A significant number of places were taken by girls who had lost their fathers. In 1901, during the Boer War, 54 out of 120 pupils were fatherless. During the early decades of the school, girls came from all over the empire. A particularly large group was those born in India, whether to officers of the Indian Army or British Army units stationed there. When the Indian Army was disbanded in 1947, the school lost an important source of financial support.