Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell
Encyclopedia
Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, Bt, OM, GCMG
, GCVO
, KCB
(icon; 22 February 1857 – 8 January 1941), also known as B-P or Lord Baden-Powell, was a lieutenant-general
in the British Army
, writer, and founder of the Scout Movement
.
After having been educated at Charterhouse School
, Baden-Powell served in the British Army from 1876 until 1910 in India and Africa. In 1899, during the Second Boer War
in South Africa, Baden-Powell successfully defended the town in the Siege of Mafeking
. Several of his military books, written for military reconnaissance
and scout training in his African years, were also read by boys. Based on those earlier books, he wrote Scouting for Boys
, published in 1908 by Pearson, for youth readership. During writing, he tested his ideas through a camping trip on Brownsea Island
with the local Boys' Brigade
and sons of his friends that began on 1 August 1907, which is now seen as the beginning of Scouting.
After his marriage to Olave St Clair Soames
, Baden-Powell, his sister Agnes Baden-Powell
and notably his wife actively gave guidance to the Scouting Movement and the Girl Guides Movement. Baden-Powell lived his last years in Nyeri
, Kenya, where he died and was buried in 1941.
in London, on 22 February 1857. He was named for his godfather, Robert Stephenson
, the railway and civil engineer; his third name was his mother's maiden name. His father Reverend Baden Powell
, a Savilian Professor of Geometry
at Oxford University, already had four teenage children from the second of his two previous marriages. On 10 March 1846 at St Luke's Church, Chelsea
, Reverend Powell married Henrietta Grace Smyth (3 September 1824 – 13 October 1914), eldest daughter of Admiral William Henry Smyth
and 28 years his junior. Quickly they had Warington
(early 1847), George
(late 1847), Augustus (1849) and Francis (1850). After three further children who died when very young, they had Stephe, Agnes
(1858) and Baden
(1860). The three youngest children and the often ill Augustus were close friends. Reverend Powell died when Stephe was three, and as tribute to his father and to set her own children apart from their half-siblings and cousins, the mother changed the family name to Baden-Powell. Subsequently, Stephe was raised by his mother, a strong woman who was determined that her children would succeed. Baden-Powell would say of her in 1933 "The whole secret of my getting on, lay with my mother."
After attending Rose Hill School
, Tunbridge Wells
, during which his favourite brother Augustus died, Stephe Baden-Powell was awarded a scholarship to Charterhouse
, a prestigious public school. His first introduction to Scouting skills was through stalking and cooking game while avoiding teachers in the nearby woods, which were strictly out-of-bounds. He also played the piano and violin, was an ambidextrous
artist, and enjoyed acting. Holidays were spent on yachting
or canoeing
expeditions with his brothers.
in India with the rank of lieutenant. He enhanced and honed his military scouting
skills amidst the Zulu in the early 1880s in the Natal province
of South Africa, where his regiment had been posted, and where he was Mentioned in Despatches. During one of his travels, he came across a large string of wooden beads, worn by the Zulu king Dinizulu, which was later incorporated into the Wood Badge
training programme he started after he founded the Scouting Movement. Baden-Powell's skills impressed his superiors and he was Brevetted Major
as Military Secretary and senior Aide-de-camp
of the Commander-in-Chief and Governor of Malta
, his uncle General Sir Henry Augustus Smyth
. He was posted in Malta for three years, also working as intelligence officer for the Mediterranean
for the Director of Military Intelligence
. He frequently travelled disguised as a butterfly collector
, incorporating plans of military installations into his drawings of butterfly wings.
Baden-Powell returned to Africa in 1896 to aid the British South Africa Company
colonials under siege in Bulawayo
during the Second Matabele War
. This was a formative experience for him not only because he had the time of his life commanding reconnaissance missions into enemy territory in Matobo Hills
, but because many of his later Boy Scout ideas took hold here. It was during this campaign that he first met and befriended the American scout Frederick Russell Burnham
, who introduced Baden-Powell to the American Old West
and woodcraft (i.e., scoutcraft
), and here that he wore his signature Stetson
campaign hat
and kerchief
for the first time. After Rhodesia
, Baden-Powell took part in a successful British invasion of Ashanti, West Africa in the Fourth Ashanti War
, and at the age of 40 was promoted to lead the 5th Dragoon Guards in 1897 in India. A few years later he wrote a small manual, entitled Aids to Scouting, a summary of lectures he had given on the subject of military scouting, to help train recruits. Using this and other methods he was able to train them to think independently, use their initiative, and survive in the wilderness.
Baden-Powell was accused of illegally executing a prisoner of war, Matabele chief Uwini, in 1896, who had been promised his life would be spared if he surrendered. Uwini was shot by firing squad under Baden-Powell's instructions. Baden-Powell was cleared by an inquiry, and later claimed he was "released without a stain on my character".
Baden-Powell returned to South Africa prior to the Second Boer War
and was engaged in further military actions against the Zulus. By this time, he had been promoted to be the youngest colonel
in the British Army. He was responsible for the organisation of a force of Legion of Frontiersmen
to assist the regular army. While arranging this, he was trapped in the Siege of Mafeking, and surrounded by a Boer army, at times in excess of 8,000 men. Although wholly outnumbered, the garrison withstood the siege for 217 days. Much of this is attributable to cunning military deceptions instituted at Baden-Powell's behest as commander of the garrison. Fake minefields were planted and his soldiers were ordered to simulate avoiding non-existent barbed wire
while moving between trenches. Baden-Powell did most of the reconnaissance work himself.
In one instance noting that the Boers had not removed the rail line, Baden-Powell loaded an armoured locomotive with sharpshooters and successfully sent it down the rails into the heart of the Boer encampment and back again in a strategic attempt to decapitate the Boer leadership.
Contrary views of Baden-Powell's actions during the Siege of Mafeking pointed out that his success in resisting the Boers was secured at the expense of the lives of the native African soldiers and civilians, including members of his own African garrison. Pakenham stated that Baden-Powell drastically reduced the rations to the natives' garrison. However, in 2001, after subsequent research, Pakenham decidedly retreated from this position.
