Stop Press News: Carol and Michael Weaver's new book "When Duty Calls..." which celebrates 100 yrs of Woodbridge School CCF is now on sale - Click here
The Old Woodbridgians Website
BRINGING OLD WOODBRIDGIANS TOGETHER
The site for former pupils, staff and friends of Woodbridge School, Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK.
Click 'What's On' for the Calendar of Events for 2010
The 2010 OW Magazine has now been despatched to all OWs on our database and once again is a triumph by our esteemed Registrar, Michael Weaver. It is packed with news of OWs far and wide as well as information about this year's OW Reunion Dinner in September and a host of other articles to boot.
It was decided, to save postage and ensure that OWs receive both publications together, to mail it with The Bridge which has now been done. You should therefore now have both publications to hand and if this is not the case then there is incomplete address details on the database. Please contact us straight away via the 'contact us' page and we will send your copies asap. Remember - both publications are Free to all OWs.
When Duty Calls.
In 1908, when the Liberal Government called for the setting up of Officers’ Training Corps in the private schools of Britain, Woodbridge School was one of the first to respond and a cadet force of 30 pupils was formed. The School was only one hundred strong in those days. The uniforms and guns arrived early in 1909 and so began an unbroken tradition of training and preparation for leadership in the Nation’s military forces.
Carol and Michael Weaver’s book, ‘When Duty Calls,’ traces the narrative of cadet activity at the School in the century that followed. The first OTC graduates served in the trenches of World War I and in Gallipoli and a chapter is reserved for their poignant letters home. Old Woodbridgian Arnold Gyde was one of the first men to step ashore in France with the British Expeditionary Force and his exploits were ultimately recorded in an autobiographical account, ‘Contemptible,’ an important document in our understanding of the Mons campaign. Harold Rosher was another former pupil whose remarkable bravery with the Royal Naval Air Service deserved publication in an unique volume.
The cadet concept survived the Great War and the recession and in 1938 we find the pupils digging trenches and bomb shelters and former OTC members preparing to face the threat of Nazi Germany. In 1939 Old Woodbridgians again faced the call to duty and P.R.Walker distinguished himself by shooting down the first Messerschmitt 110. Anthony Tuke and Donald Gibson played key roles in what was the last traditional sea battle of modern times, The Battle of Matapan. The future was the aircraft carrier. The stories of these warriors and many others are related in the volume.
After the War the introduction of peacetime conscription made the existence of a school cadet force a vital component of modern education. Several OWs comment that military service held no horrors for them - they had been boarders in School House during the years of rationing! Gliding and flying were extremely popular in the post-war era and OW President Kenneth Bailey gives a colourful account of the flying experiences. The 1960s provided the biggest threat to the continued existence of a cadet force at school, now the CCF. Attitudes were changing fast and a new generation of youngsters opposed the compulsory element of uniformed service at school.
Remarkably, the last forty years has seen the most vigorous era of cadet life with adventure training camps and trips to bases across Europe. The admission of girl cadets in the 1970s put Woodbridge School in the vanguard of cadet activity nationally. Nearly three hundred cadets serve in the CCF in these centenary years, and RAF and Naval Sections widen still the opportunities available for young people. A number of Old Woodbridgians serve in the forces at this time and ‘When Duty Calls’ went to press the bravery of Alex Barclay who gained the Military Cross in Afghanistan, could be recorded in its final pages.
The authors claim that the volume represents the fullest account of any school cadet force in Britain and it certainly reflects the changing nature of a dynamic century. It is noticeable too that OWs turn up in all corners of the globe - atomic bombs tests in the Pacific, the conflicts in Korea and Malaya, Iraq and Afghanistan, even at the death of Rudolf Hess in Spandau Prison.
Humour is not neglected in the pages of ‘When Duty Calls’, and a section of personal experiences reveal the vital importance of seeing the less than serious side of military life.
Carol and Michael Weaver both taught History at Woodbridge School and this is their fifth monograph. Michael Weaver is the Registrar of the Old Woodbridgians and monitors the charity archives in the old schoolroom, Seckford Street.
Obtain ‘When Duty Calls’ from Michael Weaver, Woodbridge School. The cost is £10.00, postage free. Cheques may be made payable to ’The Old Woodbridgians Society,’ Please indicate whether you would like a signed copy.
STOP PRESS NEWS: We're trialling a new photo album system. Click on the 'Photo Gallery' link on the left of this page and take a look. Let us know what you think.
PREVIOUS EVENTS
OW Dinner, OW Match, and Sekforde Cycle Ride reports and photographs are now on the OW Society page for your perusal. Read all about it, see what you missed and make sure you don't miss the event next year!!
Other news items on School and OWs are on the Editorial page. Have a look, we'll add more soon.
The Spring Magazine 2010 is now ready to go.
But have we got your up to date address? Avoid disappointment. There's plenty of excitement in the new magazine - news of hundreds
of OWs from across the world. You'll
be in it if you have sent in your information. What are you doing
these days? Which OWs do you know about? Have you
any interesting memories? Let us know.
Website - President Ken is now well established as joint-editor of the website and we are working with renewed efforts to update it and to add new material. Already we have added more memories to the OW Memories section and there are more to come.
Among new features look at
the staff section where we are adding a few famous names as
fast as we can. We've got PR on at
last, with the fulsome valediction paid to him in the 1978
'Woodbridgian.' Also look up our new feature 'The Woodbridgian' -
which is a detailed account of the Woodbridgians Magazine
from 1882 to the present day and how it reflects the changing
nature of the school in particular and education in general.
Click What's On for the Calendar of Events for 2010
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