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Atlantic Affair consists of three parts. Part One is a description of Otway Waller's single-handed voyage made in 1930 following the route of his friend and gun-runner Conor O'Brien's circumnavigation, in which he demonstrated the value of the self-steering system he invented, the first to enable a yacht to run unattended before the wind. It introduces the reader to a brave man, whose journey would fulfil many landlubber dreams today. It also explains the final and shocking cause of the break-up of Otway's marriage. At the end of Part One, Otway, who is seriously ill with a divorce pending, decides to return to Ireland to face his wife Muriel and his son Peter. This is dealt with in Part Three. To understand these three characters, we need to go back to Otway's and Muriel's courting and Peter's childhood. Who better to tell this story than Peter? He wrote an autobiographical manuscript, the second half of which became Irish Flames - Peter Waller's true story of the arrival of the Black and Tans. Part Two of Atlantic Affair incorporates even more of Peter's manuscript. The final third of the book follows directly on from Part One. In 1930 Otway is in the Canary Islands suffering from Canary Fever. He decides to postpone his voyage on the Imogen and return to Ireland. With his marriage to Muriel over, he finds a new companion who becomes his second wife. His departure from Ireland is traumatic and his new life in England is a mixture of happiness raising a new family and stress as he moves towards bankruptcy.
His war record in undistinguished. He joins the army, RASC, on a commission in May 1915. Serves 14 months in Egypt, 2 months in France, has 12 months on sick/leave, and the balance of 14 months was served in UK. There appears to have been a problem in Egypt, as MEF request that he is sent back to the UK as quickly as possible.
1884 Mar 15. Born Shannon Grove, Banagher, Ireland. His father Francis Waller was a Maltster
1901 census at boarding school in Barnstaple, Devon. United Service College, Westward House
1909 Apr 27. Marriage in London to Muriel De Dibon Bourne. Children of Caesar James Loftus Otway Waller and Muriel Bourne are: 1- Pansy Dorothy Otway Waller, b. 1910. 2- Peter de Warrenne Otway Waller, b. 1911. 3- Olive Muriel Otway Waller, b. 1914.
1911 census at Cuba, Banagher, King's Co.
1914 Steam Car
His record shows he served 4 months in UK, 2 months in France, then had 6 weeks sick leave, 10 months in the UK, 7 months in Egypt, 3 months leave/sick, 7 months in Egypt, 7 months sick/leave.
So in total he served 14 months in UK, 14 months in Egypt, 2 months in France and had 12 months sick/leave
Irish Flames has him in khaki from autumn 1914, when he said to be already on the Western Front, and that his wife purchased Invernisk for him as a Christmas present in 1914, sending him a telegram to France to tell him. Then he came home on leave from France in Jan 1915. This cannot be true as he did not join until May 1915, and was in France on 2 months from Sep to Nov 1915. And would not have had leave.
1915 May 3. Commissioned 2nd Lt "Otway Waller"
1915 May 15 Posted to 23rd Div Support Column in London
1915 Jul 23 . Promoted Lt
1915 Aug 28 Posted 24 Div Supply Column in France
1915 Nov 19. Medical Board. Invalided for 6 weeks
1915 Dec 13 Reports his current position to War Office
1915 Dec 23 Unfit General Service, fit Home Service.
1915 Jan 5. Fit Home Service, posted to Curragh
1916 Jan 21. Fit for General Service
1916 Feb 1. Promoted Capt in ASC
1916 Feb 3. Posted OC 615 Aux Coy MT in Dublin
1916 Mar 23. Left Ireland on mail boat for England
1916 Sep 11. Temp. Capt D.G. King. A.S.C.. has been posted to Dublin for duty with 615 (M.T) Coy ASC., in relief of Temp. Capt O. Waller, A.S.C.
1916 Oct 28 Posted MT Depot Bulford
1916 Nov 12. Posted OC of 811 MT Coy
1916 Nov 25 One months leave prior to posting to Egypt
1916 Dec 9. With 811 MT Coy Embarked Devonport for Alexandria
1917 Jan 9. Disembarks in Alexandria with 972 MT
1917 Jan 18. In Kantara
1917 Jun 11. OC 906 Aux Petrol Coy
1917 Jun 27 Posted to Alexandria prior to embarking for UK
1917 Aug 22. Embarked Alexandria on 4 weeks leave in UK. When he got back to UK requested 14 days extension of leave , but that was refused
He then did not return because of sickness
1917 Sep 23 Requests 14 days extension of leave for "urgent business reasons"
1917 Sep 26 Refused an extension of Leave
1917 Oct 9. Medical Board gives him 3 weeks Leave on Medical Grounds, and then to report for return to Egypt
1917 Oct 30. Found fit for General Service and ordered to return to Egypt.
1917 Nov 19 Embarks at Marseille to return to Egypt
1917 Nov 25 Arrived back at Alexandria, Egypt. Posted OC of 980 MT
1918 Jan 16. OC of 972 MT in Palestine
1918 Jan 16. OC 972 MT Coy in Palestine
1918 Mar 24. Posted to 26th Brigade RGA
1918 Mar 28. Egypt requested that he be sent back to UK as soon as possible.
1918 Jun 22 Ordered back to UK and to report to War Office
1918 Jul 4. He embarks for UK
1918 Jul 29 Due to report for duty in UK
1918 Jul 29 to Aug 12 Granted leave
1918 Aug 19 Posted to 804 MT Coy at Darlington but immediately applies for 3 months leave for Business Reasons
1919 Sep 12. Leave granted
1919 Jan 1. Returns from leave
1919 Jan 18 Demobilised and relinquishes his rank as Captain
1920 Oct 9. Resigned as a JP in pretext of the governments policy in Ireland (Nenagh Guardian)
1930 Oct 16. Divorced. Hetty Spiers is cited as co-respondent. She is not the woman he marries in the following summer of 1931
1930 Jul 3. Newspaper report that he was sighted 100 miles off Brest in his yacht Imogen
1930 Jul 22. He reaches Madeira
1931 Jul/Sep Marriage in London to Muriel Marguerite Cawthorne. Children of Caesar James Loftus Otway Waller and Margaret Cawthorne are: James Otway de Warrenne Waller, b. 1935. Richard de Warrenne Waller, b. 1937. Francis John de Warrenne Waller, b. 1940.
Chairman of FA Waller Ltd (Maltsters). His father Francis Albert Waller, was a barley buyer and set up F. A. Waller Ltd, the Maltings in Banagher in Offaly,
1931 Jun 17. There was an "alleged malicious burning" of Invernisk House. Otway Waller received over £5000 in compensation from a Galway court in Oct 1931. More is given in an appendix to "Atlantic Affair" by John Waller
1934 Waller and his new wife left Ireland to live in England
1935 Mar 16 Planning application to build a house in Folkestone paper
1950 Feb 17 Died. Leaving over £30,000