During the siege, a cadet corps
, consisting of white boys below fighting age, was used to stand guard, carry messages, assist in hospitals and so on, freeing the men for military service. Although Baden-Powell did not form this cadet corps himself, and there is no evidence that he took much notice of them during the Siege, he was sufficiently impressed with both their courage and the equanimity with which they performed their tasks to use them later as an object lesson in the first chapter of Scouting for Boys. The siege was lifted in the Relief of Mafeking on 16 May 1900. Promoted to major-general, Baden-Powell became a national hero. After organising the South African Constabulary
, the national police force, he returned to England to take up a post as Inspector General
of Cavalry in 1903. In 1907 he was appointed to command a division in the newly-formed Territorial Force
.
In 1910 Lieutenant-General Baden-Powell decided to retire from the Army reputedly on the advice of King Edward VII
, who suggested that he could better serve his country by promoting Scouting.
On the outbreak of World War I in 1914, Baden-Powell put himself at the disposal of the War Office. No command was given him, for, as Lord Kitchener
said: "he could lay his hand on several competent divisional generals but could find no one who could carry on the invaluable work of the Boy Scouts." It was widely rumoured that Baden-Powell was engaged in spying, and intelligence officers took great care to inculcate the myth.
as Brigade Secretary and Officer in charge of its scouting section, with encouragement from his friend, William Alexander Smith
, Baden-Powell decided to re-write Aids to Scouting to suit a youth readership. In August 1907 he held a camp on Brownsea Island
for twenty-two boys from local Boys Brigade companies and sons of friends of Baden-Powell's from public schools Eton and Harrow to test out the applicability of his ideas. Baden-Powell was also influenced by Ernest Thompson Seton
, who founded the Woodcraft Indians
. Seton gave Baden-Powell a copy of his book The Birch Bark Roll of the Woodcraft Indians and they met in 1906. The first book on the Scout Movement, Baden-Powell's Scouting for Boys
was published in six instalments in 1908, and has sold approximately 150 million copies as the fourth best-selling book of the 20th century.
Boys and girls spontaneously formed Scout troop
s and the Scouting Movement had inadvertently started, first as a national, and soon an international obsession. The Scouting Movement was to grow up in friendly parallel relations with the Boys' Brigade. A rally for all Scouts was held at Crystal Palace
in London in 1909, at which Baden-Powell discovered the first Girl Scouts. The Girl Guide Movement was subsequently founded in 1910 under the auspices of Baden-Powell's sister, Agnes Baden-Powell. Baden-Powell's friend, Juliette Gordon Low
, was encouraged by him to bring the Movement to America, where she founded the Girl Scouts of the USA
.
In 1920, the 1st World Scout Jamboree
took place in Olympia
, and Baden-Powell was acclaimed Chief Scout
of the World. Baden-Powell was created a Baronet
in the 1921 New Year Honours and Baron Baden-Powell
, of Gilwell, in the County of Essex, on 17 September 1929, Gilwell Park
being the International Scout Leader training centre. After receiving this honour, Baden-Powell mostly styled himself "Baden-Powell of Gilwell".
In 1929, during the 3rd World Scout Jamboree
, he received as a present a new 20 horse power Rolls-Royce
car (chassis number GVO-40, registration OU 2938) and an Eccles Caravan
. This combination well served the Baden-Powells in their further travels around Europe. The caravan was nicknamed Eccles and is now on display at Gilwell Park
. The car, nicknamed Jam Roll, was sold after his death by Olave Baden-Powell
in 1945. Jam Roll and Eccles were reunited at Gilwell for the 21st World Scout Jamboree
in 2007. Recently it has been purchased on behalf of Scouting and is owned by a charity, B-P Jam Roll Ltd. Funds are being raised to repay the loan that was used to purchase the car. Baden-Powell also had a positive impact on improvements in youth education. Under his dedicated command the world Scouting Movement grew. By 1922 there were more than a million Scouts in 32 countries; by 1939 the number of Scouts was in excess of 3.3 million.
At the 5th World Scout Jamboree
in 1937, Baden-Powell gave his farewell to Scouting, and retired from public Scouting life. 22 February, the joint birthday of Robert and Olave Baden-Powell, continues to be marked as Founder's Day
by Scouts and Thinking Day by Guides to remember and celebrate the work of the Chief Scout and Chief Guide of the World.
In his final letter to the Scouts, Baden-Powell wrote:
, on the ocean liner, Arcadian, heading for New York to start one of his Scouting World Tours. She was 23, while he was 55; they shared the same birthday, 22 February. They became engaged in September of the same year, causing a media sensation due to Baden-Powell's fame. To avoid press intrusion, they married in secret on 31 October 1912, at St Peter's Church in Parkstone
. The Scouts of England each donated a penny to buy Baden-Powell a wedding gift, a car (note that this is not the Rolls-Royce they were presented with in 1929). There is a monument to their marriage inside St Mary's Church, Brownsea Island
.
Baden-Powell and Olave lived in Pax Hill
near Bentley
, Hampshire from about 1919 until 1939. The Bentley house was a gift of her father. Directly after he had married, Baden-Powell began to suffer persistent headaches, which were considered by his doctor to be of psychosomatic
origin and treated with dream analysis
. The headaches disappeared upon his moving into a makeshift bedroom set up on his balcony.
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The Baden-Powells had three children, one son and two daughters, who all acquired the courtesy title of "The Honourable
" in 1929 as children of a baron. The son succeeded his father in 1941 to the Baden-Powell barony and the title of Baron Baden-Powell
.
In addition, when Olave's sister Auriol Davidson née Soames died in 1919, Olave and Robert took her three nieces, Christian (1912–1975), Clare (1913–1980), and Yvonne, (1918–1995?), into their family and brought them up as their own children.
