infed.org | Revd. Philip (Tubby) Clayton and Toc H search Revd. Philip (Tubby) Clayton and Toc H Revd. Philip (Tubby) Clayton and Toc H. Philip (‘Tubby’) Clayton was Vicar of All Hallows by the Tower. However, he was best known for his work initially as an army chaplain during the First World War and in particular the establishment of Talbot House a unique place of rest and sanctuary for British troops. After the war the spirit and intent of Talbot House became expressed through the Toc H movement. We explore Philip Clayton’s contribution. contents: introduction · talbot house · toc h · conclusion · appendix – the four points of the toc h compass · further reading and bibliography · links · how to cite this article Philip Thomas Byard Clayton (1885-1972), known to his friends as Tubby, was born December 12, 1885 in Queensland. At the age of two his parents returned to England. Educated at St Paul’s School in London and then at Exeter College, Oxford, he gained a First Class Degree in Theology.

While reading for orders under the Dean of Westminster he became involved with the boys’ club work of the Oxford Medical Mission in Bermondsey. John Stansfeld (‘The Doctor’), the founder of the Mission, had, according to Philip Clayton, ‘passed like the Pied Piper, through the ‘Varsity and bidden us to the boys’ clubs at Dockhead, Gordon and Decima’ (quoted by Baron 1952: 206). He worked there one night a week, joining a remarkable group of workers that included Alec Paterson and Barclay ‘Barkis’ Baron (who was later to join the central staff of Toc H and edit the Toc H magazine). Talbot House In 1910 Philip ‘Tubby’ Clayton became a curate to St Mary’s Portsea, where he remained until early in 1915. At this point he went to France as an Army Chaplain. In December 1915 he opened a soldier’s rest-house behind Allied lines in Belgium at Gasthuisstraat in autumn 1915 (assisted by fellow chaplain – Neville Talbot – another of the ‘Doctor’s men’).

This house – Talbot House (or ‘Toc H’ in signaller’s jargon) – with its chapel in the hop loft at the top of the building, was experienced as a unique place of fellowship and sanctuary. It shared some similarities with the work of the YMCA huts that appeared in great numbers during the War. However, it also had something unique, something that flowed from the character of Clayton and the spirit of brotherhood he fosters. Friendships were formed across ranks – and many discovered a reality in religion for the first time (Rice and Prideaux-Brune 1990). The House remained open until spring 1918 when German advances brought it directly into the battle zone. Such was the effect of the house, that a number of those who had passed through it wanted to re-create its atmosphere and ethos in peacetime. As Rice and Prideaux-Brune have commented it was two particular aspects that people want to preserve: Firstly, there was the fellowship of Toc H, something deeper than the much-talked-of ‘comradeship of the trenches’. People found they could create real friendships with those who, in other circumstances, they would never have met.

And they realized that such friendships could transform society. One of them wrote afterwards: ‘To conquer hate would be to end the strife of all the ages, but for men to know one another is not difficult, and it is half the battle’. And then there was the impact of that Upper Room. The chapel was Anglican, but it was not narrowly denominational. The house was Christian, but it offered a welcome to all who entered it. And so those who entered it wanted to preserve a spirit which would overcome the hostility between the different Christian traditions, and would offer a place, within a Christian community, to those who had no clear Christian beliefs. (1990: 10) It is easy to see why those involved with Oxford and Bermondsey such as Barclay Baron and Alexander Paterson would be part of such efforts. (Paterson and ‘other Bermondsey friends’ who were in services visited the House when they were close by). The ideals ran in parallel with their own concerns in Bermondsey. Toc H Immediately after the War Philip ‘Tubby’ Clayton helped to prepare men for theological college at the Ordination Test School at Knutsford, Cheshire.

Many soldiers had committed themselves to ordination during the hostilities. However, Philip Clayton had set himself the task of bringing about the rebirth of Toc H not as an ex-servicemen organization but an attempt to cultivate and sustain fellowship and an inclusive Christianity for future generations see Prideaux-Brune 1983). The earliest statement of the aims of Toc H was drawn up by Tubby Clayton, the Rev ‘Dick’ Sheppard of St Martin-in-the-Fields, and Alexander Patterson in 1920. The four points of the compass (as they became known) stressed: 1. FRIENDSHIP: To love widely. 2. SERVICE: To build bravely. 3. FAIRMINDEDNESS: To think fairly. 4. THE KINGDOM OF GOD: To witness humbly. The first Toc H House to open after the war was in Kensington in 1919 (Talbot House Mark 1). Within a year other houses opened in London, Manchester (Toc H Mark 4) and Southampton (Toc H Mark 5). (It became customary to refer to the different houses as ‘marks’).

As many people were often not within easy travelling distance of a house (mark), a network of local groups began to emerge (the first being recognized in 1921 in Cheltenham). Toc H was to grow into major movement developing a range of local groups and establishing a number of houses. It also spread to a number of other countries. The spirit of the movement was captured by Alec Paterson, speaking to the first birthday festival of the movement in 1922: What is Toc H? I can only say that it is just a gathering of young men who seek to rebuild a broken world with the mortar of comradeship and the bricks, the solid bricks, of personal service…. That is the first thing – that Toc H shall provide places where we can learn comradeship. Having learned that, we shall see enter those places the spirit of personal service, which is the negation of selfishness and boredom and the only sure road to happiness and knowledge…. It shall face fearlessly and without partisanship the great economic problems of the day, and help to solve the riddles of labour, industry and commerce. Toc H shall go far across the seas.

It shall, by comradeship and service, bring peace to those places where there is still bitterness, and light to those places where there is still darkness. My fellow-members, ours is a task that knows no limits. It is not an easy task, but it is not one beyond our endurance. There is no true comradeship without surrender, no true service without sacrifice. We hope to carry on a holy and ceaseless war against pride and snobbery wherever we meet them…. In the spirit of Jesus Christ we are joined together, and we shall go forward, setting our course not by the waves but by the stars. (Quoted by Baron 1952: 209) As the Toc H movement grew, so the work developed. ‘Projects’ such as work camps for young people began emerge – and various efforts at developing different forms of youth provision. A women’s league was formed. Within the movement there was an emphasis upon passing on the ethos and atmosphere of comradeship and service to next generation. Toc H was also a significant force for ecumenicalism and social action by the churches.

By the time of the Second World it was in a position to run a network of services’ clubs Philip ‘Tubby’ Clayton remained active within the movement. In 1922 he was asked to be Vicar of All Saints by the Tower – where he stayed for forty years. He worked hard to bring new life into the church and campaigned for environmental improvement (this resulted, in part, in the establishment of the Tower Hill Improvement Trust in 1932). During the 1920s Clayton was also active in travelling throughout the country (and the Empire) helping to launch and sustain local branches of Toc H. In 1932 he went to west Africa and was deeply moved by his experience of leper colonies. On his return he set about encouraging volunteers (many of whom were members of Toc H) to volunteer for unpaid work with lepers. During the Second World War he spent a great deal of time at sea in his role as Chaplain to the Anglo-Iranian Line. In 1940 All Hallows was bombed and required rebuilding.

