Graham, PE

Private Paul Ernest Graham

Paul was born Paul Ernest Graham Schlumberger in Croydon on April 11th 1900, the son of Agnes and Jules Schlumberger. His father was a wool merchant from the Alsace whilst his mother, born Agnes Graham, was a Londoner who had two brothers, George and Arthur, who were OAs. The family had been resident in the Alsace, where Paul was at school in Mulhouse, but the outbreak of war, and subsequent German invasion, forced them to return to England, leading to him spending six months as a pupil at the College.
After leaving he spent time at University College, London, where he was named an Andrews Scholar in 1917, before joining the military upon turning 18. It was this that led to him dropping his parental name of Schlumberger, a move undertaken on the advice of the War Office, as he had several relatives who were being held by the Germans. He signed up as a member of the 21st Officers Cadet Battalion, and had yet to finish his training when he fell ill later that year. He ultimately passed away on November 26th 1918, in hospital in Aldershot, as a result of influenza.