In 1939, he and his wife moved to a cottage he had commissioned in Nyeri, Kenya, near Mount Kenya
, where he had previously been to recuperate. The small one-room house, which he named Paxtu, was located on the grounds of the Outspan Hotel
, owned by Eric Sherbrooke Walker
, Baden-Powell's first private secretary and one of the first Scout inspectors. Walker also owned the Treetops Hotel
, approx 17 km out in the Aberdare Mountains
, often visited by Baden-Powell and people of the Happy Valley set
. The Paxtu cottage is integrated into the Outspan Hotel buildings and serves as a small Scouting museum.
Baden-Powell died on 8 January 1941 and is buried in Nyeri, in St. Peter's Cemetery His gravestone bears a circle with a dot in the centre, which is the trail sign for "Going home", or "I have gone home": When his wife Olave died, her ashes were sent to Kenya and interred beside her husband. Kenya has declared Baden-Powell's grave
a national monument.
Tim Jeal
, who wrote the biography Baden-Powell
, argues that Baden-Powell's distrust of communism led to his implicit support, through naïveté, of fascism. In 1939 Baden-Powell noted in his diary: "Lay up all day. Read Mein Kampf
. A wonderful book, with good ideas on education, health, propaganda, organisation etc. – and ideals which Hitler
does not practise himself." Baden-Powell admired Benito Mussolini
early in the Italian fascist leader's career.
Some very early Scouting "Thanks" badges had a swastika
symbol on them. According to biographer Michael Rosenthal, Baden-Powell used the swastika because he was a Nazi sympathiser. Jeal, however, argues that Baden-Powell was naïve
of the symbol's growing association with fascism and maintained that his use of the symbol related to its earlier, original meaning of "good luck" in Sanskrit
, for which purpose the symbol had been used for centuries prior to the rise of fascism. In conflict with the idea that Powell was a Nazi supporter is the fact that Baden-Powell was a target of the Nazi regime in the Black Book
, which listed individuals who were to be arrested during and after an invasion of Great Britain as part of Operation Sea Lion. Scouting was regarded as a dangerous spy organisation by the Nazis. Baden-Powell used the swastika as a "Thanks" badge for the Scout Movement well before Hitler used it, and when Hitler did start to use it, Baden-Powell ceased to use it. Previously, the swastika had been used by Rudyard Kipling
as a logo on his books.
Baden-Powell was regarded as an excellent storyteller. During his whole life he told 'ripping yarns' to audiences. After having published Scouting for Boys, Baden-Powell kept on writing more handbooks and educative materials for all Scouts, as well as directives for Scout Leaders. In his later years, he also wrote about the Scout Movement and his ideas for its future. He spent the last decade of his life in Africa, and many of his later books had African themes.
Currently, many pages of his field diary, complete with drawings, are on display at the National Scouting Museum
in Irving, Texas
.
. Tim Jeal's later biography discusses the relationship and concludes that there is no conclusive evidence that this friendship was physical. Jeal then examines Baden-Powell's views on women, his appreciation of the male form, his military relationships and his marriage, indicating that Baden-Powell could be a repressed homosexual
. Jeal's conclusion is shared by some biographers and disputed by others, but not yet examined in any detail by scholars.
Scouting books
Other books
Sculpture
In 1937 Baden-Powell was appointed to the Order of Merit
, one of the most exclusive awards in the British honours system, and he was also awarded 28 decorations by foreign states, including the Grand Officer of the Portuguese Order of Christ
, the Grand Commander of the Greek Order of the Redeemer
(1920), the Commander of the French Légion d'honneur
(1925), the First Class of the Hungarian Order of Merit (1929), the Grand Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog
of Denmark, the Grand Cross of the Order of the White Lion
, the Grand Cross of the Order of the Phoenix, and the Order of Polonia Restituta.
The Silver Wolf Award worn by Robert Baden-Powell is handed down the line of his successors, with the current Chief Scout, Bear Grylls
wearing this original award.
The Bronze Wolf Award, the only distinction of the World Organization of the Scout Movement
, awarded by the World Scout Committee for exceptional services to world Scouting, was first awarded to Baden-Powell by a unanimous decision of the then International Committee on the day of the institution of the Bronze Wolf in Stockholm
in 1935. He was also the first recipient of the Silver Buffalo Award
in 1926, the highest award conferred by the Boy Scouts of America
.
In 1927, at the Swedish National Jamboree he was awarded by the Österreichischer Pfadfinderbund
with the "Großes Dankabzeichen des ÖPB.
In 1931 Baden-Powell received the highest award of the First Austrian Republic
(Großes Ehrenzeichen der Republik am Bande) out of the hands of President Wilhelm Miklas
. Baden-Powell was also one of the first and few recipients of the Goldene Gemse, the highest award conferred by the Österreichischer Pfadfinderbund.
In 1931, Major Frederick Russell Burnham
dedicated Mount Baden-Powell in California to his old Scouting friend from forty years before. Today their friendship is honoured in perpetuity with the dedication of the adjoining peak, Mount Burnham
.
Baden-Powell was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize
on numerous occasions, including 10 separate nominations in 1928.
As part of the Scouting 2007 Centenary
, Nepal renamed Urkema Peak to Baden-Powell Peak
.
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
, GCVO
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
, KCB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(icon; 22 February 1857 – 8 January 1941), also known as B-P or Lord Baden-Powell, was a lieutenant-general
Lieutenant-General (UK)
Lieutenant-general is a senior rank in the British Army and the Royal Marines, although the highest ranking officer in the Royal Marines at present is major general...
in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
, writer, and founder of the Scout Movement
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
.
After having been educated at Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School, originally The Hospital of King James and Thomas Sutton in Charterhouse, or more simply Charterhouse or House, is an English collegiate independent boarding school situated at Godalming in Surrey.Founded by Thomas Sutton in London in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian...
, Baden-Powell served in the British Army from 1876 until 1910 in India and Africa. In 1899, during the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
in South Africa, Baden-Powell successfully defended the town in the Siege of Mafeking
Siege of Mafeking
The Siege of Mafeking was the most famous British action in the Second Boer War. It took place at the town of Mafeking in South Africa over a period of 217 days, from October 1899 to May 1900, and turned Robert Baden-Powell, who went on to found the Scouting Movement, into a national hero...