In 1962 Philip ‘Tubby’ Clayton resigned as Vicar but remained on Tower Hill until his death in December 1972, just after his 87th birthday Conclusion Today Toc H is not as big as it was – but there are still 150 Toc H groups and 55 projects. There is also still a network of houses – Talbot Centres – that offer a range of facilities, often oriented to activity breaks and residentials. The original Talbot House at Poperinge is open both as a residential and conference house and as a museum. Philip ‘Tubby’ Clayton could not of imagined when he first opened Talbot House at Poperinge that its spirit would develop as it did. The ‘innkeeper’ of Talbot House set in train a unique movement that impacted not only on its members but on the church through its ecumenicalism and concern with social action, and upon significant numbers of young people. Appendix: TOC H the four points of the compass Revised in 1936 and again in 1967, to read as follows: 1. FRIENDSHIP: To love widely.

To provide members with opportunities to develop a spirit of understanding and reconciliation. Members are called on:- To welcome all in friendship, To lessen by habit of thought, word and deed the prejudices which divide people, To see the needs of others as their own. 2. SERVICE: To build bravely. To enable members, with their varying gifts, to serve their fellows. Members are called on:- To give personal service, To study local and international conditions and their effect on others, and by their example to challenge their neighbours to seek the way of Christ. 3. FAIRMINDEDNESS: To think fairly. To bring to members the knowledge and experience of others. Members are called on:- To listen always to the views of others, To find their own convictions, To influence public opinion so that conflict may be lessened by sympathetic and intelligent understanding. 4. THE KINGDOM OF GOD: To witness humbly. To work for a better world through the example of friendship, service and fairmindedness. Members are called on:- To acknowledge the spiritual nature of man, To practise the Christian way of life, To help the truth prevail. Further reading and bibliography Clayton, P. T.

(1919) Tales of Talbot House – : everyman’s club in Poperinghe of Ypres, 1915-1918, London: Chatto and Windus. Clayton, P. T. B (1960) Talbot House to Tower Hill. An anthology of the writings of the Reverend P. B.-‘Tubby’-Clayton Compiled by John Durham, London: Toc H. Prideaux-Brune, K. (1983) A Living Witness – personal memoir of Philip Clayton, Wendover: Toc H. An extract from the introduction can be found at: . Rice, J. and Prideaux-Brune, K. (1990) Out of A Hop Loft. Seventy-five years of Toc H, London: Darton, Longman and Todd. Toc H (1935) The Story of Toc H: A venture of youth, London: Toc H.

Links Talbot House – a living museum Acknowledgement: The picture of Talbot House is by Jan Decorte and is reproduced here under a Creative Commons licence (Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 Generic). Statue of Tubby Claytonfounder of Talbot House at Poperinge by Filibertus. Sourced from Wikimedia and reproduced under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. How to cite this article: Smith, M. K. (2004) ‘Philip “Tubby” Clayton and TocH’, the encyclopedia of informal education. [ . Retrieved insert date] Trenches on the Web - Special: Tubby Clayton and the Story of Toc-H Tubby Clayton and the Story of Toc-H Talbot House as it stands today. Color photos courtesy of the Toc-H charity Sketches of Battle of Arras survivors by Sir William Orpen Robin is a journalist currently working in Hong Kong. He has special interest in the Great War and Ypres in particular. See also: Tubby Clayton and the Story of Toc-H By Robin Bowman The first time the Rev.

Philip Clayton visited the little Belgian town of Poperinge, one inky night in the autumn of 1914, he turned the wrong way out of the railway station and missed the place altogether. After half an hour's walk he realised his mistake: he was heading along the main road to Ypres along with hundreds of British troops for whom 'Pop' (as they universally called the town) was their main forward base. It was an inauspicious start for the man whose name would become synonymous with Pop's Talbot House where many thousands of Commonwealth troops visited in search of solace, company, and a sense of fun. Welcome Retreat For many of these visitors, on their way to the killing fields of Ypres, it would be their last taste of anything like home. Today, Poperinge is pretty and prosperous and often overshadowed by the great historical significance of Ypres, no more than 10kms down the road. But when Clayton arrived, it had a wholly different look.

From the autumn of 1914 onwards - excluding a short hiatus during the first part of October 1914 when the town was captured by the Germans - Poperinge was the assembly point for tens of thousands of mainly British, Canadian, Australian and Indian troops on their way to and from the bloody Ypres salient. The huge, transient military population was swollen by refugees fleeing Ypres and surrounding villages, and the town's railway station became one of the busiest on the Western Front. In the small square, overlooked by the graceful, Gothic Stadhuis, troops, lorries and mules converged in an unending morass. In 1915, when Clayton arrived for the second time, he noted 'a canteen in the square' and beyond that nothing "but refugee shops, bright behind their rabbit-wire windows, with their eternal display of 'real Ypres lace', untrustworthy souvenirs, and still more untrustworthy wrist-watches." Yet beyond that there was a lot more than 'nothing'. Estaminets and simple restaurants sprang up everywhere and provided a good living for many.

Wealthier residents had long since left for safer areas of France, but those who stayed were busy running what were often thriving businesses. Troops had money to spend and were desperate for R&R. Clayton describes one 'combined pastry cook and brewery concern' which was 'said to have made 5,000 pounds clear profit during four months' - a veritable fortune in those days! In 1915 the Rev. Neville Talbot, senior chaplain of the British 6th Division, wanted a house which he could turn into a church club. In that same year, the owner of an old hop house, which had been hit several times by artillery shells in what was then called Rue de l'Hopital, fled the town for a safer destination. The padre persuaded the army to rent the house and in charge was put the Rev. Clayton - a fat, round little man who wore large, black-rimmed glasses; a short, substantial figure, an innocent expression on a kindly face. Captain Leonard Browne, who knew him well, takes up the description: '..a living embodiment of Mr. Chesterton's famous Father Brown.

Clothing was always a trial - buttons would persist in coming off, breeches would gape at the knees, shirt cuffs would wear out.' Clayton was a figure of serious devotion - and serious fun. Nicknamed 'Tubby' by all who knew him and of him, Clayton arrived from the British HQ of Montreuil and took charge of Talbot House which opened as a sanctuary for all ranks on December 11, 1915. He lost no time in turning it into a pub without booze. It was a club for Everyman where troops of all ranks could relax and enjoy a brief respite from the horrors of the Front Line. One of the house's most famous features was its tranquil garden. But to Tubby, and the many men who passed through, the most important area was the Upper Room where the chapel resided, in what was said to be the old hop attic. 25,000 men are recorded as having visited it. The club was named Talbot House in memory of Neville Talbot's brother Lt. Gilbert Talbot who was killed at Hooge on July 30, 1915. His grave is still found in nearby Sanctuary Wood Cemetery.

