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Editor’s Notes Observing the restrictions required by the government to combat the global

pandemic of the Covid-19 virus has impacted our ability to join together for

worship and made it necessary to cancel or postpone events listed in the

previous newsletter. This has been a very difficult time, not only for those who

are in the ‘shielded’ category, or are required to isolate but for those who have

lost friends and relatives. Sadly, our Chapel crucifer and chorister Richard

Shirley died on 28th March after being on a ventilator in Intensive Care for

several days. Richard had been a member of the Chapel Choir since 1984. An

obituary to Richard published elsewhere is repeated in this issue for those who

missed it.

Peter Franklin Editor & Membership Secretary

Chaplain’s Update

Dear Friends,

I was in a meeting yesterday that confirmed we would be beginning next term in lockdown. The cadets will maintain individual social distancing for the first two weeks and then form their ‘platoon families’. So far this approach has worked and kept us virus free this term. The cadets will continue to be quarantined and not allowed out of the gates. You will appreciate that whilst this policy of no ‘insiders out’ continues we cannot likewise have ‘outsiders in’. Unfortunately, this means that when we reopen the Chapels next term for socially-distanced worship this will only be for the living-in community. I know that the Academy will continue to test and adjust this as we move through the term. Once the cadets are allowed the freedom of weekends and evenings out then we should be in a position to begin welcoming a wider audience to our Chapels. I will of course keep you updated on these matters. We appreciate your stoicism and your continuing prayers.

Antony

Padre Antony Feltham-White OBE Academy Chaplain

Issue: Summer 2020

Contents Editor’s Notes ...................................1

Chaplain’s Update ............................1

Winter Term 2020 Calendar .............2

Commissioning Course CC202 ..........2

Chairman’s update ...........................3

19th Annual General Meeting ...........3

Your Chapel ......................................4

Claude Templer ............................4

Richard Shirley – a chorister’s memories .........................................6

Chapel VC Memorials .......................8

Committee ........................................9

Poetry Corner ................................ 10

Helpful texts .................................. 11

Chapel Notes The Friends Newsletter

The Friends of The Royal Memorial Chapel

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Winter Term 2020 Calendar The Chapel is closed for public worship until further notice recognising the Government and Archbishop of

Canterbury’s guidelines during the Covid-19 pandemic. Any changes will be based on Government guidelines and

Commandant’s recommendations for the Academy. Please do not contact the Academy Chaplains regarding future

plans. Updates to the situation regarding the Chapel will be advised by email, and post for those without email.

Peter Franklin Membership Secretary

Commissioning Course CC202

Commissioning Course 202 formed up on 17th May in a variation of the traditional 'Ironing Board

Sunday.', there was no tea with the staff for families or address from the Commander in the Chapel

taking account of social distancing under Covid-19 restrictions. Instead Brigadier Carr-Smith's

welcome was recorded and sent to each cadet.

Sandhurst is very much up and running. The Junior intake, CC202 are well into their course.

Social distancing started right from the drop-off on Old College square and the initial address

conducted in the Churchill Hall instead of the Royal Memorial Chapel.

The May intake is traditionally the smaller of the three and this time has 189 Officer Cadets,

164 male and 25 female. Seventy five percent of the British cadets are university graduates and

57% were educated in the State sector. 41% were in one of the OTCs, 43% in a Cadet Force and a sizeable 27% have

served in the reserve forces in a Group A unit. The average age is 23 with the youngest being 19 and the oldest 34. The

27 International Cadets come from 15 different countries, including the first from the Kurdish region of Iraq.

International Cadets on CC 202 are from: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Columbia, Ghana, Hungary, Iraq, Jamaica,

Kosovo, Niger, Pakistan Qatar, Thailand, UAE and Ukraine. The cadet from Niger is the first ever from his country to

train at Sandhurst.

The intake is split into Somme Company and Gaza Companies. Sandhurst has adopted a system of Platoon ‘families’

which has necessitated many changes to the usual programme. Lectures are now delivered in smaller groups and the

Indian Army Memorial Room has been turned into a classroom for 30

Finally, other innovations have been brought in to ensure that the Officer Cadets are able to train safely. There are

numerous temporary outdoor classrooms around the site and the stands for the April Commissioning Parade, which

have yet to be removed, have been pressed into service. As a sure sign that Sandhurst is open for business,

Commissioning Course (Short) formed up at the end of May with 96 Officer Cadets. The International element

comprises cadets from Bermuda and the Cayman Islands, another first.