. Several of his military books, written for military reconnaissance
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
and scout training in his African years, were also read by boys. Based on those earlier books, he wrote Scouting for Boys
Scouting for Boys
Scouting for Boys: A Handbook for Instruction in Good Citizenship is the first book on the Scout Movement, published in 1908. It was written and illustrated by Robert Baden-Powell, its founder...
, published in 1908 by Pearson, for youth readership. During writing, he tested his ideas through a camping trip on Brownsea Island
Brownsea Island Scout camp
The Brownsea Island Scout camp was a boys camping event on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, southern England, organised by Lieutenant-General Baden-Powell to test his ideas for the book Scouting for Boys. Boys from different social backgrounds participated from 1 August to 8 August 1907 in...
with the local Boys' Brigade
Boys' Brigade
For the 80s New Wave band from Canada, see Boys Brigade .The Boys' Brigade is an interdenominational Christian youth organisation, conceived by William Alexander Smith to combine drill and fun activities with Christian values...
and sons of his friends that began on 1 August 1907, which is now seen as the beginning of Scouting.
After his marriage to Olave St Clair Soames
Olave Baden-Powell
Olave St Clair Baden-Powell, Baroness Baden-Powell, GBE was born Olave St Clair Soames in Chesterfield, England...
, Baden-Powell, his sister Agnes Baden-Powell
Agnes Baden-Powell
Agnes Smyth Baden-Powell was the younger sister of Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, and was most noted for her work in establishing the Girl Guide movement as a female counterpart to her older brother's Scouting Movement.-Early life:Agnes was the ninth of ten children, and the third...
and notably his wife actively gave guidance to the Scouting Movement and the Girl Guides Movement. Baden-Powell lived his last years in Nyeri
Nyeri
Nyeri is a town in situated in the Central Highlands of Kenya Kenya, which was the administrative headquarters of the country's former Central Province...
, Kenya, where he died and was buried in 1941.
Early life
Baden-Powell was born as Robert Stephenson Smyth Powell, or more familiarly as Stephe Powell, at 6 Stanhope Street (now 11 Stanhope Terrace), PaddingtonPaddington
Paddington is a district within the City of Westminster, in central London, England. Formerly a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965...
in London, on 22 February 1857. He was named for his godfather, Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson
Robert Stephenson FRS was an English civil engineer. He was the only son of George Stephenson, the famed locomotive builder and railway engineer; many of the achievements popularly credited to his father were actually the joint efforts of father and son.-Early life :He was born on the 16th of...
, the railway and civil engineer; his third name was his mother's maiden name. His father Reverend Baden Powell
Baden Powell (mathematician)
Baden Powell, MA, FRS, FRGS was an English mathematician and Church of England priest. He was also prominent as a liberal theologian who put forward advanced ideas about evolution. He held the Savilian Chair of Geometry at the University of Oxford from 1827 to 1860...
, a Savilian Professor of Geometry
Savilian Professor of Geometry
The position of Savilian Professor of Geometry was established at the University of Oxford in 1619. It was founded by Sir Henry Savile, a mathematician and classical scholar who was Warden of Merton College, Oxford and Provost of Eton College, reacting to what has been described as "the wretched...
at Oxford University, already had four teenage children from the second of his two previous marriages. On 10 March 1846 at St Luke's Church, Chelsea
Chelsea, London
Chelsea is an area of West London, England, bounded to the south by the River Thames, where its frontage runs from Chelsea Bridge along the Chelsea Embankment, Cheyne Walk, Lots Road and Chelsea Harbour. Its eastern boundary was once defined by the River Westbourne, which is now in a pipe above...
, Reverend Powell married Henrietta Grace Smyth (3 September 1824 – 13 October 1914), eldest daughter of Admiral William Henry Smyth
William Henry Smyth
William Henry Smyth was an English sailor, hydrographer, astronomer and numismatist.-Private Life:...
and 28 years his junior. Quickly they had Warington
Warington Baden-Powell
Henry Warington Smyth Baden-Powell KC , known as Warington within the family, was Robert Baden-Powell's oldest brother...
(early 1847), George
George Baden-Powell
George Smyth Baden-Powell KCMG was a son of Baden Powell, and brother of Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, Baden Baden-Powell, Warington Baden-Powell, and Agnes Baden-Powell...
(late 1847), Augustus (1849) and Francis (1850). After three further children who died when very young, they had Stephe, Agnes
Agnes Baden-Powell
Agnes Smyth Baden-Powell was the younger sister of Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, and was most noted for her work in establishing the Girl Guide movement as a female counterpart to her older brother's Scouting Movement.-Early life:Agnes was the ninth of ten children, and the third...
(1858) and Baden
Baden Baden-Powell
For the town, see Baden-BadenBaden Fletcher Smyth Baden-Powell, FS, FRAS, FRMetS was the youngest son of Baden Powell, and the brother of Robert Baden-Powell, Warington Baden-Powell, George Baden-Powell, and Agnes Baden-Powell...
(1860). The three youngest children and the often ill Augustus were close friends. Reverend Powell died when Stephe was three, and as tribute to his father and to set her own children apart from their half-siblings and cousins, the mother changed the family name to Baden-Powell. Subsequently, Stephe was raised by his mother, a strong woman who was determined that her children would succeed. Baden-Powell would say of her in 1933 "The whole secret of my getting on, lay with my mother."
After attending Rose Hill School
Rose Hill School
Rose Hill School is a British Independent School situated in Tunbridge Wells, Kent. It is a member of the Independent Association of Preparatory Schools. The school is co-educational.-Summary:...
, Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in west Kent, England, about south-east of central London by road, by rail. The town is close to the border of the county of East Sussex...
