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St Edward’s:
150 Years
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Douglas Bader received a second decoration in December
1940 for his services during the Battle of Britain. The
Chronicle
covered many of his exploits including his narrow escape
when he was so close under a badly damaged Junkers 88
that when it jettisoned its bombs his aircraft could easily have
been hit. Bader became a Wing Commander and was only the
second man to win Bars to his DSO and DFC. Eventually his
luck in the air ran out: he collided with an enemy aircraft over
France and parachuted into captivity, leaving one of his tin
legs behind. He made two attempts at escape, was recaptured
and incarcerated in Colditz. Bader was so highly regarded by
the enemy that he was treated well and the German Ace Adolf
Galland arranged for him to visit Jagdgeschwader 26, where he
was allowed to sit in a German fighter (a photograph of that
is not, unfortunately available to include here), and to have a
meal in the Mess. The Luftwaffe allowed a replacement pair
of legs to be flown out and delivered to him shortly after his
capture. When he arrived later at Colditz Castle the German
guards presented arms!
Bader did not always make an easy fellow prisoner
however, and he wanted to be included in escape plans
despite his obvious unsuitability, given his tin legs. His logic
was that he, particularly, was needed for the war effort back
home. He was one of the first to be repatriated. Many years
later, he was knighted by the Queen in 1982, for his services to
amputees; he died later that year.
Adrian Warburton (B, 1932–5) made his first appearance
in the records, winning a DFC in January 1941 in recognition
of his ‘many long-distance reconnaissance flights and night
air combats’.
At the outbreak of war the OTC became known as the Junior
Training Corps (JTC) to differentiate it from the now official
national Officer Training Units (OTU), through which civilians
became officers very rapidly. The JTC at School was now visited
by regular Army officers coming to lecture, and in 1939 they
were inspected by Lieutenant General Sir John Dill, then GOC
Aldershot, and later Field Marshal and Vice-Chief of the Imperial
General Staff. In 1940 the
inspecting officer was General Sir
Walter M. St.G. Kirke, Inspector
General to the Home Forces. At
the School Arthur Macnamara,
always known as ‘Major Mac’,
was one of those who were
involved with the OTC, and he
was also in command of the
Summertown and Wolvercote
Company of the Home Guard at
the outset of war.
One example of the many
families associated with the
School that suffered great losses
was the Keiths, a family of nine,
with no fewer than five boys
lost in the war. Amongst them,
David Wimborne Keith (B,
1936–41) was talented musically,
academically and in sport. After his death his violin and music
were presented to the School by his parents. His brother,
Geoffrey Brownlow Wigney Keith (B, 1937–42), who had been
Head of School, died a few months later. He too had been a fine
sportsman and scholar and was much mourned by his friends.
OSE RAF pilots continued to win many awards, and a
notable example is Alexander James Heyworth (D, 1935–9),
who won a DFC and Bar as well as being Mentioned in
Despatches as a Squadron Leader in Bomber Command
at the age of 22. Like Strange he went on to fly a host of
different aircraft and was seconded from the RAF to Rolls
Royce at Hucknall in 1944. There he developed a new type of
power unit, the Whittle Unit, soon to be named the Welland,
subsequently becoming their Chief Test Pilot in 1955.
In 1943 Guy Gibson was awarded the VC and a Bar to
his DSO. The
Chronicle
devoted
considerable space to his exploits,
hardly surprisingly, including
attacks on the German battleship
Tirpitz
at Wilhelmshaven at
night (during his ‘rest periods’),
day and night raids on Berlin,
Cologne, Danzig, Gdynia, Genoa,
Le Creusot, Milan, Nuremburg
and Stuttgart, with the successful
and infinitely daring Dambusters
Raid as the climax. Gibson was an
Acting-Wing Commander in the
RAF and became a national figure
DOUGLAS BADER
‘[Teddies] is quite the best public
school in the country. I enjoyed every
minute of my five years there.’
– Douglas Bader.
‘Douglas possessed that important
gift, the art of communication. He
could make people feel better. He
could make people laugh. He could
pass his strength to other people and
encourage them to try things they
never thought of doing.The School
has basked in his greatness and we
are proud and grateful to be able to
call him an OSE.’
– Final paragraph of an
appreciation by Graham Cooper,
OSE and Chairman of Governors,
in the
Chronicle
of Autumn 1982.
Above: Letter from Douglas Bader to Anthony Marten (E, 1961–65),
reproducedwithhis kindpermission.WardenKendall saved the youngBader
from being expelled several times.
Oldadversariesmeet after thewar: GermanaceAdolf Galland (in the cockpit)
with RAF Battle of Britain heroes Stanford Tuck (centre) and Douglas Bader
(right) at a 1978 air show.
Far left: DavidWimborne Keith
(B, 1936–41).
Left: Geoffrey BrownlowWigney Keith
(B, 1937–42).
Alexander James
Heyworth (D, 1935–9).
Chapter 6 / St Edward’s and the Wars