Hubert Jack Holmes was born at Port Elizabeth in South Africa in 1895 and lived with his mother, Ange (Amye) Palk, and step father, Walter Angel Palk, a meat salesman, at "Colwyn", 16 Crave Park, Surbiton.

He was educated at Shrewsbury House Preparatory School where he won the Kenneth Challenge Year 6 Swimming Cup in 1909.

He first joined the Army Service Corps on the 7th of August, 1914 and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Northumberland Fusiliers on the 24th of July, 1915. On the 16th of May, 1916, he was awarded the Military Cross for his actions on enemy trenches at "The Mound" in the Ypres Salient. According to the London Gazette, he put an enemy machine gun out of action with a bomb and also accounted for three of the gun team.

He received a bar to his MC for his action on the 14th of July, 1916, at Caterpillar Valley near Montauban on the Somme.

He was wounded twice - firstly, during the Battle of Loss in October 1915 and secondly, on the 19th of August, 1916, during the fighting at Guillemont on the Somme.

In 1917 he was appointed as Commandant of the Trench Mortar School at Lyndhurst with the rank of Major.

He also served in World War Two (See WW2 link).