, during which his favourite brother Augustus died, Stephe Baden-Powell was awarded a scholarship to Charterhouse
Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School, originally The Hospital of King James and Thomas Sutton in Charterhouse, or more simply Charterhouse or House, is an English collegiate independent boarding school situated at Godalming in Surrey.Founded by Thomas Sutton in London in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian...
, a prestigious public school. His first introduction to Scouting skills was through stalking and cooking game while avoiding teachers in the nearby woods, which were strictly out-of-bounds. He also played the piano and violin, was an ambidextrous
Ambidexterity
Ambidexterity is the state of being equally adept in the use of both left and right appendages . It is one of the most famous varieties of cross-dominance. People that are naturally ambidextrous are rare, with only one out of one hundred people being naturally ambidextrous...
artist, and enjoyed acting. Holidays were spent on yachting
Yachting
Yachting refers to recreational sailing or boating, the specific act of sailing or using other water vessels for sporting purposes.-Competitive sailing:...
or canoeing
Canoeing
Canoeing is an outdoor activity that involves a special kind of canoe.Open canoes may be 'poled' , sailed, 'lined and tracked' or even 'gunnel-bobbed'....
expeditions with his brothers.
Military career
In 1876, R.S.S. Baden-Powell, as he styled himself then, joined the 13th Hussars13th Light Dragoons
The 13th Hussars was a cavalry regiment of the British Army whose battle honours include Waterloo and The Charge of the Light Brigade. 1n 1922, the regiment was amalgamated with the 18th Royal Hussars, to form the 13th/18th Hussars.-Regimental history:British light dragoons were first raised in...
in India with the rank of lieutenant. He enhanced and honed his military scouting
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
skills amidst the Zulu in the early 1880s in the Natal province
KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal is a province of South Africa. Prior to 1994, the territory now known as KwaZulu-Natal was made up of the province of Natal and the homeland of KwaZulu....
of South Africa, where his regiment had been posted, and where he was Mentioned in Despatches. During one of his travels, he came across a large string of wooden beads, worn by the Zulu king Dinizulu, which was later incorporated into the Wood Badge
Wood Badge
Wood Badge is a Scouting leadership program and the related award for adult leaders in the programs of Scout associations throughout the world. Wood Badge courses aim to make Scouters better leaders by teaching advanced leadership skills, and by creating a bond and commitment to the Scout movement...
training programme he started after he founded the Scouting Movement. Baden-Powell's skills impressed his superiors and he was Brevetted Major
Brevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
as Military Secretary and senior Aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
of the Commander-in-Chief and Governor of Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, his uncle General Sir Henry Augustus Smyth
Henry Augustus Smyth
Sir Henry Augustus Smyth , FSA, FRGS, Governor of Malta, general and colonel commandant Royal Artillery, born at St James's Street, London, on 25 November 1825, was third son in the family of three sons and six daughters of Admiral William Henry Smyth by his wife Annarella, only daughter of Thomas...
. He was posted in Malta for three years, also working as intelligence officer for the Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
for the Director of Military Intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
. He frequently travelled disguised as a butterfly collector
Insect collecting
Insect collecting is the collection of insects for hobby, scientific study or profit. Historically insect collecting has been widespread and a very popular educational hobby. Insect collecting has left traces in European cultural history, literature and songs Insect collecting is the collection of...
, incorporating plans of military installations into his drawings of butterfly wings.
Baden-Powell returned to Africa in 1896 to aid the British South Africa Company
British South Africa Company
The British South Africa Company was established by Cecil Rhodes through the amalgamation of the Central Search Association and the Exploring Company Ltd., receiving a royal charter in 1889...
colonials under siege in Bulawayo
Bulawayo
Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe after the capital Harare, with an estimated population in 2010 of 2,000,000. It is located in Matabeleland, 439 km southwest of Harare, and is now treated as a separate provincial area from Matabeleland...
during the Second Matabele War
Second Matabele War
The Second Matabele War, also known as the Matabeleland Rebellion and in Zimbabwe as the First Chimurenga, was fought in 1896–97 between the British troops and the Ndebele people....
. This was a formative experience for him not only because he had the time of his life commanding reconnaissance missions into enemy territory in Matobo Hills
Matobo National Park
The Matobo National Park forms the core of the Matobo or Matopos Hills, an area of granite kopjes and wooded valleys commencing some 35 kilometres south of Bulawayo, southern Zimbabwe...
, but because many of his later Boy Scout ideas took hold here. It was during this campaign that he first met and befriended the American scout Frederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham, DSO was an American scout and world traveling adventurer known for his service to the British Army in colonial Africa and for teaching woodcraft to Robert Baden-Powell, thus becoming one of the inspirations for the founding of the international Scouting Movement.Burnham...
, who introduced Baden-Powell to the American Old West
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
and woodcraft (i.e., scoutcraft
Scoutcraft
Scoutcraft is a term used to cover a variety of woodcraft knowledge and skills required by people seeking to venture into wild country and sustain themselves independently. The term has been adopted by Scouting organizations to reflect skills and knowledge which are felt to be a core part of the...
), and here that he wore his signature Stetson
Stetson
Stetsons are the brand of hat manufactured by the John B. Stetson Company of St. Joseph, Missouri.Stetson eventually became the world’s largest hat maker, producing over 3.3 million hats a year in a factory spread over . Today Stetson remains a family-owned concern...
campaign hat
Campaign hat
A campaign cover is a broad-brimmed felt or straw hat, with a high crown, pinched symmetrically at the four corners .It is associated with the New Zealand Army, the Royal Canadian...
and kerchief
Kerchief
A kerchief is a triangular or square piece of cloth tied around the head or around the neck for protective or decorative purposes...
for the first time. After Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
, Baden-Powell took part in a successful British invasion of Ashanti, West Africa in the Fourth Ashanti War
Anglo-Asante Wars
The Anglo-Ashanti Wars were four conflicts between the Ashanti Empire, in the Akan interior of what is now Ghana, and the British Empire in the 19th century between 1824 and 1901. The ruler of the Ashanti was the Asantehene. The wars were mainly over the Ashanti establishing strong control over...
