Two of the fifty-five Blues who died in conflict in 1917 have been chosen as ‘Varsity Match Icons’ for the 2017 Varsity Match fixture: John Argentine Campbell who attended Fettes College and Trinity College, Cambridge, and Old Shirburnian, Cecil Douglas Baker: ‘Nor love thy life nor hate; but what thou liv’st Live well – how … Read more
‘Summer Hols begin’ wrote the Rev. H.R. King in his diary on Tuesday, 31 July 1917. The Rev. Henry Robinson King (1855-1935), a master at Sherborne School, kept a daily diary in which he recorded the weather, world events (in red), and his own activities. The previous day had been fine until the evening when … Read more
Experiences in the Royal Flying Corps by Lieutenant Antony Henry Whitford-Hawkey (1899-1918) (The Green, September 1913-20 June 1917). Published in The Shirburnian, November 1917. When I left Sherborne to join the R.F.C. last summer term just before Commemoration I little thought what lay before me. I had visions of getting into a ‘bus and doing loops, … Read more
Between the 27 May and 4 June 1940, 338,226 British and allied soldiers were evacuated from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk. Codenamed ‘Operation Dynamo’, the evacuation was the mastermind of Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay. ‘The Ferryman’, a patriotic poem written by Sir Alan Patrick Herbert, celebrated the achievements of Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay and the … Read more
The 21 July 2017 sees the UK release of Christopher Nolan’s film, Dunkirk, starring Kenneth Branagh, Tom Hardy, Mark Rylance and Harry Styles. Watch the Warner Bros. official trailer on youtube. Between the 27 May and 4 June 1940, 338,226 British and allied soldiers were evacuated during ‘Operation Dynamo’ from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk. However, … Read more
On 1 July 2016, Sherborne School will commemorate eight of its former pupils who died in the fighting on the first day of the Battle of the Somme. Henry Robinson King, a Classics teacher at Sherborne School, described the 1 July 1916 in his diary as ‘Cold and objectionable till 4, then fine. Watched some … Read more
Saturday 8 March 2014, 2.30pm, Roman Catholic Hall, Westbury, Sherborne, Dorset. Drawing on the rich archive of Sherborne School Patrick Francis will explore the impact of the Great War on the School community. Over 220 young men were to lay down their lives during those terrible years which saw war on a truly industrial scale. … Read more
Recent publications to use material from the School archives include: Patrick Francis, Vivat Shirburnia: Sherborne School and the Great War, 1914-1918 [available May 2014]. Ann Clark (ed.), The Sherborne Almshouse Register 1437-1866 (Dorset Record Society, 2013). Anthony Seldon & David Walsh, Public Schools and the Great War (Pen and Sword Books, 2013). Nicholas Shakespeare, Priscilla: … Read more