But to the soldiers of the day, Talbot House was always 'Toc-H' - formed from Talbot House's initials translated into signallers' parlance. Today the attic chapel is still preserved and is perhaps the most poignant aspect of Toc-H. According to the sketchy records kept by the house, no fewer than five men who later won VCs took Communion there. The chapel was strangely constructed. Because of a series of warnings that the attic was unsafe for more than a few men at a time, it was designed so that men faced each other with the altar at one end, leaving the centre of the room - the weakest part - free from heavy weight. The attic chapel at Toc-H An old carpenter's bench found abandoned in the garden became an altar, the appropriateness of which was not lost on Tubby Clayton. For many men, a simple service in the attic of Toc-H became their way of making peace with whatever God they had perhaps long abandoned. After all, for most, the next appointment was with the hell of the Ypres salient where the life-expectancy of an officer was ten weeks. In such circumstances rank mattered little.

One moving note by an unknown soldier written on the 29th March 1917 and recorded by Tubby in his Tales of Talbot House sums up this sense of reckoning: 'Will you pray very earnestly for me that I may have strength given to me to do that which is right and to make an effort to help others; not so much by what I say, but by my whole life. I have wandered away very far, but I want to put things right; and the prayers of Talbot House will mean much to me.' For others, the inspiration of Toc-H verged on the miraculous. One doctor-colonel, awarded a bar to his DSO for the incident he describes, wrote in the understated fashion of the day: 'I shall never forget a certain Service in Talbot House. The sequel to it was the successful carrying out of a job of picking up and carrying wounded which lasted some days, and appeared next door to impossible. Incidentally I never expected to see the finish of it personally. Everything went right in the most remarkable way and arrangements that I made when hardly able to think fitted into each other with a perfection that my brain could never have achieved.

What I regarded as doomed to failure involving many besides myself turned out a success which amazed me. I saw many strange things during the War, but that has left a mark which I can rely on remaining. I shall never believe again that a duty is impossible. I got a Bar to a DSO over it, but few people would understand if I told them how I got it in Talbot House.' But Toc-H was also full of the rather innocent humour of the day. Signs were hung throughout the building to bring a smile to the faces of the troops who entered. 'All rank abandon ye who enter here' - a twist to the sign above Hell in Dante's Inferno. And: 'If you are in the habit of spitting on the carpet at home, please spit here.' In the summer of 1916, a few weeks before the start of the Somme campaign, the house became overwhelmed by visitors and the solution as Tubby puts it was to 'bomb the officers out'. Almost as soon as this took place, however, British, as well as Canadian, Australian and Indian troops were sent in their tens of thousands southward to be slaughtered on the Somme.

Pop became, for a while at least, part of a quiet sector. But Toc-H soon became busy again as fighting around Ypres resumed. Men sprawled in the garden to sunbathe, diverted their minds in the well-stocked library, played cards and attended raucous musical evenings. One other name deserves inclusion in the story of Talbot House - that of the hilarious and kind-hearted cockney No 239, Pte. Pettifer, A, 1st The Buffs (Hussars), otherwise known to all and sundry, including the children of Poperinge, as 'The General.' He was the one full-time member of staff at Toc-H. Pettifer was, to coin a quaint old phrase, a rough diamond with a heart of gold. During his brief spells as a civilian before the war, Pettifer drove a cart around the streets of south Hackney in London. When war came he rejoined his old regiment, The Buffs, leaving, as Clayton puts it, 'his Mrs.

with one less dinner to see to and the nibs without their Sunday escort.' Nothing much impressed him during his first year of 'action' except the occasion while on guard duty when he challenged and refused to allow entry to the brigadier. By November, 1915, Pettifer's regiment had been reduced to 28 men and a 500 strong draft arrived. As Pettifer describes it, these men were selected from 900 hopefuls by means of the following orders.... 'Roman Catholics, one pace to your front. 'Church of England, stand fast. 'Other religions, one pace to the rear.' The RCs were drafted into Irish regiments, the Nonconformists into Welsh formations and the 500 who stood fast became Hussars. Pettifer was a Buff like the 500 selected and, as Tubby Clayton describes them, they may have had no doubts about their religious allegiance officially, but they certainly 'evinced no remarkable churchmanship on their arrival'. What they lacked in terms of religion, however, they made up for in battle.

Tubby goes on to say: 'But they were staunch enough in face of Fritz.' And he retells a conversation between two troops on a 'very bad black evening': "Well, if we're winning this f..... war, God 'elp the losers.' Pettifer rapidly became the Magpie of Toc-H. Clayton describes how he became scared to mention that an item was needed because Pettifer would be out and about wheeling and dealing, or worse, to get that particular item. 'I was, for instance, overheard to say that a carpet for the chapel was most desirable,' writes Clayton. 'Within an hour a carpet had arrived. Enquiry revealed the painful fact that it had come from next door. "They won't be wanting it, sir; they do say the family are in the sou' of France." ' Clayton stood fast on his principles; he takes up the story: "General, I can't say my prayers kneeling on a stolen carpet." Silence hereafter for a space: then a bright idea.

'Well, sir, if yer won't 'ave it in the church, it'll do lovely for yer sitting-room.' When even this brilliant alternative is dismissed as Jesuitical, and the carpet restored to the place it came from, a few days elapse tranquilly. The General scores heavily one morning: 'Yer remember that carpet, sir?' I admit it. 'Well, the ASC 'ave scrounged it now.'" Pettifer also displayed that peculiarly British manner of dealing with anything foreign - raising his voice. As Clayton puts it: 'In foreign society he is equally at his ease, largely because he has eschewed all attempts at their methods of speech, and continues, like so many of the best Englishmen, to regard their inability to understand him as a species of chronic deafness, to be overcome by slower articulation, sedulous repetition and a raising of the voice in utterance. It is certainly amazing what excellent results may be thus obtained.' It was the children of Poperinge who bestowed upon Pettifer the title of 'Le General' for reasons not recorded.

Clayton adds: 'And to many of the old folk as well he has been a benefactor in dark days; wheeling their 'sticks' away to safety, or greatly concerned for the more difficult removal of the bed-ridden. Fancy bed-ridden old, in such a town as this has been!' In 1929 old Talbot House was bought by Lord Wakefield to be preserved. During WW2, before it was occupied by the Germans, the people of Poperinge stripped the house of its contents - including the carpenter's bench and even Tubby Clayton's harmonium - and hid them. By the time Tubby returned for his first post-war visit, everything was back in its place. The Toc-H tradition did not die following the Great War. In 1919, a movement was founded to help men who struggled to find work in 'the land fit for heroes' - the same men who searched, often in vain, for the brotherhood of the trenches. Today Toc-H is part of a large charitable organisation with branches in many countries.

