of instruction. He qualified in signalling and telegraphy at a course held in Poona during June.
King George V had been crowned in Britain on the 22nd June 1911. As Emperor of India he received his Indian subjects that December at the Delhi Durbar. The 1st Battalion took part in the Durbar itself on the 12th, and the spectacular military parade on the 14th. It also provided many guards of honour for dignitaries. On the 15th Edward took his place in that day's guard. A total of 100 Delhi Durbar 1911 Medals were allocated to the 1st Battalion, Edward did not receive one.
After the Durbar was over Edward and the 1st Battalion moved to Jullundur in the modern Indian Punjab. In July 1912 he requested to be transferred from the 1st Battalion to the 2nd, which was based in the UK. We don't know why Edward asked for this. He returned to the UK aboard the 'Dongola' during October and joined the 2nd Battalion in the Curragh in County Kildare, Ireland.
In February 1913 Edward left the 2nd Battalion. He had been seconded to the Colonial Office, which was responsible for Britain's colonies outside of India. Edward was posted to the 4th (Uganda) Battalion of the King's African Rifles (KAR), based in Bombo, Uganda. Colonial units such as this were popular with officers because they offered a greater chance of seeing action, as well as a lower cost of living. There would soon be no shortage of action, as the First World War broke out in August 1914.
Germany had a colony in Africa, named German East Africa (the modern countries of Burundi, Rwanda and Tanganyika). It bordered British East Africa, later named Kenya. The war had spread to these countries before the end of August.
We don't know much about Edward's war. He was wounded on the 12th September. On the 20th December he carried out an act of great bravery. He was awarded the Military Cross for his actions. This citation was published in the London Gazette on the 18th February 1915:
Whilst on reconnaissance duty on the 20th December in the operations against German East Africa, near Mbuvuni, although severely wounded, Lieutenant Musson; with a few men, attacked a hostile German patrol with such success that only one man escaped.
Edward was promoted to Captain on the 12th May 1915, but his promotion was backdated to the 18th December.
We don't know anything about what Edward did until the 17th June 1916. On this day he was promoted to Temporary Major when he became second in command of the 2nd (Nyasaland) Battalion of the KAR. He held this position until the 31st October, when he became a temporary Lieutenant Colonel. This rank suggests he was commanding a battalion, but we don't know for sure.
On the 17th November 1916 Edward married Laura Emily Mateer. They had one child, Harold Edward, on the 5th January 1920. Edward learned Arabic and Swahili during his service.
Edward was awarded the Distinguished Service Order in the London Gazette of the 1st January 1918. We don't know what he did to earn this award. He was also Mentioned in Despatches on the 7th October.
German forces in East Africa had always been small in number, but their commander was able to move them rapidly to avoid the larger numbers of British troops. Although the British were able to capture territory, they could not defeat the German forces. In the end the Germans surrendered shortly after the end of the war, on the 23rd November 1918.
With the return of peace, Edward was sent back to the UK. He arrived on the 4th February 1919 and left the KAR on the 13th March. He joined the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion of the Manchester Regiment at Blackdown, near Aldershot in Hampshire, on the 22nd April. This became the 1st Battalion during July. Edward was appointed Adjutant.
As Adjutant Edward was responsible for the organisation, administration and discipline within the battalion, as well as acting as a mentor for junior officers and assisting the Commanding Officer with planning.
In early April 1920 the 1st Battalion was sent to Ireland, where they found themselves fighting in the Irish War of Independence. The Battalion faced Irish Republican Army fighters who fought as guerrillas in small groups. They mounted ambushes and hit-and-run attacks, never standing and fighting the British.
The battalion was based in small bases in Kilworth and Ballincollig and faced a determined enemy in the IRA. When martial law was imposed it became responsible for an area of around 240 square miles in County Cork.
On the 26th October 1920 Edward left Ireland and the 1st Battalion for Oldham in Lancashire. He had been appointed Adjutant of the 10th Battalion of the Manchester Regiment. This was a unit of the Territorial Army, so its members only trained during evenings and weekends. As Adjutant Edward was the only Regular Army officer in the unit. As well as the usual duties of an Adjutant Edward was responsible for organising training for the Territorial soldiers, as well as directly managing the other Regular soldiers assigned to the battalion. He held this post for 3 years.
In November 1923 Edward returned to Africa. He was given the local rank of Major and became the second in command of a battalion of the KAR. His rank was made permanent on the 26th July 1924. At around the same time he was made a local Lieutenant Colonel. He continued in this rank until June 1926, when he left the KAR and returned to the 2nd Battalion, who were now in Rangoon, Burma.
Edward was appointed Second in Command, under John Heelis, whose medals are also in the Museum of the Manchester Regiment collection. The battalion moved to Maymyo in the Burmese jungle in early 1928. They reached their new station by sailing up the Irrawaddy River. Edward commanded Headquarters Wing during this period.
Edward spent the year between December 1928 and November 1929 in the UK, where he attended the Senior Officer's School in Sheerness, Kent. On his return to the Battalion he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and took command on the 7th November. One of Edward's first tasks was to oversee the battalion's move from Maymyo to Secunderabad in India, which took place less than a month after he took command.
In December 1930 a rebellion broke out in several regions of Burma. The authorities requested more troops from India to help restore control, so Edward led the 2nd Battalion back to the country in June 1931. They took part in patrols of the jungle and villages in their allotted area until the rebellion was brought to an end by early 1932. The battalion returned to Secunderabad in early February.
The 2nd Battalion moved to Khartoum in Sudan during October 1932, and a year later Edward left them on retirement leave. The battalion returned to the UK on the 13th December 1933 and he was there to greet them in Southampton. Edward finally retired on the 5th May 1934.
In retirement Edward and Laura went to live at Wivelrod House near Alton in Hampshire. He was a frequent attendee at Regimental reunions and functions. When the Second World War broke out in September 1939 Edward was recalled and given command of the Machine Gun Training Centre, Manchester Regiment, as the Regimental Depot in Ashton-under-Lyne had been renamed. The centre was very busy at the beginning of the war, as reservists and new recruits were trained.
In May 1940 Edward was appointed Commander of the Preston Sub-Area. He held this job until July 1942, although we don't know what it involved. He reached the age limit on the 22nd December 1942, and had to retire, with the honorary rank of Colonel.
Edward died on the 17th April 1944 at Thurland Castle Lodge in Tunstall, Lancashire. He was 58 years old. Emily returned to Wivelrod House, where she died on the 12th September 1951, aged 69. Their son, Harold, had served in Italy during the Second World War, but in 1948 he decided to leave the UK behind and travelled to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) to become a Buddhist monk. He changed his name to Nanavira Thera and lived alone for many years in the south of the island. He struggled with his health and died on the 5th July 1965, aged 45.
Edward's medals were donated to the Museum of the Manchester Regiment in October 1951. He was also awarded 'Mentioned in Despatches' oak leaves for his Allied Victory Medal, the 1939-45 Defence Medal and the 1939-45 War Medal.