Compiled from information supplied by Sandhurst Trust

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Chairman’s update

I hope you are all keeping well and staying safe in these strange and rather different times. I hope too that you are

continuing to enjoy the weekly newsletter on a Sunday from the Chapel and the mini sermons on a Wednesday. A very

grateful 'thank you' to our Chaplains for continuing to produce these and support us spiritually.

As you will have seen in Revd Antony Feltham-White's letter it is unlikely that the Friends will be allowed back in the

Chapel next term as obviously their first priority is to keep the staff and cadets safe from the virus, especially in such a

close environment.

I have another grateful 'thank you' to say to Peter Franklin for not only producing this newsletter, but also the 19th

Annual General Meeting document that you should all now have received. If you have any questions or comments to

make or you need to contact the Friends email or write to us (Contact details in the Committee Section on page 9).

Our thoughts and prayers are with you all in these strange times and hopefully, looking ahead, we will be able to meet

up again at the beginning of 2021.

Please take care and God bless,

Sue O’ Sullivan Chairman – Friends of the Royal Memorial Chapel Committee

19th Annual General Meeting The 2020 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Friends of the Chapel has been postponed while the Covid-19

restrictions are in place. A formal AGM, as required by our constitution, will be held as soon as we are back in a safe

environment allowing us to meet again. In an effort to in some way meet our constitutional obligations for this year,

you will have received an Annual General Meeting document containing most of the elements that would have been

presented in the usual formal setting.

Ginny Prentice Secretary to the Friends of The Royal Memorial Chapel Committee

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Your Chapel

Claude Templer One of the most memorable memorials in the Chapel is the one to Captain Claude Templer, who made numerous escape attempts during the Great War. The following is based on his own writings and information gained after his death. This covers his final, and successful, escape from Strohen POW camp. On his arrival at Strohen Capt Templer was again imprisoned for five weeks. On his release on the 17th of July he recommenced planning an escape together with the two other officers. The room which served as bathroom was situated above a kind of barn or outhouse. In this room a large number of the officers bathed together whilst, as usual, sentries were placed at the doors. By dint of working every day they managed to scrape, with pocket knives, a tunnel in the floor of this bathroom communicating with the barn beneath; their operations being concealed by the other officers crowding round whilst the work was in progress. The upper planks were replaced each day and so the hole remained unobserved. On the 20th of Aug the arrangements were completed and, provided with a supply of food, compasses and a small map, they slipped unnoticed into the barn, the planks being quietly replaced above their heads. In this barn they remained till nightfall. Shortly after they had quitted the bathroom their absence was remarked and the Commandant, coming to the place where they had last been seen, stood practically over the very spot from which the escape had been made; and, furious with rage, gave orders to the guards for immediate pursuit. Little did he

think, that as he spluttered out directions as to the particular places he required the search parties to scour that Capt Templer was calmly noting down his indications from the hiding place beneath his feet! Night came, and with it a violent rainstorm. A sentry on guard outside the camp took shelter in the entrance of the barn. Silently, in stockinged feet, the 'escapers' walked one by one lightly past him, and owing partly to the obscurity and the noise of the rain, the sentinel remained in blissful ignorance. With the help of the information gleaned from the Commandant, the party was able to elude the patrols that were sent out in various directions, and travelling for nine nights and concealing themselves by day, they eventually approached the Dutch frontier. Once, on the seventh day, they were discovered by a gamekeeper, who, although armed with a sporting rifle, was discreet enough to take to his heels! On another occasion, while passing through a field in which were several cows, they caught one and proceeded to milk her. However, they were disturbed in their occupation by a bull, which, being at the other end of the field, had escaped their notice but now he came thundering, head downwards, across the field in their direction. The three fled precipitately, only clearing the gate in the nick of time! On the ninth night they reached the river Ems and at midnight swam across it at a point where it was forty yards in breadth. The river crossed, there remained the barbed wire fences to negotiate. These wires were placed above deep ditches filled with water and occurred every fifty yards for a distance of approximately five hundred yards to a point within an equal distance of the frontier. Cutting through one of these wires caused a bell to ring at a sentry's post. The sentry turned out but failed to detect the three escapers who had taken cover but a few yards off. The last fence was passed in the small hours of the morning and as the sun rose, disclosing to their view a huge dyke some thirty feet high, they realised that their dream of freedom had become an accomplished fact! The days of suffering were indeed over. The Commandant at Strohen was no doubt extremely gratified to receive a post-card assuring him of their safe arrival and asking him if he “If would he kind enough to forward on their letters to the new address!" But the German is proverbially lacking in a sense of humour and very probably he did not appreciate the joke any more than the German guards who were so much puzzled when, on a previous occasion, Capt Templer had sung the 'Hymn of Hate' from beginning to end and was greeted with a roar of laughter and much applause from the other prisoners. It is still remembered how, in those dark days, he would raise the spirits of his fellow captives by singing (for he was gifted with a beautiful voice) the old, familiar " Hearts of Oak " or the " Men of Harlech ".

