Died: 11th January 1920
Age: 20
Brian Baden Powell, third and only surviving son of W Morley Powell, Headmaster of St. Ouen’s School, Jersey, was born 21st December, 1899. From his father’s school he went to Oxenford House, Jersey, and entered [Victoria] College in January 1915. His school career was an extraordinarily successful one. When he left, in April 1918, he was Head Prefect. He had been in the Cricket, Football, and Hockey Xl’s for three years, being in his last year Captain of Football and Vice-Captain of Cricket, was a Corporal in the OTC, and had won the Senior Challenge Cup with a handsome margin of points, doing the Hurdles in the exceptional time of seventeen and two-fifths seconds. And he passed third for the Indian Army. In every case the high position which he took was the result of sheer merit. He was chosen because he was obviously the right man to choose. And withal he won the esteem and affection of everybody by his simple strength and honesty of character.
He was trained for a time at Catterick in Yorkshire and then at the Military College, Quetta, where he took a leading part in cricket, football, and hockey. On passing out he joined the 69th Punjabis at Agra, with whom he went immediately to the North-West Frontier. The first time he was under fire he led his company in the attack on the position held by the Afghan force besieging ThaI. After the relief the 69th garrisoned ThaI, and Powell was in action in various punitive expeditions. After the Armistice he was sent to the School of Signalling at Abbottabad, and at the end of a four months’ course passed out fifth of a class of 50 British officers, with a first in Hindustani and an Instructor’s Certificate. At the end of 1919 he was in hospital for a slight illness and on leaving rejoined his Regiment at ThaI in high spirits. Immediately afterwards he was seized with pneumonia, and died on 11th January, 1920.
The above text appeared in the Victoria College Book of Remembrance published in 1920.
The link to the Channel Islands Great War Study Group website is:
http://www.greatwarci.net/honour/jersey/database/powell-bb-delhi_warmem.htm