At their foundation, each branch is presented with a lamp, similar to those used in Biblical times, in remembrance of the lamp which burned in the attic chapel of Toc-H where so may men experienced their last moments of tranquillity. There is a visitors' centre at Talbot House, number 43 Gasthuisstraat, and overnight visitors are welcome to stay in the rooms on the second floor (English 1st floor), for a modest sum. Much of the original house is as it was and many of the signs still hang. ©1996 Robin Bowman, All rights reserved. Flanders Fields: Philip Clayton | VISITFLANDERS Flanders Fields Philip Clayton Philip Clayton During World War I, Poperinge was part of a small piece of unoccupied territory in Belgium. Far away from the turmoil of the Ypres’ front, the city became the nervous system of the British war industry.In the centre of this busy city, chaplains Neville Talbot and Philip "Tubby" Clayton opened a club house on December 1915 where no distinction in rank or status was made. For three years all soldiers could enjoy rare moments of peace and entertainment at Talbot House.

Like during the old days, the House still represents a peaceful stop along the course of the "Great War" in Flanders Fields. Philip "Tubby" Clayton Philip Thomas Byard Clayton, nicknamed “Little Tubby” after an overweight uncle, was born in Queensland, Australia in 1885. At the age of 2 his parents returned to England. Educated at St Paul’s School in London and then at Exeter College, Oxford, he gained a First Class Degree in Theology. Tubby started working as a curate at St Mary’s Church in Portsea in 1910 but after seeing a ship full of soldiers sink before his eyes, he felt the desire to become more involved in the war and moved to France in early 1915, where he became an army chaplain in Le Tréport. At the request of Rev.

Neville Talbot, Tubby was soon transferred to the peaceful, unoccupied town of Poperinge, in Flanders, where, on 11th December 1915, the two chaplains inaugurated Talbot House (also known as Toc H), a Christian rest and recreation centre for all of the war’s soldiers, regardless of their rank. Members of Talbot House would gather there for dinner, religious ceremonies, conversation, reading, music, etc. - in fact, anything that would take their minds off the war. Despite the tumultuous times, Talbot House, Poperinge stayed open until the end of 1918. The Toc H movement still continues today, at various centres in the UK and around the world, as a unique place of fellowship and sanctuary. After the war ended, Tubby returned to England, where he published “Tales of Talbot House” and opened several other Toc H houses.

Using his experiences in Flanders to promote the philosophy of the Toc H movement, Clayton also devised the notion of the four cardinal points of the compass to represent the aims of the organisation as Friendship (“To Love Widely” – To welcome all in friendship); Service (“To Build Bravely”– To give personal service); Fair-mindedness (“To Think Fairly” – To always listen to the views of others) and, finally, The Kingdom of God (“To Witness Humbly” – To acknowledge the spiritual nature of all people). In 1922, Tubby became vicar of All Saints by the Tower, an Anglican church in London and in 1965 he was named as an honorary citizen of Poperinge. Tubby Clayton died in 1972, at the age of 87. The original Talbot House , in Poperinge, is used both as a residential and conference house and as a museum. Several rooms were recently renovated, including the chapel, the kitchen and the hall, as well as the garden. Brand new story tablets lead the way, shedding light on some of the events that took place there. Keen visitors can even spend the night.

The History of Toc H In Touch The History of Toc H In 1915 army chaplain the Reverend Phillip Byard (Tubby) Clayton was sent to France and then on to the town of Poperinge in Belgium. Sitting a few miles back from the trenches around Ypres (nowadays known by its Flemish name Ieper), Pops, as the soldiers called it, was a busy transfer station where troops on their way to and from the battlefields of Flanders were billeted. Clayton, universally known as Tubby, was instructed by his senior chaplain, Neville Talbot, to set up some sort of rest house for the troops. Renting a hop merchant's house, temporarily vacated by its owner - to use as his base, Tubby decided to steer away from the traditional church club and set up an Everyman,s House. It was named Talbot House in honour of Gilbert Talbot (Neville's brother) who had been killed earlier in the year. Of course, soldiers being soldiers, Talbot House soon became known by its initials TH, and then, in the radio signallers' parlance of the day as Toc H.

It opened on 11 Dec 1915. Tubby ensured the house was open to men and officers alike. He created a library where soldiers could check-out a book by leaving their cap behind as a ticket. Tubby was a shrewd man and knew that no soldier would dare report for duty without a cap so he always got his books back. There was a large kitchen where much tea was consumed, a beautiful walled garden where men could sit and forget about the war for a while, and eventually, in the attic hop loft, a chapel where regular services were held. It was this chapel or Upper Room which became a focal point for many and was known as the 'heart' of the House. Some had their confirmation here and many attended their first communion in this special place. Sadly, for many, their last communion would be held here. For most of the Great War Talbot House offered an oasis of sanity to the men passing through Poperinge. Not only could they socialise but Tubby also organised debates and concerts. Men could post messages for their missing comrades and hope they too might stop at Talbot House and see them.

What was clear though was that the Talbot House promoted a special feeling of fellowship with those who rested there awhile. When peace came, Tubby was sent to England to find premises for a Test School for soldiers who wished to be ordained (eventually settling on the old Knutsford jail). However, the Fellowship of Talbot House was strong in Tubby's heart and in 1919 he finished his work at Knutsford to return to London. His dream was to open a new Talbot House where the fellowship and camaraderie of the original house could be rediscovered. Gathering around him many of the men who had passed through Talbot House during the war, he set about his plans. The first committee met in November 1919. They decided to drop the name Talbot House as there was already such a place in South London, so they adopted the soldier's nickname of Toc H as the new name for their movement. All those who had visited Talbot House during the war became the Foundation Members (including a small handful of women).

Acquiring a house in Queensgate Place, Knightsbridge, Tubby opened the first of Toc H's hostels which was to be home for men coming to London for work and having nowhere to stay. The house quickly proved too small and within a few weeks they moved to a larger house in Queensgate Gardens which was named, army fashion, (Talbot House) Mark 1. Within the Mark, men could share the fellowship that Tubby so wanted to rekindle. Soon, the Marksmen, as they became known, took to carrying out some form of service in the community near the Mark and so two primary aims of Toc H, Fellowship and Service were being fulfilled. As men left the Marks (there were already three in London by early 1921) and returned to their home towns, they set up groups of Toc H to carry out service locally. After a period of probation a group would be elevated to a branch and (after they were introduced in 1922) granted one of the famous lamps.