, and at the age of 40 was promoted to lead the 5th Dragoon Guards in 1897 in India. A few years later he wrote a small manual, entitled Aids to Scouting, a summary of lectures he had given on the subject of military scouting, to help train recruits. Using this and other methods he was able to train them to think independently, use their initiative, and survive in the wilderness.
Baden-Powell was accused of illegally executing a prisoner of war, Matabele chief Uwini, in 1896, who had been promised his life would be spared if he surrendered. Uwini was shot by firing squad under Baden-Powell's instructions. Baden-Powell was cleared by an inquiry, and later claimed he was "released without a stain on my character".
Baden-Powell returned to South Africa prior to the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
and was engaged in further military actions against the Zulus. By this time, he had been promoted to be the youngest colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
in the British Army. He was responsible for the organisation of a force of Legion of Frontiersmen
Legion of Frontiersmen
The Legion of Frontiersmen is a paramilitary group formed in Britain in 1905 by Roger Pocock, a former Constable with the North-West Mounted Police and Boer War veteran, with its roots firmly set in another era, to bolster the defensive capacity of the British Empire...
to assist the regular army. While arranging this, he was trapped in the Siege of Mafeking, and surrounded by a Boer army, at times in excess of 8,000 men. Although wholly outnumbered, the garrison withstood the siege for 217 days. Much of this is attributable to cunning military deceptions instituted at Baden-Powell's behest as commander of the garrison. Fake minefields were planted and his soldiers were ordered to simulate avoiding non-existent barbed wire
Barbed wire
Barbed wire, also known as barb wire , is a type of fencing wire constructed with sharp edges or points arranged at intervals along the strand. It is used to construct inexpensive fences and is used atop walls surrounding secured property...
while moving between trenches. Baden-Powell did most of the reconnaissance work himself.
In one instance noting that the Boers had not removed the rail line, Baden-Powell loaded an armoured locomotive with sharpshooters and successfully sent it down the rails into the heart of the Boer encampment and back again in a strategic attempt to decapitate the Boer leadership.
During the siege, a cadet corps
Mafeking Cadet Corps
The Mafeking Cadet Corps was a group of boy cadets during the Siege of Mafeking in South Africa. They are sometimes seen as forerunners of the Scouts, because they were one of Robert Baden-Powell's inspirations in creating of the Scout movement in 1907....
, consisting of white boys below fighting age, was used to stand guard, carry messages, assist in hospitals and so on, freeing the men for military service. Although Baden-Powell did not form this cadet corps himself, and there is no evidence that he took much notice of them during the Siege, he was sufficiently impressed with both their courage and the equanimity with which they performed their tasks to use them later as an object lesson in the first chapter of Scouting for Boys. The siege was lifted in the Relief of Mafeking on 16 May 1900. Promoted to major-general, Baden-Powell became a national hero. After organising the South African Constabulary
South African Police Service
The South African Police Service is the national police force of the Republic of South Africa. Its 1116 police stations in South Africa are divided according to the provincial borders, and a Provincial Commissioner is appointed in each province...
, the national police force, he returned to England to take up a post as Inspector General
Inspector General
An Inspector General is an investigative official in a civil or military organization. The plural of the term is Inspectors General.-Bangladesh:...
of Cavalry in 1903. In 1907 he was appointed to command a division in the newly-formed Territorial Force
Territorial Force
The Territorial Force was the volunteer reserve component of the British Army from 1908 to 1920, when it became the Territorial Army.-Origins:...
.
In 1910 Lieutenant-General Baden-Powell decided to retire from the Army reputedly on the advice of King Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
, who suggested that he could better serve his country by promoting Scouting.
On the outbreak of World War I in 1914, Baden-Powell put himself at the disposal of the War Office. No command was given him, for, as Lord Kitchener
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener
Field Marshal Horatio Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, ADC, PC , was an Irish-born British Field Marshal and proconsul who won fame for his imperial campaigns and later played a central role in the early part of the First World War, although he died halfway...
said: "he could lay his hand on several competent divisional generals but could find no one who could carry on the invaluable work of the Boy Scouts." It was widely rumoured that Baden-Powell was engaged in spying, and intelligence officers took great care to inculcate the myth.
Scouting movement
On his return from Africa in 1903, Baden-Powell found that his military training manual, Aids to Scouting, had become a best-seller, and was being used by teachers and youth organisations. Following his involvement in the Boys' BrigadeBoys' Brigade
For the 80s New Wave band from Canada, see Boys Brigade .The Boys' Brigade is an interdenominational Christian youth organisation, conceived by William Alexander Smith to combine drill and fun activities with Christian values...
as Brigade Secretary and Officer in charge of its scouting section, with encouragement from his friend, William Alexander Smith
William Alexander Smith (Boys' Brigade)
Sir William Alexander Smith , the founder of the Boys' Brigade, was born in Pennyland House, Thurso, Scotland. He was the eldest son of Major David Smith and his wife Harriet...
, Baden-Powell decided to re-write Aids to Scouting to suit a youth readership. In August 1907 he held a camp on Brownsea Island
Brownsea Island Scout camp
The Brownsea Island Scout camp was a boys camping event on Brownsea Island in Poole Harbour, southern England, organised by Lieutenant-General Baden-Powell to test his ideas for the book Scouting for Boys. Boys from different social backgrounds participated from 1 August to 8 August 1907 in...
for twenty-two boys from local Boys Brigade companies and sons of friends of Baden-Powell's from public schools Eton and Harrow to test out the applicability of his ideas. Baden-Powell was also influenced by Ernest Thompson Seton
Ernest Thompson Seton
Ernest Thompson Seton was a Scots-Canadian who became a noted author, wildlife artist, founder of the Woodcraft Indians, and one of the founding pioneers of the Boy Scouts of America . Seton also influenced Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting...
, who founded the Woodcraft Indians
Woodcraft Indians
The League of Woodcraft Indians was an American youth program, established by Ernest Thompson Seton. Despite the name, it was developed for non-Indian boys. It was later renamed the "Woodcraft League of America", and would also allow girls to join...
