Charles was born on 10 July 1901, the third child of Charles and Kate Rosetta (née Mann) Ellis. Older sisters Rose (1898), Emily (1900) with younger sister Elizabeth (1903) and younger brother William (1907) completed the family unit. Tragically the family suffered the loss of their Mother, Kate, in the Autumn of 1907 and we find the Father and 5 children had moved back into the Ellis family home at 24, Clarence Road, Enfield. In the 4Q 1914 Charles married Susannah Harman in Edmonton and this union produced two children, Winifred (1916) and Ronald (1918), and all were living at 15, Sutherland Road, Enfield as of the 1921 census.

Charles Alfred Ellis joined the RN when he crossed the gangway of HMS POWERFUL, the Boy Training Ship in Devonport dockyard, on 16 January 1917 as a Boy Second Class, leaving the occupation of “Lathe Hand” as shown on his service documents. On 20 April he was drafted to HMS GANGES in Shotley, Suffolk, where he qualified for the Telegraphy branch and was rated Boy Tel on 27 June 1917. On 19 October, with a draft to HMS VICTORY l in Portsmouth for a short stay, as on 6 November he was on the move again when he crossed Portsmouth Harbour to join HMS DOLPHIN for the submarine introduction course. He completed this on 25 February 1918 when he left to join HMS FEARLESS, the submarine support vessel based in Rosyth, Scotland for 2 months.

On 30 April there was a move further North to join HMS SANDHURST, one of the submarine depot ship’s based in Scapa Flow, until 9 June when he returned to FEARLESS in Rosyth. On 30 September, he moved across to HMS ROYAL ARTHUR that had been brought in to assist FEARLESS in Rosyth. On 1 December 1918 he joined HMS K7 of the 12 Submarine Flotilla based on ROYAL ARTHUR and on the 10 January 1919 he was rated Ord Tel on board K7. He then put in a request for branch change wich was granted and he became an Acting Stoker First Class, with a new service number SS124701, on 9 July 1919, still with ROYAL ARTHUR. A change of submarines came on 8 November when he left K7 and transferred to HMS K5 where he was confirmed as Stoker First Class on 26 June 1920.

On 19 January 1921, K5 left Torbay, Cornwall, in company with four other “K” boats for an exercise in the Bay of Biscay. On 20 January 1921 she signalled she was about to dive and nothing was ever seen of her or the 57 crew members since.

Charles Alfred Ellis “Crossed The Bar” with 56 of his shipmates.