The earliest statement of the aims of Toc H was drawn up by Tubby with the Rev 'Dick' Sheppard of St Martin-in-the-Fields, and Alexander (later Sir Alexander) Patterson early in 1920. It was revised in 1936 and again in 1967. It is known as the Four Points of the Compass and is now summarised thus: 1. FRIENDSHIP: To love widely. To provide members with opportunities to develop a spirit of understanding and reconciliation. 2. SERVICE: To build bravely. To enable members, with their varying gifts, to serve their fellows. 3. FAIRMINDEDNESS: To think fairly. To bring to members the knowledge and experience of others. 4. THE KINGDOM OF GOD : To witness humbly. To work for a better world through the example of friendship, service and fair-mindedness. Toc H grew quickly and attracted the patronage of many well known thinkers and socialists of the time (Alexander Paterson, Henry Willink, G. K. Chesterton etc) . As well as delivering a variety of social service, Toc H also debated the great issues of the day.

Through Tubby,s influential contacts it got its foot through the door of many great schools and used this as a means of showing young people the Toc H way. The Prince of Wales was an active supporter and appeared at many annual festivals to light the lamps of new branches and also promoted Toc H when he toured the Dominions. In 1922 Toc H was granted a Royal Charter and in 1925 Toc H Australia held the first World Chain of Light, a 24 hour vigil where lamps are lit around the world. This still goes on today on December 11th/12th. Although Toc H was only open to men, there were a few women who had been nurses in the war and had known Talbot House. Under the leadership of Alison MacFie they established the League of Women Helpers to support Toc H's work. They would gradually take a more active role in the work of Toc H particularly during the Second World War when many of the men were away. They later became Toc H (Women's Section) and eventually merged fully with the men's movement in the early 1970s.

In 1930, thanks to the generosity of Lord Wakefield, one of Tubby's dreams came true when the original Talbot House in Poperinge was bought for the movement. It remains in the hands of the Talbot House Association, an Anglo-Belgian organisation. By the 1930s there were many thousands of members across the world and many hundreds of branches. The work was varied. Tubby was very closely associated with LEPRA and many Toc H men went to work in the leprosy colonies of Africa. Toc H was also one of the key organisations involved in the birth of the National Blood Transfusion service. The Toc H Showmen's and Stockmen's tent became a regular sight at fairgrounds and agricultural shows. It was not just a place to get a cup of tea but also share some of that fellowship Toc H was famous for. Toc H started providing commentaries of football matches for hospital radio. There was little enforced guidance on the branches as to how their service should be expressed and so the variety of work was immense. However, in 1939 things were to change. Like most organisations, many of Toc H's members were called to fight.

Those who were left (along with The League of Women Helpers), turned their attentions to helping the war effort by starting Service Men's Clubs both at home and abroad in the theatre of war. For many future members this would be the way they came to Toc H. When the Second World War ended Toc H started to get back to its bread and butter work. Nevertheless it continued its association with the forces and set up some highly popular servicemen's clubs with the British Army of the Rhine (BAOR) and elsewhere where British servicemen were stationed. Another innovative scheme started soon after the war was the Winant Clayton Volunteers named after Tubby and John Winant (the American Ambassador to Britain during WWII), this is an exchange programme for young Americans and young British people. Although a large and powerful Movement in the 1940s and 1950s, Toc H struggled a little to attract the younger member. So in the late fifties the Project scheme was begun. This asked branches to establish a series of short (weekend) and longer residential projects to which young people could be invited to volunteer. So began another golden period with hundreds of Toc H projects being delivered each year.

It included environmental work and other manual projects; play schemes; and work with the elderly, blind, disabled, carers, deaf, those with mental health problems, disadvantaged children and others through existing institutions and organisations or by providing holidays. In 1962 the women's movement introduced Martha, a motor caravan which travelled the UK carrying out specific community work. This included Operation Landlord where the women literally knocked on people's doors seeking accommodation for overseas students. The branches did not slack either. Whilst some may have adopted the ideas of others and collected spectacles for the Third World or knitted clothes for premature babies, others were more innovative. In Enfield the first ever Talking Newspaper for the Blind was a Toc H project. Toc H padre Chad Varrah went off on his own to start the Samaritans and branches across the country set up flashing light alarm schemes in their boroughs, the homespun precursor of the systems used by many old or vulnerable people today. The early 1970s was a period of change for Toc H. In 1971 the men's and women's movements merged and a new Royal Charter was issued to reflect this.

The project scene was thriving, the BAOR Servicemen's clubs were doing very well and there were still several hundred branches. However, by the end of the twentieth century things were starting to change. Membership was in decline as people grew older and branches were closing. Increased legislation made it less attractive for branches to organise projects. Historically Toc H staff had supported the membership but now activities became increasingly staff led. There were efforts to win contracts to run services for local authorities and attempts to make the fairly extensive property portfolio profitable. However, this was a fundamentally different way of operating for Toc H and though there were successes, ultimately it failed to compete adequately in this way. After several tranches of redundancy, Toc H trustees and members finally accepted that a radical rationalisation was required. This is underway and Toc H expects to emerge from a period of disarray to become a stronger, voluntary Movement still guided by the original ethos founded in Talbot House almost a century ago. Copyright Â© 2010 Toc H. All rights reserved. Toc H is a registered charity no.

211042 and SC045491 The Knollys Rose Ceremony & the Talbot House Rose Toggle navigation The Knollys Rose Ceremony & the Talbot House Rose Thursday, June 11, 2015 — The Knollys Rose Ceremony is held in June each year and is organised by the Company of Watermen and Lightermen of the River Thames. On that day one red rose will be plucked from the garden in Seething Lane and taken to the Mansion House on the altar cushion of All Hallows by the Tower, where it will be presented to the Lord Mayor. This year's Ceremony will take place on Thursday 11 June and it will be the Talbot House Rose that is being presented as part of the centenary year of the opening of Talbot House, Poperinge, Belgium by army chaplain, Tubby Clayton who was also Vicar of All Hallows by the Tower for 40 years and founder of the Toc H Association. The ceremony commemorates an ancient City judgement dating from 1381. Sir Robert Knollys owned a house on Seething Lane. He was sent abroad to fight alongside John of Gaunt.

While he was away, his wife is reputed to have become annoyed with the chaff dust blowing from threshing ground opposite their house, so she bought the property and turned it into a rose garden. She also built a footbridge over the lane to avoid the mud, but without the equivalent of planning permission. The penalty was that a red rose 'rent' from the garden had to be paid annually to the Lord Mayor. The rose payment was no more than a peppercorn rent, a symbolic fine upon Sir Robert, a leading citizen and a successful and respected soldier. For this payment permission was given "to make an haut pas of the height of 14 feet" across the lane. The footbridge has long since disappeared, but the legal requirement for the payment of this quit-rent has been established as one of the City's traditions. Programme: 11.00 approx. Procession begins through the streets of the City. 1130 approx. – arrive at Mansion House 1145 – formal presentation of rose to Lord Mayor of London – speeches and drinks reception 1 June 2015 Notes for Editors: Talbot House During the Great War, Poperinge was part of unoccupied Belgium.

