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ST EDWARD’S AND THE WARS
F
rom its earliest days, St Edward’s has seen young OSE, and
sometimes older ones, go to the major wars,where they
have been a credit to the School, and many outstandingly
so.TheArchive and R.D.Hill’s
History of St Edward’s School
abound with material telling the many, and often tragic, stories
connected with these men.The School has much to be proud of
in these individual contributions to the wars. Chris Nathan, our
Archivist, has written a book on this subject,
Cometh the Hour…
Cometh the School…,
which gives a clear summary of what part
the community of St Edward’s played in these wars, and how the
School managed during the First and SecondWorldWars.This
chapter is dedicated to all those who were lost, and indeed all
those who fought in these wars – whether they served in theArmy,
Navy or Air Force. As with much of this book the character of the
chapter depends to a great extent on the material we have in the
Archive, and we have many letters from those fighting, inWorld
War I in particular, so extracts from some of these are included and
I think readers will find them interesting as well as very moving,
even after all this time. I have relied very heavily on Chris Nathan’s
writings for this chapter and readers should certainly consult his
book for greater detail. I have taught bothWorldWars to Shell
classes in History for some years now and often tell pupils about
the School’s involvement, a subject I feel strongly about.
Chris Nathan writes ‘I simply had no idea that the School,
which I attended in the mid-1950s … had such a heritage of
very brave men who didn’t hesitate to go to war, and then to
excel, when the nation called. Of course, like any Teddies boy,
I knew of Gibson and Bader who were, and still remain, two of
the Second World War’s most notable servicemen. Then, more
recently, the names of Adrian Warburton, Louis Strange and
Arthur Banks have been the subjects of the written word and
even films, as Gibson and Bader had been earlier. I think it is
partly true that the School’s reputation for being unpretentious
but whose education has produced so many who contribute a
great deal, is in no small way due to the remarkable part that so
many OSE played in the wars.’
No military education or training took place at the School
until a low-key ‘Rifle Club’ came into being in 1905, at the
Left: Copper plaques
commemorating those
who fell in the Boer War.
Above: An impression of the Anglo-German front
line as painted by OSE Richard Carline (A, 1910–
12). Carline was a war artist and examples of his
work are in the Imperial War Museum, including
this, reproduced with their kind permission.
Above: The Air Council gave this memorial window in
recognition of men from the School who fought in the
RAF. It was dedicated in 1955 and is by Hugh Easton.
Chapter 6