David Edward Somerville Hawkins was born on 7 January 1916 the youngest of the three children of Sir Anthony Hope Hawkins (1863-1933) and Lady Elizabeth Somerville Hawkins née Sheldon (1882-1946). His birth was registered in the St Giles registration district, London. On 26 February 1916 he was baptised at St Peter's Church, Walton-on-the Hill, Tadworth, Surrey, where in the marriage register his family were shown to be residing at Heath Farm, Deans Lane, Walton-on-the-Hill and that his father was an author. His two siblings were: Millicent Hope Hawkins (1904-1955) and Richard Sheldon Hope Hawkins (1905-1955). In our picture image of his family, he is the young boy in the top left of the photograph.
He attended Marlborough College, Bath Road, Marlborough, Wiltshire, where he was a Cadet Under Officer in the Marlborough College Contingent, Junior Division, Officer Training Corps. He went onto Christ Church College,Oxford where he obtained his B.A (Hons).
On 17 December 1933 he left the Port of Southampton, Hampshire, aboard the S.S. Bremen of the Norddeutscher Lloyd Bremen Shipping Line travelling to New York, USA and arriving on 23 December 1933. On the ship's manifest he was shown as a 17-year-old student residing at 32 Well Street, Knightsbridge, London SW and was travelling tourist class. He returned to Plymouth, Devon, via Cobh, Ireland, arriving on 23 January 1934 aboard the S.S. Washington of the United States Line where in the ship's manifest he is shown as an 18-year-old student, again travelling tourist class and that his home address was Heath Farm, Walton-on-the-Hill, Tadworth.
Electoral registers for 1938 and 1939 show him and his mother listed at 6 Spanish Place Mansions, Spanish Place, London, W1, together with a Miss Winifred Annie Dunford.
In the London Gazette he is shown commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Royal Artillery with effect from 12 August 1939. On 2 November 1940 he transferred to the Royal Air Force with the rank of Pilot Officer, service number 44803 and was attached to their General Duties Branch, later being assigned to No.226 squadron.
He died, aged 25 years, on 3 June 1941 when he took off from RAF Wattisham, Suffolk, in a Bristol Blenheim MkIV aeroplane, serial number Z7286, on a daylight solo training flight and collided with another Blenheim MkIV aeroplane containing the squadron's Commanding Officer. There were no fatalities in other aircraft, serial number Z7287. His death was registered in the 2nd quarter of 1941 in the Gipping registration district, East Suffolk (now Suffolk).
His body was buried in Plot 25, Row A, Grave 1, at the Brookwood Military Cemetery, Brookwood, Woking, GU24 0JD.
He is shown as 'Lieut. D. E. S. Hawkins' on the London Troops memorial plaque in Vicarage Gardens, Putney Bridge Approach, London, SW6. He is also shown as 'D.E.S. HAWKINS' on one of the two marble tablets in the Memorial Hall at Marlborough College and as 'HAWKINS DES' on Panel 179 of the Bomber Command war memorial at the International Bomber Command Centre, Canwick Avenue, Lincoln, LN4 2HQ. He is also commemorated on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission's website, on one of the seven tablets on the outside wall of the entrance to Christ Church Cathedral, St Aldate's, Oxford, OX1 1DP and in their Roll of Honour at Christ Church College, Oxford.
Credit for this entry to: Andrew Behan.
