Past pupils and staff of Fonthill School, Saint Hill, East Grinstead who served in the First World War. Fonthill was first established in 1808 as a rectory-based school for young gentlemen in Fonthill Gifford, Wiltshire. It was owned by the Radcliffe family, first known as Radcliffe's before becoming Fonthill in ca 1820, and remained in Wiltshire until a death in the family meant the living in Wiltshire had to be given up. A new location was found at Rockwood Park in East Grinstead, and the school moved there in 1886. Fonthill was a prep school for the children of the aristocracy and wealthy landowners, professional families and industrialists. It sent many pupils to Eton, Harrow, Winchester, Wellington, Rugby, Charterhouse and other public schools. It also prepared boys for careers in the Royal Navy and Army and sent a number of boys to the naval colleges. Fonthill had many well-decorated and well-known pupils who fought in WWI. Of these, many survived to have successful careers in public life. Sadly, more than sixty men died. These included young men who had foregone university studies or early careers to serve their country. The youngest to die was Vernon Hector Corbyn, a naval midshipman who was 16 when he died on HMS Cressy in September 1914. Lord Rothermere's sons Vere and Vyvyan, whose deaths are commemorated on a tablet inside the entrance to IWM London, and their close friends Neville Woodroffe and the Hon. Henry Palmer Howard were four poignant young deaths. The Radcliffes lost three family members, as did the Selwyns. This community brings together some school-related information about as many Old Fonthillians as possible in the hopes that this will be of interest to family researchers. Fonthill Lodge, the surviving school in the Fonthill educational trust, closed in 2011. Fonthill School had already closed in 1985. If you would like information about family members who attended Fonthill, contact me at [email protected]
Created by: , Ann43644
Born 1878
Died 1967
British Army Major Royal Fusiliers 3rd Battalion
Born 1864
Died 1929
British Army 3rd Cavalry Divisional School
British Army Second Lieutenant 4th Reserve Dragoons
British Army Lieutenant Colonel Reserve Regiment of Cavalry 4th Battalion
Born 1887
Died 1916
British Army Captain London Regiment
British Army Captain London Regiment 1/5 lond Battalion
Born 1895
Died 1963
British Army Second Lieutenant Royal Field Artillery Territorial Force
British Army Second Lieutenant Royal Flying Corps
Born 1891
Died 1971
British Army Lieutenant Rifle Brigade
British Army Second Lieutenant Rifle Brigade 11th Battalion
British Army Acting Captain King's Royal Rifle Corps
…
Born 1878
Died 1953
British Army Colonel Brigadier General Staff
British Army Second Lieutenant King's Royal Rifle Corps
British Army Lieutenant King's Royal Rifle Corps
…
Born 1871
Died 1918
British Army Captain Somerset Light Infantry 2/4th Battalion
British Army Corporal Somerset Light Infantry
British Army Captain Somerset Light Infantry
Born 1873
Died 1952
British Army Remount Department
British Army Major Royal Army Veterinary Corps
Born 1883
Died 1914
Royal Navy Naval Cadet HMS Brittania
Royal Navy Midshipman HMS Ramilles
Royal Navy Naval Cadet HMS Ramilles
…
Born 1896
Died 1949
British Army Second Lieutenant King's Royal Rifle Corps
Born 1893
Died 1944
British Army Second Lieutenant Liverpool Regiment
British Army Captain Liverpool Regiment
Born 1891
Died 1971
British Army Second Lieutenant Irish Guards
British Army Lieutenant Irish Guards
Born 1892
Died 1981
British Army Second Lieutenant Gordon Highlanders
British Army Captain Gordon Highlanders
British Army
…
Born 1877
Died 1962
British Army Major Army Service Corps
Born 1867
Died 1939
British Army Captain Northumberland Yeomanry
Born 1883
Died 1918
British Army 2863 London Regiment (Queen Victoria's Rifles) 9th Battalion
British Army Second Lieutenant Territorial Force 81st Provisional Battalion
British Army Lieutenant Royal Warwickshire Regiment 6th Battalion
Born 1888
Died 1957
British Army Lieutenant Lancers
British Army Major Lancers
British Army Lt-Col. Lancers
…
Born 1871
Died 1934
British Army Temporary Brigadier General Royal Artillery
British Army Major Royal Field Artillery
Born 1883
Died 1968
Royal Navy Commander
Royal Navy Lieutenant-Commander