Oms Boer War Research

Research on the Old Maidstonians who served in The Great Boer War 1899-1902 INTRODUCTION In the School’s Big Hall there is a stained glass window remembering four former students who gave their lives during the Boer War, and also an English Oak Memorial Board with the names of 29 students who served in this conflict, including the four that died. After researching the 46 OMs who died in the Great War, and the 72 who gave their lives in World War Two, it seemed apt to research the MGS and Boer War connection. This project proved to be more challenging as the sources of information used in the previous investigations were either patchy or non-existent eg. the School’s Admissions Registers in the School’s archives only go back to 1882; also the interesting, and invaluable Maidstonian Magazines only start with three editions in 1885, and then only Form Lists, Reports for Governors, and Results of Examinations and Prize winners were produced until December 1890, when full Maidstonian Magazines were again regularly published until 2011. Hence, many of the MGS students who fought in the Boer War joined and/or left the school with no trace in our archives. Fortunately, the Maidstonians of 1899-1902 gave some information of their experiences in this conflict. I started wondering why at MGS there was such a clear clamour to commemorate this particular conflict, and those who served, when there appears to be no list of names on plaques, or windows, for previous national engagements, such as the First Boer War, the Crimean War or Napoleonic Wars where OMs would have served and died. For example, OM Major-General Sir Henry Calder (1740-1792), who was the Lieutenant- Governor of Gibraltar and involved in many conflicts and his even more famous OM brother, Sir Robert Calder (1745-1818), who had a distinguished career in the British Navy being prominent in the battle of St Vincent 14th February 1797, for which service he was knighted, and then created a Baronet as Sir Robert Calder of Southwick, Hampshire. Also, the OM Admiral Lord Gambier (1756-1833) who was Admiral of the Fleet and gained the distinction of commanding the first ship to break through the enemy line at the Battle of the ‘Glorious 1st of June’ in 1794 in the 2 23 May 2020 French Revolutionary Wars, and later oversaw the bombardment of Copenhagen during the Napoleonic Wars. These famous OMs don’t appear to have School recognition or commemoration plaques, so why the School’s apparent new desire to commemorate their Old Boys in the Boer War? My suggestions to this question focus on the ‘spirit of the age’ of late 19th century society, and certain key events particular to Maidstone Grammar School. Modern nationalism was developing apace in late 19th century Europe in general, and Britain in particular. A new word came into the British language, ‘Jingoism’ which epitomised the desire for a stronger foreign policy. The word came from a popular music hall song first aired in 1878, which included the lyrics: ‘We don’t want to fight But by Jingo if we do, We’ve got the ships, we’ve got the men, we’ve got the money too. We won’t let the Russians get to Constantinople!’ This song caught on and spread widely through the public sphere. Advocates of neutrality began to deride those calling for war by labelling them ‘Jingoes’. The British Prime Minister at the time, Benjamin Disraeli (who had been MP for Maidstone 1837-41 and lived in Earl Street where there is a carved stone bust of him above the entrance to Pizza Express!) had already realised that ‘One Nation Toryism’ (a phrase that he coined) could be built on the appeal of nationalism for the twin pillars of Empire and Monarchy. Disraeli took a strong stance against the Russians at the 1878 Congress of Berlin and persuaded them to back down, so avoiding the expected war. This is why, sixty years later, in 1938 when Neville Chamberlain returned from Germany waving the famous, or infamous, Munich Agreement signed by himself and Hitler, he stated to the gathered press at 10 Downing Street: “My good friends, for the second time in our history a British Prime Minister has returned from Germany bringing peace with honour. I believe it is peace for our time … Go home and get a nice quiet sleep.” In the late 19th century imperialism was not an embarrassing, negative term, like today, but something to be proud of. This was the zenith of the Victorian era with ‘the sun never setting on its empire’, which stood 3 23 May 2020 at over 12 million square miles, being one quarter of the world’s land mass. This was the time when literacy rates were increasing dramatically as the State at long last was providing primary education, and the first national, cheap