Away from the turmoil of battle in the Ypres Salient, the town developed into the nerve centre of the British sector. In the heart of this bustling town, the Army chaplains Neville Talbot and Philip “Tubby” Clayton opened a club. From December 1915 onwards, and for more than three years, the House provided rest and recreation to all soldiers coming in, regardless of their rank. Today, as real as then, the place offers a welcoming and friendly stop in Flanders Fields. 2015 sees the centenary of the opening of Talbot House with a series of commemorative events commencing with the Knollys Rose Ceremony. Talbot House Rose ‘Come into the garden & forget about the war’ ‘The garden is fringed with budding roses and flowering lilacs, while behind them great chestnuts and beeches in their early glory provide a perfect minstrels’ gallery for the birds.’ (P.B. Clayton, 24 March 1917) In honour of the 100th anniversary of Talbot house, a special poppy-like rose has been cultivated.

This rose will be officially presented on 27 June and will be inaugurated in the chapel of Talbot House. The Godmother Alison Rose (born in Coventry) is a European Union (EU) specialist. Previous jobs have included leading the EU, economic, climate, home affairs and science teams at the British Embassy in Paris. She has also been Head of the Future of Europe Department at the FCO, responsible for EU strategy, including the EU Act 2011, and for bilateral relations with the EU Institutions and a number of European countries. On the 11th of August 2014 she took up post as British Ambassador to Belgium. The Godfather Stefan Brijs (born in Genk) is a Belgian novelist writing in Dutch. He was a teacher until he became a full-time writer in 1999. He lived in Antwerp and moved to Malaga (Spain) in 2014. He became famous with the novel “De Engelenmaker” (2005 – The Angel Maker) and the wartime novel “Post voor mevrouw Bromley” (2011 – Post for Mrs. Bromley), in which a chapter has been devoted to Talbot House.

His work is awarded with several prizes and is translated in over 15 languages. “As a good novel brings the dead back to life, so does Talbot House with all soldiers that set foot here a century ago – as if they never left.” All Hallows by the Tower All Hallows by the Tower is the oldest church in the City of London, founded in 675AD, and is a living church serving today’s community around Tower Hill. After the Great War, Tubby returned to England where he became Vicar of All Hallows in 1922. He remained there for forty years, until his retirement in 1962. Ever since Tubby’s arrival, All Hallows by the Tower has been the Guild church of the Toc H charity movement that grew out of his Talbot House friendships and associations. His effigy, one of the last works by Cecil Thomas, the “soldier sculptor”’, can still be seen at the church. Tubby’s dog, Chippie, sits on a tasselled cushion at his feet and the effigy is supported by four lion cubs, one at each corner. His ashes lie in the Crypt along with many other members and friends of Toc H.

Other Talbot House events and exhibitions ‘Soldiers of Solace – Chaplains of the Great War’ 14 May – 10 September 2015 In this temporary exhibition, the profession of a chaplain during the Great War (and after) is explained. On both sides of the front, chaplains did their best to help ‘their boys’ to forget about the war for a while. Every one of these men had his own method of doing this and his own unique character. In this exhibition you will learn about Philip ‘Tubby’ Clayton and his – sometimes very eccentric – colleagues, both locally and abroad. ‘The Great War can be considered to be many things – a clash of nations, empires and competing world views – but it is not a “religious” war in any sense. However, it was a war fought by a majority of men and women who had a profoundly religious view of life. And even though religious scepticism had been a feature of European life since the Enlightenment it is extraordinary how much Church and Sunday School and the singing of hymns and saying of prayers were a feature of daily life for many – if not the majority – of our ancestors.

The Great War would be fought by these “religious” people; and their faith would be shaped and transformed by the war.’ ‘Summer of Watercolour’ 14 May – 10 September 2015 In Talbot House, the summer months of 2015 are entirely dedicated to art and nature. In the Oastroom, visitors will be able to enjoy the second part of "Rites of Spring", a watercolour art-exhibition by artist Guy Gruwier. Visitors that like to paint themselves are welcome to find inspiration in the garden of Talbot House. There are even workshops in watercolour & pastel painting by Guy Gruwier. At the same time, and also in the Oastroom, a small historical exhibition will be held on the history of the garden of Talbot House. ‘Dingly Dell’, Guildhall Library, London 1st October to end January Towards the end of the Great War, in May 1918, Talbot House had to be evacuated because of the German advances around Ypres.

The workings of Talbot House and Every Man’s Club then moved to a series of Armstrong huts (nicknamed Dingley Dell) on the outskirts of Poperinge. It is in one of those huts that Rev. Philip ‘Tubby’ Clayton wrote his memoirs, which are kept in the Guildhall Library. This hut will be on display in the Guildhall Library exhibition room. It will be constructed by a team from Talbot House and decorated with a real WWI-era interior. Tubby’s memoirs will be on display and the story will be told of Talbot House/Tubby/Toc H after the war, from the Dingley Dell (1918) period until the establishment of the Toc H movement in London. Party Week 11-15th December - Various events will be taking place. Gone West Piano Festival 16-20th December Inside Talbot House soldiers could take refuge from the turmoil of the war, gathering around a piano and letting the music soothe their souls. The two-day festival will offer a varied programme of different musical genres with (inter)nationally well-known pianists performing new works on the theme of the war.

Local and amateur pianists will also be given a platform for performance. For more information please contact: Anita Rampall Tea's up for Talbot House Centenary Tea's up for Talbot House Centenary Posted on centenarynews.com on 15 December 2015 Share | The cheer offered to British soldiers 100 years ago when Talbot House first opened its doors in Belgium was today remembered on the streets of London and Manchester. Free cups of tea were handed out as part of events marking the centenary of the 'Every Man's Club' run by army chaplain Philip 'Tubby' Clayton during the First World War. A reception was held at Talbot House in Poperinge itself on December 11th 2015 -- the 100th anniversary of its opening in 1915. The guests included former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, who has family links with Tubby Clayton, and Flanders' Minister-President Geert Bourgeois. Talbot House, or Toc H as it was known to the troops, provided a 'home from home' just behind the front lines of the Ypres salient.

Signs such as 'abandon rank all ye who enter here' set the informal tone for a club where all ranks were welcome to relax, not least with plentiful quantities of traditional British tea. Talbot House continues today as a museum and guesthouse, and Tubby Clayton's legacy is also to be found in Toc H, the charity he founded to perpetuate the spirit of fellowship after the war. The Rev.Philip 'Tubby' Clayton is commemorated with an effigy in All Hallows by the Tower, the City of London church where he served as parish priest for more than 40 years. More information about the Centenary can be found on the Talbot House website. Also in Centenary News: 'An Oasis in a World Gone Crazy' - An exhibition remembering Talbot House runs at Guildhall Library, in the City of London, until January 8th 2016. Source: Visitflanders Posted by: Peter Alhadeff, Centenary News Flanders Fields. A Place To Remember. by Toerisme Vlaanderen (page 8) - issuu issuu Issuu on Google+ 100 years of Talbot House, Poperinge At the request of Rev.

