The Lydiard Archives

New

New items added each week!

Photograph of popular head Mrs Coleman & pupils of Hook School, 1958/9. Interviewed by Lord Bolingbroke for the job, she was at the school for 20 years. Search Hook School.

New items added each week!

Letter from Dorsetshire Regiment to Vernon St.John, Vsct. Bolingbroke, 1917

Letter from Dorsetshire Regiment to Vernon St.John, Vsct. Bolingbroke, 1917
Hidden Content, Images, Videos and Documents

We hope you are enjoying browsing The Lydiard Archives. Sign up for free access to the entire contents of the Archives and receive regular updates on new collections and featured artefacts. We are uploading content daily, and we look forward to welcoming you to our free community.

Login Sign up

Letter to Vernon St.John, 6th Viscount Bolingbroke, from Lieutenant S. Maitland Jackson of 3rd Training Reserve Battalion of the Dorsetshire Regiment, Rugeley Camp, Staffordshire.

In the letter, Maitland Jackson commends Lord Bolingbroke for his decision to enlist as a Private soldier rather than joining the Officer ranks as expected for a man of his station.

'the splendid example you have so nobly set is of inestimable value, as regards its effect upon the men of the ranks'.

Both Vernon's elder brothers, Henry and Charles, joined the army as Officers. Their younger brother's decision to enter as a Private was highly unusual. The letter from Maitland Jackson, which only came to light in 2023, provides a fascinating insight into how the regiment viewed his decision.

Information on Rugeley Camp courtesy of Staffordshire County Council:

Rugeley Camp was one of two army training camps constructed in the Autumn of 1914 in the Cannock Chase area. When completed, they could hold up to 40,000 men at one time and trained upwards of 500,000 men to prepare them for trench warfare on the Western Front. They had all their own amenities including a church, post offices and a bakery as well as amenity huts where the troops could buy coffee and cakes, or play billiards.

The letter remained in the viscount's possession until his death in 1974 and was generously gifted to the Friends of Lydiard Park by his former friend, Anne Barr, in 2023.




Year:
1917
Type:
Letter
Owner:
Friends of Lydiard Park
Copyright:
Friends of Lydiard Park
Credit:
Pete Melsom
Last updated on:
Friday 16th August 2024

Items of Interest

Photograph of Vernon St.John, 6th Viscount Bolingbroke, in army uniform, c1917
Photograph of Vernon St.John, 6th Viscount Bolingbroke, in army uniform, c1917

Photograph of Vernon Henry St.John, 6th Viscount B...

Photograph of Vernon St.John, 6th Viscount Bolingbroke, in army uniform, c1917
Photograph of Vernon St.John, 6th Viscount Bolingbroke, in army uniform, c1917

Photograph of Vernon Henry St.John, 6th Viscount B...

Photograph of Lance Corporal Vernon St.John, 6th Vsct Bolingbroke, 1918
Photograph of Lance Corporal Vernon St.John, 6th Vsct Bolingbroke, 1918

Studio portrait of Vernon Henry St.John, 6th Visco...

Photograph of Lance Corporal Vernon St.John, 6th Vsct Bolingbroke, 1918
Photograph of Lance Corporal Vernon St.John, 6th Vsct Bolingbroke, 1918

Studio portrait of Vernon Henry St.John, 6th Visco...

Photograph of Captain Henry Mildmay St.John, 1917
Photograph of Captain Henry Mildmay St.John, 1917

Studio portrait of Captain Henry Mildmay St.John (...

Photograph of Captain Henry Mildmay St.John, 1917
Photograph of Captain Henry Mildmay St.John, 1917

Studio portrait of Captain Henry Mildmay St.John (...

Photographs (2) of Lieutenant Charles St.John, c1915-1918
Photographs (2) of Lieutenant Charles St.John, c1915-1918

Studio portraits of Lieutenant Charles Reginald St...

Photographs (2) of Lieutenant Charles St.John, c1915-1918
Photographs (2) of Lieutenant Charles St.John, c1915-1918

Studio portraits of Lieutenant Charles Reginald St...