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Perhaps only those who have actually experienced the horrors of a German prison camp, can fully realise the daily, endless torture of mind and body systematically inflicted on Allied prisoners of war. To quote yet once again from Capt Templer's account : “In this hospital there were two French soldiers, both badly wounded in the leg; one of these died through neglect as gangrene set in in his leg and they would not take the trouble to operate. We offered money to get him eggs and wine but this was not allowed and he was simply left to die ". You who read this will perhaps have noted, at the time of writing, the almost daily appearance of a little paragraph in the English papers to the effect that a certain number of British soldiers have "died as prisoners of war". That curt paragraph means that so many men have faced death that came slowly, from neglected wounds and starvation cut off from help, their very deathbed insulted by their inhuman captors. To prate of 'forgetting and forgiving' now is the sheerest blasphemy. " Teach not thy lips such scorn". To return to Capt Templer and his two companions. On reporting themselves to the Dutch authorities they were yet once again interned this time in a quarantine camp at Enschede. It was about a fortnight later that, having proved their identity, they were able to start on their journey home. Shortly after their arrival in London they had the honour of an audience of His Majesty the King. The list of honours awarded to prisoners of war for "Gallantry in escaping" contains Capt Templer's name as " mentioned in despatches "; the fact of the list appearing some months after his death debarring him, owing to the British Army order concerning posthumous awards, from receiving a specific distinction . Capt Templer was untiring in his efforts to obtain permission to rejoin his regiment at the front and on the 29th of March 1918, having been passed fit for active service, he landed in France. On the night of the 4th of June he commanded his company on a raid on the German trenches which he himself had planned and organised. That night the long years of suffering were avenged. It was returning to the British lines with his victorious company that Capt Templer was struck by a chance shell believed to be from the British lines, and instantaneously killed. Claude Templer was not yet twenty three when he was killed. Not only was he an artist in thoughts, in words but an artist in deeds and his life was crowned by the supreme sacrifice 'for the poetry of an idea'.

The Losing Fight

Capt Claude Templer – 1st Btn Gloucesters [Written while POW in WW1]

If Fortune knocks you down and has you beat. Don't give up hope. Don't strike that Kismet pose.

But keep your head and get up on your feet For fortune's blows must be returned by blows.

Destiny at the finish of your fight Awards the irrevocable decree,

And it is only then that you'll be right In saying, “I must bow to destiny”.

Therefore fight on until the closing day, No matter if your cause be won or lost. Tis not defeat or triumph, but the way

In which you've fought your fight that matters most.

Fight on and may it be your joy to see Dawn pressing hard upon the heels of night;

They only gain the final victory Who learn the way to fight the losing fight.

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Richard Shirley – a chorister’s memories

Richard and I joined the Chapel choir in 1984 around the same

time, and this swelled the bass line to a total of three. The choir

was very much a family affair at that time with quite a few

children and their parents all belonging to the choir, including

the young Mary Jones and her mother. Richard very quickly

made himself at home and blended in with his new choir. Prior

to joining RMC he had been helping to run his parish choir in

Easthampstead. The choir at that time was directed by Don

Whittle, a local school master, and apart from hymns and psalms,

there was a limited repertoire. The choir practiced the same

anthem most weeks, but never seemed to sing it in a service. It

eventually appeared in a service, and Richard for years

afterwards ribbed me because the only time it was sung was

when I was on holiday.