Neville Talbot, Tubby was soon transferred to the peaceful, unoccupied town of Poperinge, in Flanders, where, on 11th December 1915, the two of them inaugurated Talbot House (also known as Toc H, the pronounciation of the initials of Talbot House used by signallers during WWI), a Christian rest and recreation centre for all of the war’s soldiers, regardless of their rank. Members of Talbot House would gather there for dinner, religious ceremonies, conversation, reading, music, etc. - in fact, anything that would take their minds off the war. Despite the tumultuous times, Talbot House, Poperinge stayed open until the end of 1918. The Toc H movement still continues today, at various centres in the UK and around the world, as a unique place of fellowship and sanctuary. After the war ended, Tubby returned to England, where he published “Tales of Talbot House” and opened several other Toc H houses.

Using his experiences in Flanders to promote the philosophy of the Toc H movement, Clayton also devised the notion of the four cardinal points of the compass to represent the aims of the organisation as Friendship (“To Love Widely” - To welcome all in friendship); Service (“To Build Bravely”- To give personal service); Fair-mindedness (“To Think Fairly” - To always listen to the views of others) and, finally, The Kingdom of God (“To Witness Humbly” - To acknowledge the spiritual nature of all people). (N.N., 58th Division, September 1917) “ I kept a rest-house back in Poperinghe, and my customers from time to time invited me to repay their calls. In the rest-house they rested – that is, they turned to other things than war. There was less said about the war in Talbot House than probably anywhere else in Europe at the time. As a topic it had its limitations, like the weather. As a conversational opening its vagaries were of value, but no more than that; the real thing was to get relief from it, relief comic, serio-comic, educational, spiritual. (P.B.

Clayton) “ Philip Thomas Byard Clayton, nicknamed “Little Tubby” after an overweight uncle, was born in Queensland, Australia in 1885. At the age of two his parents returned to their native England. Educated at St Paul’s School in London and then at Exeter College, Oxford, he gained a First Class Degree in Theology. Tubby started working as a curate at St Mary’s Church in Portsea in 1910 but after seeing a ship full of soldiers sink before his eyes, he felt the desire to become more involved in the war and moved to France in early 1915, where he became an army chaplain in Le Tréport. In 1922, Tubby became vicar of All Saints by the Tower, an Anglican church in London and in 1965 he was named as an honorary citizen of Poperinge. Tubby Clayton died in 1972, at the age of 87. The original Talbot House, in Poperinge, is used both as a residential and conference house and as a museum.

Several rooms were recently renovated, including the chapel, the kitchen and the hall, as well as the garden. Brand new Tubby’s story tablets, offering a selection of tours, shed light on some of the events that took place there. Visitors can even spend the night! See p. 40 for information on centenary events. PIANO FESTIVAL POPERINGE Church Clubs - Box People and Places Box People and Places Church and Royal Societies Alan Payne March 2016 Photograph of 1933 Mothers' Union dedication (courtesy Eric Callaway) We finalise our overview of clubs and societies in Box with the groups that concerned the churches and those with royal patronage. Many of these related to women who had often missed out on formal education. It was through their role in the house that Victorians hoped to influence moral welfare in the family and the servants they employed. Mothers' Union September 1933 was an important time for St Thomas à Becket Church.

The Mothers' Union held a special Evensong Service on the Tuesday after Harvest Festival to enable the Bishop of Bristol to dedicate a new Mothers' Union banner hand sewn by Mrs Shaw Mellor (seen to the left of the banner).[1] It was a huge event attended by six hundred members of the Mothers' Union from the Chippenham Deanery who afterwards enjoyed tea in a huge marquee on the cricket field. In fact it was the second visit by the bishop that year especially to commemorate the banner, a lovely addition to the already beautiful adornments which are in the church. The event was an incredible success and featured in the local press, seen above.[2] Visitors had assembled in Box by train and charabanc, with ladies wearing light blue sashes. As well as Rev George Foster, nine other local vicars attended to listen to the bishop urging women to mould their lives upon the pattern of that perfect mother portrayed upon the banner.[3] In fact, this was only one of several success stories that year. As an aside, the Harvest Service was a great event for us in Box and a real honour to have been asked by the BBC to broadcast our evening Harvest Worship.[4] The number of listeners was estimated at four million people.

It was reckoned to be a typical West Country service (whatever that means). Praise poured in: We have had wireless since 1928 and never enjoyed anything so much before; It was wonderful, this means of grace by wireless. Although I am an ardent Methodist, I am still serving the same God as you; some people even sent a postal order for the collection. The Mothers' Union was founded by Mrs Mary Sumner in the late 1800s and in 1897 Queen Victoria became patron. It came to Box in the early 1900s and the meetings were organised by Miss Vezey at the Old Schools (the Poorhouse) and Susanna Spencer was another founder member.[5] By the 1920s meetings were in the vicarage and its gardens.[6] The function of the Union was the same throughout its history. In modern times vicar Tom Selwyn-Smith described its work as primarily a union of mothers who pray and try to pray effectively for the family life of our parish and beyond it.

A similar philosophy was expressed in 1927 when the agenda for the season comprised: sewing meetings, talks on the Moral Welfare Association, a meeting called Quiet Day, another meeting entitled Corporate Communion, and a film in Chippenham.[7] Lest we should depict the Union as always serious, there are several highly frivolous events recorded in their history. In June 1912 Mrs Browning and Mrs Goulstone presided over the annual outing which went by motor bus to Cheddar and Wells.[8] The party numbering about forty left Box at 9 am, when near Cheddar an unfortunate incident occurred, the motor bus breaking down. It was away from houses and there was a delay caused by lack of communication to get an alternative motor. Eventually Cheddar was visited but at 4.30pm it was too late for lunch, Wells rushed through and the party finally got back home after a day of exciting adventures about midnight.

Perhaps even those mishaps were better than the 1934 visit to London by train to see the tombs of Nelson and Wellington at St Paul's Cathedral which only got back to Box at 2.30am.[9] Mrs Shaw Mellor retired in February 1938 due to ill-health and Box lost one of its most imposing representatives in local affairs. Needlework Guild The Needlework Guild was a society sponsored by royalty, first Queen Mary and afterwards Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. It started in the 1880s and its purpose was to provide clothing (usually socks and jumpers) to the poor and needy, often in the local hospital.[10] It quickly became a country-wide organisation with branches in many towns and villages in Wiltshire.