tabloid newspapers (the Daily Mail 1896, and the Daily Express 1900) aimed at the working class were launched and society was being bombarded with nationalistic sentiment in both politics and popular culture. Typical of this was the desire to take over and ‘civilise’ the world, as the phrase ‘White Man’s Burden’ represents from Rudyard Kipling’s poem published in 1899. Coincidently, 1899 was the year the Boer War or more accurately the Second Boer War, (the first one was 1880-81) broke out. This conflict was perceived as necessary to maintain and extend the British Empire, and hence it caught the imagination of the British people. Because of the new technology of their day, including telegraphs, telephones, photographs aiding the developments in mass media, War Correspondents were able to fuel the nations desires to discover what was going on overseas, and to create the heroes of their day. Schools are a microcosm of society, so Maidstone Grammar School, and its environs, would also have been wrapped up in this imperialistic clamour. However, there are some particular developments in the history of MGS which also help to explain the School’s increased sense of pride in its history and its role in the community: firstly, the Old Maidstonian Society was formed in 1884, and has proved to be integral in building a sense of pride and ‘esprit de corps’ among generations of Maidstonians. Secondly, the principle of the Maidstonian Magazine was trialled in 1885 and then became a permanent feature for over a century from December 1890 onwards. Thirdly the school’s identity was further developed by the various school songs, hymns, that its then Music Master, Dr Henniker (front row 2nd right in picture above) wrote. The most famous, and lasting one, ‘Gaudeamus’ was first 4 23 May 2020 performed at the 1908 Speech Day (music written by Dr Henniker and lyrics by the then Headmaster the Reverend CG Duffield). Fourthly, the school celebrated its 350th Anniversary in 1899, the year the Boer War started. So, the Boer War (1899-1902) was viewed by most British subjects, as a just, noble conflict, hence they would want to remember those who served and sacrificed their lives. There were four Old Maidstonians who paid the ultimate price: Major FF Crawford, Army Veterinary Department Trooper HE Hulseberg, BSA Police Regiment Lance Corporal FW Smith, 36th Company Imperial Yeomanry Trooper R Blake, 69th Company Imperial Yeomanry As early as the Christmas 1900 edition of the Maidstonian the idea of a commemoration to the two OMs who had died already, Crawford and Hulseberg, was being mooted, and at the Old Maidstonian Supper, held at the Star Hotel on Saturday December 15th 1900, it was suggested that ‘they should put in the Grammar School a memorial window’. It was believed it would cost about £20 (equivalent to about £2,500 today) and the Old Boys passed round a paper to obtain promises of subscriptions. “He (Mr HJ Day) hoped they would obtain the whole amount that night and it could be then handed over to the Head Master (Reverend CG Duffield) to carry out the scheme as he wished”. In reply, the Head Master preferred that the OMs carried out the memorial scheme and suggested “that if they had enough funds they should also put up a plaque in the school bearing the names of all those OMs who fought in the War”. That evening £15 5 shillings was raised for the project, and the shortfall was quickly accrued by further fund raising, and plans by the elected OM Committee went ahead. Unfortunately two more OMs died in the conflict, but by April 1902, the memorial window (see front cover) was ready. The window was designed by Messr. Burlison and Grylls, of Newman Street, Oxford Street, London, a firm with the highest reputation for artistic workmanship. The figure is that of St George, and the colouring and general treatment of the design had been arranged so as to harmonise as much as possible with the stained glass windows already in position which were the work of the late Mr William Morris’ firm. The July 1902 Maidstonian quoted 5 23 May 2020 an article from the South Eastern Gazette about the unveiling of the window: “The School Head Master stated how the figure represented in the window was that of St George, the Patron Saint of England. St George had been chosen by Christian nations as the symbol of Christian fortitude. Since the 8th century he had been looked upon as the Patron Saint of soldiers, and since the 13th century he had been honoured as the Patron Saint of England. His name was used as a battle cry in the Crusades; and he was chosen by Edward III as the Patron of the highest Order of Knighthood in England.

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