Richard had a gift for planting the seeds of an idea, then watching them take root, letting others take credit when it

came to fruition. Sometimes it was a party, a barbecue, a choir outing or a concert. He would subtly plant the ideas,

keep them watered and watch them blossom. One example took a long time to take root and grow. Around thirty years

ago the Chapel had a visiting preacher, the Rev’d John Camp, who was one of the Chaplains of the US Military Academy

at West Point. While chatting with Richard after the service over coffee, Rev’d Camp commented how much he enjoyed

hearing the choir, and invited us to visit West Point and sing in the Cadet Chapel. Richard latched onto that and fed

and watered the idea for years, planting it in the minds of successive Directors of Music, Chaplains or anyone who was

around. Eventually the idea took root and Maj. General David Rutherford-Jones, fondly known as ‘RJ’, Commandant

in 2008, took the decision to take the choir to the USA to support the RMAS cadets in the Sandhurst Cup competition.

Richard played a major part in making sure all the finances were in place and helping manage the accountancy side of

the trip. The choir made that memorable trip in 2009 visiting New York, Cold Spring and finally West Point to sing in

the Cadet Chapel. On arrival at West Point Richard turned to me and said, "Well Pete, it took a few years, but we did

it!".

There was often mischievous plotting. We were lucky to have one of the RMAS senior instructors in the choir, Major

Barrie Fairman who was a frequent instigator of bad behaviour in the bass section along with Richard and me. All three

of us became close friends. Barrie returned later as Chief of Staff and promoted to Lt. Colonel, but still sang in the choir

when he could. He proved a great character, sporting long sideburns and a monocle which he would pop out during

the service to make us laugh. It was Barrie and Richard who decided that it was a Sandhurst tradition to wear red bow

ties for Christmas Midnight Mass, Barrie added his own extras by wrapping Christmas lights around his braces under

his cassock, and Richard added the Santa hats. Richard added a musical Christmas tie, unfortunately not realising that

when he tightened his girdle it pressed on the button to activate it, and so he processed down the aisle to a tinkly version

of jingle bells. Richard always denied that he started the bow tie tradition – but some know different.

Another example of Richard’s wit appeared when the commandant, Lt Gen. Sir Hugh Pike, in 1998 asked for the choir

to sing at his daughter Emma’s wedding in St Mary the Virgin, Bentley to Count Pietro Pietromarchi. It was a glamorous

affair with many of the congregation looking like a cast of extras from The Godfather; black suits, gold jewellery and

dark glasses. The service got under way, and when the priest asked, ‘Who gives this person to be married?’ there was

a stage whisper from Richard "Don’t tell them your name Pike!", requiring the choir to stifle their laughter.

Richard had been a crucifer in his previous church, and when the regular crucifer, Larry Powell, moved on, Richard

took up the role, which he loved, always meticulously organising the Chaplains to do it properly. However there was

one occasion when the planning went awry. In the event of bad weather the choir will often process in through the

Chaplains’ office, and if it continues inclement will process out that way. At one service on a particularly bad day the

choir recessional turned left halfway down the Chapel and out through the Chaplains’ office. Richard blissfully unaware

carried on to the west door, only to turn and find he had lost his flock.

There are many tales to tell, but that would fill volumes. A little of Richard the man.

Richard worked for many years for Polysius Ltd. in Ascot, which since the 1970s has been a subsidiary of Thyssen

Krupp, for whom Richard made frequent trips to the parent company in Germany, hence his fluency in the language.

Polysius manufacture cement mills, cement processing plant and ore processing plant. Richard worked on the planning

of projects which required frequent overseas trips. He built up an impressive stock of air miles, despite his lifelong fear

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of flying. He told the story of flying in a rickety single engine aircraft into the depths of the Borneo jungle to oversee the

setting up of an ore grinding mill at a gold mine. He said that he had never prayed so much as during that flight. He

was well respected in the company, to the extent that he was commissioned to set up their office in Singapore, which

he did with his usual efficiency, and spent a couple of years running the office until it was settled. No mean task, as he

was not happy with working in the heat and humidity, but he got on with the job.

