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War
Memorials Elsewhere, - Wellington College |
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The Title Page of the Wellington College Roll of Honour for the First World
War - 1
Photo : Wellington
College
Wellington College is a public school (English independent day
and boarding school) in the village of Crowthorne, Berkshire. The College
was granted a royal charter in 1853 , and was opened in 1859.
Originally, the school educated sons of deceased Officers who had held commissions
in the Army. The connection with military service has been a strong element
in the school's history.
In the First World War some 700 Old Boys of the school lost their lives and are commmeorated in a Roll of Honour.
The names in this Roll of Honour were recorded in a beautiful handwritten volume known as the ‘Liber Aureus’ or ‘Golden Book’. The book is made of parchment and illuminated with gold and coloured pigments. Originally it was displayed next to the War Memorial in the schhol chapek, on a lectern designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. (This War Memorial had no names on it). Now, it and its Second World War equivalent are kept in glass display cases near the altar and the pages are turned regularly as a mark of remembrance.
5 Officers who served in the Yorkshire Regiment are commemorated in the First World War Roll of Honour.
Major Lindsay Alfred Barrett, MC. 1st Battalion Northumberland
Fusiliers, attached to 1st/4th Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment. Son of Charles
Rollo Barrett and Mary Delmar Barrett, of Pelaw House, Chester-le-Street,
Co. Durham. Killed 17 March 1916. Aged 23.
Buried POPERINGHE NEW MILITARY CEMETERY.
Major Barrett is also commemorated on a memorial window inside this church.
Details of the window can be found on the North
East War Memorials Project website.
Captain Cecil Aubrey Bradford. Yorkshire
Regiment, attached to the Nigeria Regiment W A F F.
Second son of the late Lt.-Col. O. J. Bradford, of Welparke, Lustleigh, S.
Devon, and Mrs. Mary Ann Ellen Bradford; husband of Mildred Ellen Grace Wyatt-Edgell
(formerly Bradford), of Tettenhall Wood, Wolverhampton. Served in the Cameroons.
Died 24 April 1917. Aged 31.
Commemorated on the HOLLYBROOK MEMORIAL.
Select here for
a photo of Captain Bradford with biographical information.
2nd Lieutenant Robert Edward Talbot Hewitt. 3rd Bn.
attd. 6th Bn. Royal Irish Regiment. Formerly Yorkshire Regiment. Son of Mr.
and Mrs. Thomas Hewitt, of Lowlands, Barnham, Bognor. Died 7 June 1917. Aged
29.
Buried KEMMEL CHATEAU MILITARY CEMETERY.
Select here for biographical information on 2nd
Lieut Hewitt.
Captain Edward Wilberforce Leather. 3rd Battalion Yorkshire
Regiment, attached to the 2nd Battalion K O Y L I. Son of Mr. and Mrs. Frederick
J. Leather, of Middleton Hall, Belford, Northumberland. Served in the South
African Campaign. Killed 18 April 1915. Aged 35.
Commemorated on Panel 33, YPRES (MENIN GATE) MEMORIAL.
A biography (with photo) of Captain Leather is provided in
De Ruvigny's Roll of Honour, together with his two brothers.
Rather curiously there are no biographical details of Captain Leather in "Officers
of the Green Howards 1688 - 1931" by M L Ferrar.
Captain Orbell Oakes. 2nd Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment.
Son of Lt. Col. O. H. Oakes, and Laura Eliza Josephine Oakes, of Nowton Court,
Bury St. Emunds. Served in the South African Campaign. Killed 13 March 1915.
Aged 34.
Commemorated on Panel 12, LE TOURET MEMORIAL.
The following biographical details are from Robert Coulson's Biographies
of Officers of the Yorkshire Regiment;-
"Orbell Oakes was born into a military family on November 7th 1880 at
Mhow in India.
He was educated at Wellington College and then pursued a military career being
first commissioned in January of 1903 and seeing service in the Boer War.
By the onset of the Great War he was serving as a Captain with the 6th Battalion
and then joined the 2nd Battalion in France in the new year of 1915 after
their grievous losses during the 1st Battle of Ypres.
In early March with the battalion in billets at Laventie they received orders
for an attack on the German held village of Neuve Chapelle.
Captain Oakes and his men moved into action at 2-30 p.m on March 10th occupying
the cleared German trenches. Over the next two days, numerous counter attacks
were launched by the enemy and on March 12th Captain Orbell Oakes was killed
in action close to Moulin du Pietre at Neuve Chapelle aged 34.
The Green Howards Gazette wrote,
“In him the regiment has lost an excellent officer and a good comrade”
Lt Col Alexander wrote,
“He died in action gallantly doing his duty. He was hit in the head
by a bullet and death must have been instantaneous. He had been doing splendid
work with his company since joining the battalion and his loss will be deeply
felt by us all”.
He was the son of Lt Col Orbell Henry Oakes and Mrs Laura Eliza Josephine
Oakes of Nowton Court, Bury St Edmunds."
The Title Page of the Wellington College Roll of Honour for the First World
War - 2
Photo : Wellington
College
Wellington
College Chapel
Photo : Anguskirk
licensed for use under a Creative
Commons Licence.
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