Frank Toovey Lake (1849–1868) died while serving in Japan with the British Royal Navy. After his death at the age of 19, he was interred on the island of Sanuki Hiroshima in the Seto Inland Sea. Since his burial – and until the present day – the islanders have steadfastly maintained the grave. This led to admiration among the late 19th-century British community in Japan including prominent members such as the British Ambassador Sir Ernest Satow, and a number of newspaper articles appeared around the world in 1899 recounting the story and praising the conscientiousness of the local people. Since then the grave's story has continued to feature in the world's media, and continues to be celebrated in Japan as a demonstration of the historic relationship between the two countries. Lake's story also involves Richard Henry Brunton and Thomas B Glover as well as the aforementioned Ernest Satow, all of whom had important roles in Japan's modernisation during the Meiji era. In 2018, celebrations to mark the 150 anniversary of his death took place around his grave. Early life Frank Toovey Lake was born into a professional family in 1849. His father was a civil engineer involved with the construction of the Grand Junction Canal and his mother's family were mill-owners in Kings Langley, Hertforshire, England. He was the middle son of three siblings all of whom were raised in Kings Langley. When the three children were still young, their mother died of cholera at the age of 29 in 1854; their father died ten years later of tuberculosis and both were buried in the graveyard of All Saints, Kings Langley Frank and his older brother were educated at St Albans School - also known then as King Edward VI Grammar School. Both were boarders Lake left school at the age of fourteen and entered the Royal Navy as a Naval Cadet, joining HMS Britannia to begin his officer training. In order to gain entry to the Royal Navy he needed to pass an entrance exam taken at the Royal Naval College, Portsmouth. This he took in April 1864 and was awarded a Second Class Cadetship along with 48 First Class entrants and 11 further Second Class entrants. They all joined HMS Britannia. A year later he took a second exam, passed and was able to join a sea-going ship as a midshipman where he continued his training. Naval career