Daisy Kathleen Mary Coles was the only daughter of Walter George Coles and Edith Juliet Rosalie Brown who married on 12 June 1889 at Holy Trinity Church, Wandsworth. Walter was a civil servant who was living in Wandsworth and Edith lived on the High Street in Putney.  Walter and Edith’s first child was a son, Lionel, who was born in 1890 when the couple were living in Ashford. 

By the time Daisy was born in the summer of 1893, the family had moved to 43 Santos Road, Wandsworth, and on 13 August baby Daisy Kathleen Mary was taken to St Stephen’s church on Manfred Road for baptism.

At some point the family moved to Scotland, presumably for Walter’s work, and when the census was taken in April 1901 they lived at 11 Brunstane Gardens in Edinburgh along with Walter’s widowed mother. Walter described himself as a consultancy engineer to the Secretary for Scotland.

Daisy was educated at Canaan Park College in Edinburgh and apparently was well known for her skill playing both hockey and golf. By 1911 Daisy’s brother Lionel had joined the army and was serving with 3rd Battalion Border Regiment. 

With the outbreak of war in 1914, Daisy was keen to play her part in the war effort, possibly influenced by Lionel being a soldier. She trained as a V.A.D. nurse at Leith Infirmary, working at the Royal Victoria Hospital, Edinburgh and Craigleith Military Hospital (also known as the 2nd General Military Hospital) before volunteering for service in France. Her family were, by this time living in Peebles.

Sadly Daisy’s brother, Lionel, was killed on 1 July 1916 whilst serving as a Captain with 16th Battalion, the Royal Scots. Perhaps it was this loss that prompted Daisy to serve overseas?

Daisy served in France from June 1917 and spent at least some of her time at the 58 Scottish General Hospital at Caserne de la Barre, St Omer.  At 10.15pm on the night of 2-3 September a German air raid dropped five bombs in the St Omer area; there were multiple civilian and military casualties, including 24 year old Probationer Daisy Kathleen Mary Coles.

The Military and nursing personnel who died were buried in the Longuenesse (St. Omer) Souvenir Cemetery; Daisy, Staff Nurse Agnes Murdoch Climie and Probationer Elizabeth Thomson were all buried in a mass funeral (including 16 soldiers) held at 4.00pm on 2 October. A fourth nurse, Sister Mabel Lee Milne died of her wounds on 2 October.  The nurses are buried close together in Plot VI row B.

When the Commonwealth War Graves Commission took over the responsibility for the cemetery burials after the war, Daisy’s parents paid for the inscription on her headstone: “KILLED WHILE ON DUTY BY ENEMY AIRCRAFT.”

Daisy’s death was widely reported, with articles in the Scotsman, the Daily Record, the Sunday Post and the Oban Times and Ayrshire Advertiser as well as the Yorkshire Post.

In January 1918, Daisy and the other nurses were Mentioned in Dispatches.

Daisy’s parents remained in Scotland until her father retired at the end of a distinguished career in 1928. They later moved back to England, and died in Oxted, Surrey - Walter in 1940 and Edith in 1945.