100 Years of Remembrance

100 years of Remembrance

Read our feature on the last ten fallen Old Tonbridgians at: tonbridgeconnect.org/news

In November, Tonbridge School joined local communities across the globe remembering the First World War generation who served, sacrificed and changed our world.

2018 marked the centenary of the Armistice that brought World War One to an end, and to commemorate this significant year, the school’s Remembrance Service featured a special tribute to the final ten Old Tonbridgians who lost their lives during the Great War. The men were honoured in the form of life-sized silhouettes, installed in the Chapel cloisters as part of Royal British

Legion’s national ‘There But Not There’ campaign. Their stories, which you can read about on our website, are an important reminder of the great sacrifice made by the 716 Old Tonbridgians who gave their life to the cause, over the course of both World Wars.

Leading Hand, Harry Grant (PS3) stands before 'There But Not There' silhouettes

Attended by boys, parents, staff and friends, the service featured hymns, readings and moving performances by the school choir. There was also a procession of service medals won by two Old Tonbridgians, 2nd Lieut. George E.L. Cressey and 2nd Lieut. Edward J. Norman, both killed in action in the Great War, and a former Headmaster, Lieut. Harold N.P. Sloman.

The service address was given by The Lord Lisvane KCB DL, President of the OT Society and Master of the Skinners’ Company, who told the congregation that his grandfather and father had served in the First and Second World Wars, respectively. “While this year is one of special commemoration, remembrance can’t just be an annual event,” he said. “The legacy of sacrifice is with us every day and should be just as fresh as the day that sacrifice was made.”

He added: “Remembrance should spark in all of us a determination to seek the path of peace, no matter what the provocation.”

Renault FT Tank on display outside of Chapel

A Renault FT First World War tank was also on display on Remembrance Day. Restored by the Weald Foundation and originally built in 1918, the tank had seen active service in the final months of the conflict and bore a series of machine gun bullet holes in its side.

By the end of the Great War 415 Tonbridgians had died, roughly the size of the school at that time. About half of Tonbridgians killed were 24 years of age or under, and half of them were aged 20 or under. Most of them were junior officers in the Army. The Second World War claimed the lives of 301 Tonbridgians.

To find out more about Tonbridge and the Great War, visit our online archives at: www.tonbridgeschoolheritage.co.uk