In 1899 the Box group was run by Mrs Northey.[11] Even local groups sometimes obtained royal patronage and in 1902 HRH Princess of Wales was president of the Somerset Group.[12] During World War 1 the need for clothing for servicemen gave an added impetus to the guild and initiatives to make socks for soldiers was a common rallying cry.[13] The guild lasted from the late Victorian period up until the nationalisation of the health service, when their role in supplying clothing and bedding was taken over by the state: Concern is being expressed that when the hospitals are taken over on July 5 (1948) there will be no purpose in continuing those voluntary societies such as Needlework Guilds.[14] Church Temperance Societies The movement to sign the pledge of abstinence was taken up by the dissenting churches as well as the Church of England.

In 1862 Box Methodists were holding fortnightly meetings in the chapel under the chairmanship of James Oatley and assistance of Mr G Aust.[15] In that year they presented a silver cruet frame to Mr Line who had been for nearly three years an earnest voluntary temperance and Christian labourer for the benefit of the working men (of Box). The Church of England Temperance Society was very active, a noble sentiment although some of the language used is no longer acceptable. In 1897 they put on Variety Entertainment by the Dusky Duffers including a twice-encored mock love song Pepita and an imitation of London street calls including the cabman, omnibus and paper boy all rendered faithfully, the effect being electrical. The following year Mr Gandy came over from Bath and gave an address to the children assembled in the Schools to impress upon them the advantages of total abstinence, keeping their attention apt with interesting illustrations. I bet the children enjoyed that!

Toc H At Ypres in 1915 during the worst years of World War 1, an army chaplain, Rev Phillip (Tubby) Clayton, had a Damascus moment on being instructed by his superior, Neville Talbot, to set up a house for wounded and battle-wearied soldiers. Instead of making it a religious establishment, Tubby decided to make it available for Everyman. The house was named Talbot House (soon abbreviated in soldiers' slang to Toc H) and it became a model as a meeting point for servicemen and women, a place of rest, renowned for providing Fellowship and Service, symbolised by a welcoming lamp outside the door. By the 1930s there were many thousands of members throughout the world. In Britain the movement was closely associated with the National Blood Transfusion service and overseas with leprosy homes in Africa.

Representation of Toc H lamp (jumpei-mitsui.com) The Box group helped in many areas: in 1934 they started a Sunday afternoon Club for lads from 13 to 16 years of age to replace the Bible Class which was not functioning very efficiently.[16] And they helped to re-invigorate the Scout Troop with Scoutmaster Frank Rogers and Philip Lambert.[17] The vicar, Rev George Foster, promoted their work and allowed them to establish their headquarters in an upstairs room in the Vicarage which he called the Toc H Upper Room.[18] But it was interdenominational and sometimes meetings were at the Methodist Hall.[19] In the years leading to the Second World War, the philosophy of friendship, tolerance and integration were in dramatic contradiction to the hardening of military views. The people who tried to keep the lamp of lightness alive included Fred Sheppard, Jack Ford, Albert Ball and Arthur Wootten.[20] During the war years Rev Arthur Maltin was padre to the movement and involved in most of its weekly meetings. He had experience of the movement's effectiveness having seen it at first hand in the Dardanelles in the Great War.

Some of the most active members in 1940 were S Mays (Chairman), Arthur Wootten (Pilot), Clement Dyke (Secretary), T Bence (Treasurer), J Ford (Job Master), E Oliver (Log Master). Speakers were not easy to obtain during the Second World War, so vicar Arthur Maltin filled in with lantern slides of The Life of Nelson, Somerset, Devon and the Home of the Sea Kings.[21] But the mood was rapidly changing with transport restrictions and black-outs in the evenings. Box Choir Of course the choir in Box has origins from the early days of the church, long before any recorded history, and it is not possible to give a full description of its activities. So, instead, a few unusual facts are recorded. In 1899 the Bath Stone Firms Limited organised a train outing to Plymouth for all of its 1,800 employees (of whom 450 from Box), leaving Box station before 5am.[22] Some enjoyed a tour of the dockyards, others went to Devonport.

Box choir was invited along to make the night merry with song although they must have flagged, arriving back to Bath after 2am on Sunday morning. In 1926 the choir won a shield for sight-singing and the folk-dance team won a first-class certificate with two gold stars and the sword-dance teams certificates with one gold star at the County Festival held in Devizes.[23] In 1929 Walter John Bradfield (1862 - 1933) of Fairfield gave his memories of fifty years of service in Box Choir, dating back to the time of Dr Horlock.[24] He recalled the high-back pews in the church, at the end of each was a candle stuck down in a sconce. He talked about Rev GE Gardner and his wife who started the Sunday School and how the church was restored by Rev W White in 1896 sweeping away all the high-backed pews, the organ and the galleries, one of which was on the west side and another on the north side for the girls in the choir. After this the choir stalls were placed in the chancel.

Courtesy Box Parish Council Of equal importance was the removal of the three-decker Jacobean-style pulpit, which he thought was installed in 1716. It was replaced by a fine pulpit of local stone, the work of male members of the choir who were engaged in the stone trade. In 1913 Mr Bradfield became choirmaster on the death of Mr Burrows, who had been a schoolmaster. In the centre of the old church was a round stove which the sexton, Mr Nowell, used to stoke up before services, filling the church with sulphurous fumes. You can read more about Box Choir elsewhere on the website. We would love to hear from you if you can give further details about any of the clubs or societies mentioned on the website, particularly if you can bring the history up to the present date.

References [1] Parish Magazine, October 1933 [2] Bath Weekly Chronicle and Herald, 23 September 1933 [3] Bath Weekly Chronicle and Herald, 23 September 1933 [4] Parish Magazine, October 1933 [5] Courtesy Philip Martin [6] Parish Magazine, November 1903 and ????

[7] Parish Magazine, February 1927 [8] Parish Magazine, June 1912 [9] Bath Weekly Chronicle and Herald, 18 August 1934 [10] [11] The Bath Chronicle, 23 November 1899 [12] The Bath Chronicle, 30 January 1902 [13] The Bath Chronicle, 1 May 1915 [14] Bath Weekly Chronicle and Herald, 3 July 1948 [15] The Bath Chronicle, 13 November 1862 [16] Parish Magazine, April 1935 [17] Parish Magazine, May 1935 [18] Parish Magazine, May 1935 [19] Bath Weekly Chronicle and Herald, 22 December 1934 [20] Bath Weekly Chronicle and Herald, 12 February 1938 [21] Parish Magazine January 1940 [22] The Bath Chronicle, 7 September 1899 [23] Parish Magazine, April 1926 [24] Bath Chronicle and

 Herald, 28 December 1929

Question: In 1915, Rev Philip (Tubby) Clayton founded which organisation as a club and church for returned soldiers?
Answer: Toc H