Another side of Richard not widely known is that he auditioned to play the part of Oliver in Lionel Bart’s musical of

the same name in the West End. He was short-listed for the part, which finally went to Keith Hampshire. Despite the

disappointment, Richard went to see the show several times.

Richard was also a dedicated senior scout leader, holding The Chief Scout’s Commendation for Good Service and The

Award for Merit. He was a key player in organising Gang Shows, and a great admirer of Ralph Reader, whom he met

on several occasions.

Once Richard retired in 2008 he did not rest on his laurels. Although he wound down, he did not stop his scout activities

and he applied to work on the telephones for Child Line. He underwent the intensive training and scrutiny, and would

travel to London to take his place on the phone lines. He sometimes

found some of the calls harrowing, and was required to take

periods away from the phones for that reason. Although he could

not discuss individual cases, he would often talk through them in

general terms with a few close friends to unload. Right up until his

death, Richard cared for his mother, now in her 90s with increasing

dementia. This took its toll on Richard physically and mentally, but

he was always there for her, despite the immense difficulties he

faced with dealing with her situation.

Richard took over the role of Treasurer for the choir funds from me

in 2007. His usual meticulous attention for detail ensured that the

choir’s finances were well looked after. Organists, soloists and

singers were always paid promptly, and a comprehensive

statement of accounts presented for audit each year. True to

Richard’s inimitable flair and style, he insisted that the choir

unofficial committee had a meeting to review the accounts to be

presented for audit. However on Richard’s insistence, the meeting

would be held at The French Horn, Sonning, over supper.

In conclusion, Richard, a friend, colleague and respected man will

leave a gap in the life of the Chapel and the choir which will be

difficult to fill. Among his heroes were Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and

Danny Kaye. It seems appropriate to sum up Richard’s life with a

quotation from Danny Kaye; "Life is a great big canvas, and you

should throw all the paint on it that you can".

Peter Franklin

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Chapel VC Memorials

Lieutenant William Leefe Robinson VC

Worcestershire Regiment & 39 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps

"War Office 5th September 1916. His Majesty the King has been graciously pleased to award the Victoria Cross to the

undermentioned officer, Lieutenant William Leefe Robinson, Worcestershire Regiment and Royal Flying Corps. For

most conspicuous bravery. He attacked an enemy airship under circumstances of great difficulty and danger, and sent

it crashing to the ground as a flaming wreck. He had been in the air for more than two hours and had previously

attacked another airship during his flight."

London Gazette 5th September 1916

Here dead we lie because we did not choose to live and shame the land

from which we sprung

Life, to be sure, is nothing much to lose,

but young men think it is, and we were young

A.E. Housman

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Committee

The following is a list of the current membership of the Friends of The Chapel Management Committee. You are asked

to deal directly with the committee member to which your query is related either in person or by email. Enquiries

relating to the Friends must not be made to the Chapel Office.

Elected Members

Chairman Mrs Sue O’Sullivan

Secretary/Head Sides person Mrs Ginny Prentice

Treasurer Dr John Walton

Membership Secretary

Newsletter Editor Mr Peter Franklin

Friends’ Lunches Mrs Sue Richardson

Guides/Sovereign’s Parade Mr Graham Fleuty

Col Nigel Flower

Co-opted Members

Mrs Jean Carrington

Ex Officio Members

Chaplain/Dep Chairman Padre Antony Feltham-White CF OBE

If you wish to contact the committee, either approach any of the

members directly, or email friendsrmachapel@gmail.com

.

Friends Membership Secretary

c/o The Chaplains’ Office

The Royal Memorial Chapel

The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst

Camberley

GU15 4PQ

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Poetry Corner Philip Larkin (1922-1985) is a poet whose very name conjures up a specific persona: the gloomy, death-obsessed and

darkly humorous observer of human foibles and failings. The truth, both about the man and his work, is more complex.

