Love God, Serve People, Make Disciples
William Price Drury, C.B.E. Was one of Saltash's most prominent citizens in the decade leading to World War II was, a former Royal Marine officer who eventually reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. During his military service and after retirement he wrote many books and plays, some of which were produced as films. Several of his books were historical novels with locations in Saltash and the surrounding parishes.
He had lived at Looe and St. Germans before moving to Saltash in 1927, where he resided at Killigrew Cottage, Culver Road. He was mayor of Saltash for two terms, 1929-1931, being one of the few not elected from members of the Borough Council. During his mayoralty, he revived the ancient fair. He was made a freeman of the Borough in 1935.
In 1931 a skeleton was discovered in the mud in the River Tamar by two boys, one of whom later became a founder member of Saltash Heritage, Norman Ash. Buttons were found with the bones and were identified as being those from the uniform of an 18th century Royal Marine. Lt. Col. Drury arranged for the remains to be buried in St. Stephens churchyard with full military honours. The headstone was provided at the expense of the Royal Marines, Stonehouse. Always looking for material on which to base another book, Drury used this episode as the basis for his most popular historical novel Eight Bells, published in 1934, skilfully blending fact and fiction to tell a fascinating story.
We also have this book and several of his other works. Lieutenant Colonel Drury was a Royal Marine Light Infantry officer, novelist. The saying "Tell It to the Marines", often incorrectly attributed to King Charles II, (1660 to 1685), actually came from the preface of his collection The Tadpole of an Archangel. Drury also wrote a poem entitled The Dead Marines in tribute to the Royal Marines (formed in 1664), after the Duke of Clarence supposedly called empty alcohol bottles "Dead Marines".
Drury was educated at Brentwood School, Essex, and at Plymouth College. During his Royal Marines career, he served on the China Station and with the Mediterranean Fleet. He commanded the Royal Marines from HMS Camperdown and HMS Astraea who landed on Crete after local Christians and British soldiers were massacred by Turkish Bashi-bazouk forces in 1898. He was a member of the Naval Intelligence Department from 1900 until he resigned to pursue his literary career the following year.
At the outbreak of World War I, he re-joined the Royal Marines and served as an intelligence officer at Plymouth. The Royal Marines Barracks at Stonehouse, Plymouth have a Drury Room containing his desk and memorabilia. After a twelve year engagement, he married an actress, the daughter of the novelist Mrs. Pender Cudlip; shortly afterwards he was invalided out of the service, and although much of their later life was spent in Cornwall, they also travelled in India and South America; in the years before the First World War, He was an enthusiastic supporter of Lord Roberts (1832-1914), who argued that Britain was unprepared for war; Drury travelled the country lecturing for the cause, and became the chief organiser of the National Service League. Drury's mother-in-law was the romantic novelist Mrs. Pender Cudlip. The actress Ruth Kettlewell was his niece.
