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ST EDWARD’S
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Both Brittle
and Beautiful
by
JohnTrotman
,
(MCR, 1985-1992)
Alyn Shipton, the writer and
broadcaster wrote of the
poems: ‘In carefully poised
language, these poems explore
three interwoven themes:
the passage of time, travel
and the world that surrounds
us. John Trotman journeys
from childhood to fatherhood
(sometimes on the same page)
and shares a life’s experience
made richer through a sense of
place as acute in dark corners of
London as in the sunlit uplands
of New Zealand. Throughout it
all is a keen sense of texture, of
objects animate and inanimate,
and of the brittle transient
beauty of the moment.’
Dashing Dragoon,
Anguished Emissary
by
HughTweed
(D, 1955-1960)
Dashing Dragoon, Anguished
Emissar
y is about a former
cavalry officer from
Bedfordshire in England sent
by the British government to
southern Africa in the mid-19th
century to try to bring about
peace in the troubled lands
outside the boundaries of Cape
Colony. William Samuel Hogge’s
crowning achievements, the
signing of the Sand River
Convention with Boer leaders
at the beginning of 1852, and
accords with Moshoeshoe I,
paramount leader of the Basuto
people, brought peace, for a
time, to this part of the African
continent. The drama is made
more poignant by Hogge’s early
death in the furtherance of
his duties. This story, much of
which is told by Hogge himself
through letters to his adored
wife, is about great personal
sacrifice and will appeal to
anyone interested in one man’s
struggle against adversity as well
as to students and followers
of Victorian era politics and
military history, both in the UK
and South Africa.
Unknown Warriers
by
John Stevens
(D, 1950-1954)
Kate Luard was one of a select
number of fully trained military
nurses who worked in hospital
trains and casualty clearing
stations during the First World
War, coming as close to the
front as a woman could. She
was already a war veteran when
she arrived in France in 1914,
aged 42, having served in the
Second Boer War, and was
awarded the RRC and Bar. The
book offers a very personal
glimpse into the hidden world
of the military field hospital
where patients struggled
with pain and trauma, and
nurses fought to save lives and
preserve emotional integrity.
Through her letters home Kate
conveyed a vivid and honest
portrait of war. It is also a
portrait of close family affection
and trust in a world of conflict.
In publishing some of these
letters her intention was to bear
witness to the suffering of the
ordinary soldier.
The Belvedere Quartet
Vol III The Voyage of
King Roy the First
by
Timothy Plant
(B, 1957-1961)
183rd in line of succession
to the Throne of Canute,
the young Prince Roy has
never imagined that one day
he could become king. Then
unexpectedly this happens.
His novel approach to dealing
with the ruling classes and
their ossified structures causes
general dismay, but earns him
the admiration of the people.
Eventually he goes too far,
decides to resign, and decrees
‘The Person’s Republic of
England’. The palace is stormed
by royalists and he’s forced
to go into exile. He sets sail
for America on the ship of his
dreams, and that is where the
story really begins!
Editor's Note: Timothy painted
the
Wind in the Willows
mural
at St Edward’s, as featured in the
previous issue of
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F E A T U R E S