. Seton gave Baden-Powell a copy of his book The Birch Bark Roll of the Woodcraft Indians and they met in 1906. The first book on the Scout Movement, Baden-Powell's Scouting for Boys
Scouting for Boys
Scouting for Boys: A Handbook for Instruction in Good Citizenship is the first book on the Scout Movement, published in 1908. It was written and illustrated by Robert Baden-Powell, its founder...
was published in six instalments in 1908, and has sold approximately 150 million copies as the fourth best-selling book of the 20th century.
Scout troop
The Scout troop is a unit of Scouts, Boy Scouts, Girl Guides and Girl Scouts that usually meet weekly. Girl Guides often use Unit or Company instead. The troop is the fundamental unit, which a Scout joins and via which he or she participates in Scouting activities, such as camping, backpacking, and...
s and the Scouting Movement had inadvertently started, first as a national, and soon an international obsession. The Scouting Movement was to grow up in friendly parallel relations with the Boys' Brigade. A rally for all Scouts was held at Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast-iron and glass building originally erected in Hyde Park, London, England, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. More than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world gathered in the Palace's of exhibition space to display examples of the latest technology developed in...
in London in 1909, at which Baden-Powell discovered the first Girl Scouts. The Girl Guide Movement was subsequently founded in 1910 under the auspices of Baden-Powell's sister, Agnes Baden-Powell. Baden-Powell's friend, Juliette Gordon Low
Juliette Gordon Low
Juliette Gordon Low was an American youth leader and the founder of the Girl Scouts of the USA in 1912.-Early life:...
, was encouraged by him to bring the Movement to America, where she founded the Girl Scouts of the USA
Girl Scouts of the USA
The Girl Scouts of the United States of America is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. It describes itself as "the world's preeminent organization dedicated solely to girls". It was founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912 and was organized after Low...
.
In 1920, the 1st World Scout Jamboree
1st World Scout Jamboree
The 1st World Scout Jamboree was held from July 30, 1920 to August 8, 1920 and was hosted by the United Kingdom at Kensington Olympia in London...
took place in Olympia
Olympia, London
Olympia is an exhibition centre and conference centre in West Kensington, on the boundary between The Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea and Hammersmith & Fulham, London, W14 8UX, England. It opened in the 19th century and was originally known as the National Agricultural Hall.Opened in 1886,...
, and Baden-Powell was acclaimed Chief Scout
Chief Scout (United Kingdom)
The Chief Scout is the head of The Scout Association. The post originated with the appointment of Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, the founder of the Scout Movement, as Chief Scout. He was designated Chief Scout of the World in 1920 at the first World Scout Jamboree in Olympia, London...
of the World. Baden-Powell was created a Baronet
Baronet
A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
in the 1921 New Year Honours and Baron Baden-Powell
Baron Baden-Powell
Baron Baden-Powell, of Gilwell in the County of Essex, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1929 for the military commander Lieutenant-General Sir Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baronet, hero of the Siege of Mafeking and founder of the international Scouting movement...
, of Gilwell, in the County of Essex, on 17 September 1929, Gilwell Park
Gilwell Park
Gilwell Park is a camp site and activity centre for Scouting groups, as well as a training and conference centre for Scout Leaders. The 44 hectare site is in Sewardstonebury, Epping Forest, close to Chingford, London....
being the International Scout Leader training centre. After receiving this honour, Baden-Powell mostly styled himself "Baden-Powell of Gilwell".
3rd World Scout Jamboree
The 3rd World Scout Jamboree was held in 1929 at Arrowe Park in Upton, Merseyside, United Kingdom. As it was commemorating the 21st birthday of Scouting for Boys and the Scouting movement, it is also known as the Coming of Age Jamboree...
, he received as a present a new 20 horse power Rolls-Royce
Rolls-Royce Limited
Rolls-Royce Limited was a renowned British car and, from 1914 on, aero-engine manufacturing company founded by Charles Stewart Rolls and Henry Royce on 15 March 1906 as the result of a partnership formed in 1904....
car (chassis number GVO-40, registration OU 2938) and an Eccles Caravan
Travel trailer
A travel trailer or caravan is towed behind a road vehicle to provide a place to sleep which is more comfortable and protected than a tent . It provides the means for people to have their own home on a journey or a vacation, without relying on a motel or hotel, and enables them to stay in places...
. This combination well served the Baden-Powells in their further travels around Europe. The caravan was nicknamed Eccles and is now on display at Gilwell Park
Gilwell Park
Gilwell Park is a camp site and activity centre for Scouting groups, as well as a training and conference centre for Scout Leaders. The 44 hectare site is in Sewardstonebury, Epping Forest, close to Chingford, London....
. The car, nicknamed Jam Roll, was sold after his death by Olave Baden-Powell
Olave Baden-Powell
Olave St Clair Baden-Powell, Baroness Baden-Powell, GBE was born Olave St Clair Soames in Chesterfield, England...
in 1945. Jam Roll and Eccles were reunited at Gilwell for the 21st World Scout Jamboree
21st World Scout Jamboree
The 21st World Scout Jamboree was held in July and August 2007, and formed a part of the Scouting 2007 Centenary celebrations of the world Scout Movement. The event was hosted by the United Kingdom, as 2007 marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of Scouting on Brownsea Island.The event was...
in 2007. Recently it has been purchased on behalf of Scouting and is owned by a charity, B-P Jam Roll Ltd. Funds are being raised to repay the loan that was used to purchase the car. Baden-Powell also had a positive impact on improvements in youth education. Under his dedicated command the world Scouting Movement grew. By 1922 there were more than a million Scouts in 32 countries; by 1939 the number of Scouts was in excess of 3.3 million.