The existence of the popular image points to Larkin’s broader cultural influence, beyond the world of poetry. His

personal reputation has sometimes suffered, particularly following the publication of his letters which revealed veins

of right-wing opinion, but he remains much loved for his “piquant mixture of lyricism and discontent” (as defined by

Jean Hartley of the Marvell Press). Born in Coventry, Larkin was the son of a Nazi-sympathising father who worked as

the City Treasurer, and a mother to whom he felt a strong, though sometimes claustrophobic attachment. The “forgotten

boredom” of his childhood was followed by a much more colourful period at Oxford University where he formed

several important friendships with, amongst others, Kingsley Amis. Larkin’s first job after University, running a local

library in Shropshire, became his wage-earning career for the rest of his life, taking him to university libraries in

Leicester, Belfast and finally Hull, where he stayed for thirty years. This lack of professional eventfulness was matched,

at least on the surface, by his private life: despite several long-standing relationships with women, Larkin never married.

Initially Larkin concentrated on writing fiction, producing two novels in the 1940s. His first poetry collection, The North

Ship (1945) was heavily influenced by Yeats and did not yet present the voice for which he later became famous. The

mature Philip Larkin style – that of the detached, sometimes lugubrious, sometimes tender observer of “ordinary people

doing ordinary things” (Jean Hartley) – first appears in his second collection, The Less Deceived, published ten years

later. The virtues of this poetic persona, its plainness and scepticism, came to be associated with The Movement, the

post-war generation of poets brought together in the New Lines anthology of 1956. Two more collections followed at

similarly lengthy intervals: The Whitsun Weddings (1965), considered by many to be his finest achievement, and High

Windows (1974). In his final decade, Larkin’s poetic inspiration largely failed, and he produced only a handful of poems

before his death from cancer in 1985. This loss of inspiration was one of the reasons he turned down the post of Poet

Laureate, offered to him the year before his death, though the fact he was first choice for it underlines the high regard

in which he was held, despite his slight output.

Afternoons – Philip Larkin

Summer is fading:

The leaves fall in ones and twos

from trees bordering

the new recreation ground.

In the hollows of afternoons

young mothers assemble

at swing and sandpit

setting free their children.

Behind them, at intervals,

stand husbands in skilled trades,

an estateful of washing

and the albums, lettered

Our Wedding, lying

near the television:

Before them, the wind

is ruining their courting-places

That are still courting-places

(But the lovers are all in school)

and their children, so intent on

finding more unripe acorns

expect to be taken home.

Their beauty has thickened.

Something is pushing them

to the side of their own lives

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Helpful texts In the turbulence of life, scripture verses to help and encourage when you feel:

A failure ................. Psalm 73:26, Proverbs 15:22, Hebrews 4:14-16

Afraid ..................... Psalm 27:1-3, Psalm 56, Matthew 10:26-31

Bereaved ................. Matthew 5:4, John 11:25, Revelation 21:1-4

Depressed .............. Psalm 34, Psalm 142, Romans 8:28'

Discouraged ........... 2 Timothy 4:16-18, 1 Peter 3:13-17

Far from God ......... Psalm 139, Luke 1,5:11-24, Acts 17:22-30.

In danger ................ Psalm 91, Proverbs 27:12, Romans 8:35

In doubt .................. Job 38-39, John 20:24-29 James 1:12

Lonely ..................... Psalm 13, Psalm 25:16-18, John 14:15-21

Tempted ................. Psalm 119:9,1 Corinthians 10:13, James 1:13-15

Tired........................ Psalm 23, Isaiah 40:28-31, Matthew 11:28-30

Worried .................. Psalm 46, Matthew 6:25-34,1 Peter 5:7

And scripture verses when you want:

Courage .................. Joshua 1:9, Ephesians 6:10-18, 2 Timothy 1:7

Forgiveness ............ Psalms 32, Psalm 51, Luke 17; 1-4, 1 John 1:9

Help ........................ Psalm 121, Philippians 4:19

Inspiration .............. Psalm 37, Proverbs 3:5-6, James 1:5-6

Joy ........................... Luke 15:3-10, John 15:1-11, Romans 5:1-11

Peace ....................... Psalm 34:14, Matthew 5:9, Philippians 4:6-7

Strength .................. Isaiah 40:28-31, Acts 1:8, 1 Peter.5:10

To find God ............ Romans 3:23,6:23, John 3:16,1 John 5:9-12, Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 10:8-10

To talk to God ........ Luke 11:1-13, Timothy 2:1-6, 1 John5:13-15

To live for God ...... Romans 12 & 13, Ephesians 4:17 to 69