At the 5th World Scout Jamboree
5th World Scout Jamboree
The 5th World Scout Jamboree was the World Scout Jamboree where 81-year old Baden-Powell gave his farewell.- Organizational details :The Jamboree in Vogelenzang, Bloemendaal in the Netherlands was opened on 1937-07-31 by Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, with 28,750 Scouts from 54 countries...
in 1937, Baden-Powell gave his farewell to Scouting, and retired from public Scouting life. 22 February, the joint birthday of Robert and Olave Baden-Powell, continues to be marked as Founder's Day
World Thinking Day
World Thinking Day, formerly Thinking Day, is celebrated annually on February 22 by all Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. It is also celebrated by Scout and Guide organizations and some boy-oriented associations around the world...
by Scouts and Thinking Day by Guides to remember and celebrate the work of the Chief Scout and Chief Guide of the World.
In his final letter to the Scouts, Baden-Powell wrote:
...I have had a most happy life and I want each one of you to have a happy life too. I believe that God put us in this jolly world to be happy and enjoy life. Happiness does not come from being rich, nor merely being successful in your career, nor by self-indulgence. One step towards happiness is to make yourself healthy and strong while you are a boy, so that you can be useful and so you can enjoy life when you are a man. Nature study will show you how full of beautiful and wonderful things God has made the world for you to enjoy. Be contented with what you have got and make the best of it. Look on the bright side of things instead of the gloomy one. But the real way to get happiness is by giving out happiness to other people. Try and leave this world a little better than you found it and when your turn comes to die, you can die happy in feeling that at any rate you have not wasted your time but have done your best. 'Be Prepared' in this way, to live happy and to die happy — stick to your Scout Promise always — even after you have ceased to be a boy — and God help you to do it.
Personal life
In January 1912, Baden-Powell met Olave St Clair SoamesOlave Baden-Powell
Olave St Clair Baden-Powell, Baroness Baden-Powell, GBE was born Olave St Clair Soames in Chesterfield, England...
, on the ocean liner, Arcadian, heading for New York to start one of his Scouting World Tours. She was 23, while he was 55; they shared the same birthday, 22 February. They became engaged in September of the same year, causing a media sensation due to Baden-Powell's fame. To avoid press intrusion, they married in secret on 31 October 1912, at St Peter's Church in Parkstone
Parkstone
Parkstone is an area of Poole, Dorset. It is divided into 'Lower' and 'Upper' Parkstone. Upper Parkstone - "Up-on-'ill" as it used to be known in local parlance - is so-called because it is largely on higher ground slightly to the north of the lower-lying area of Lower Parkstone - "The Village" -...
. The Scouts of England each donated a penny to buy Baden-Powell a wedding gift, a car (note that this is not the Rolls-Royce they were presented with in 1929). There is a monument to their marriage inside St Mary's Church, Brownsea Island
Brownsea Island
Brownsea Island is the largest of the islands in Poole Harbour in the county of Dorset, England. The island is owned by the National Trust. Much of the island is open to the public and includes areas of woodland and heath with a wide variety of wildlife, together with cliff top views across Poole...
.
Baden-Powell and Olave lived in Pax Hill
Pax Hill
Pax Hill, near Bentley, Hampshire, England, was the family home of Robert Baden-Powell, founder of the Scout movement, and his wife, Olave, for over twenty years during the 20th century. It is located at the end of a half-mile drive, off the main A31 road....
near Bentley
Bentley, Hampshire
Bentley is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. The parish has an acreage of . The village is located just off the A31 road between Farnham in Surrey and Alton, being about five miles west of Farnham and six miles east of Alton...
, Hampshire from about 1919 until 1939. The Bentley house was a gift of her father. Directly after he had married, Baden-Powell began to suffer persistent headaches, which were considered by his doctor to be of psychosomatic
Psychosomatic illness
Psychosomatic medicine is an interdisciplinary medical field studying the relationships of social, psychological, and behavioral factors on bodily processes and well-being in humans and animals...
origin and treated with dream analysis
Dream interpretation
Dream interpretation is the process of assigning meaning to dreams. In many ancient societies, such as those of Egypt and Greece, dreaming was considered a supernatural communication or a means of divine intervention, whose message could be unravelled by people with certain powers...
. The headaches disappeared upon his moving into a makeshift bedroom set up on his balcony.
The Honourable
The prefix The Honourable or The Honorable is a style used before the names of certain classes of persons. It is considered an honorific styling.-International diplomacy:...
" in 1929 as children of a baron. The son succeeded his father in 1941 to the Baden-Powell barony and the title of Baron Baden-Powell
Baron Baden-Powell
Baron Baden-Powell, of Gilwell in the County of Essex, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1929 for the military commander Lieutenant-General Sir Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baronet, hero of the Siege of Mafeking and founder of the international Scouting movement...
.
- Arthur Robert Peter (Peter)Peter Baden-Powell, 2nd Baron Baden-PowellArthur Robert Peter Baden-Powell, 2nd Baron Baden-Powell, Bt, FRSA was the son of Lieutenant-General Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting, and Olave St. Clair Soames...
, later 2nd Baron Baden-Powell (1913–1962). He married Carine Crause-Boardman in 1936, and had three children: Robert CrauseRobert Crause Baden-Powell, 3rd Baron Baden-PowellRobert Crause Baden-Powell, 3rd Baron Baden-Powell is the son of Carine Crause-Boardman and Peter Baden-Powell, 2nd Baron Baden-Powell , the nephew of Betty Clay, the grandson of Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell and Olave Baden-Powell, the great-nephew of Agnes Baden-Powell, Baden...
, later 3rd Baron Baden-Powell; David Michael (Michael)Michael Baden-PowellDavid Michael Baden-Powell is the heir presumptive to the Barony of Baden-Powell. He is the great-grandson of Baden Powell, the grandson of Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell and Olave Baden-Powell, the great-nephew of Agnes Baden-Powell, Baden Baden-Powell, and Warington Baden-Powell,...
, current heir to the titles, and Wendy. - Heather (1915–1986), who married John King and had two children: Michael, who died in the sinking of SS HeraklionSS HeraklionThe SS Heraklion was a car ferry operating the lines Piraeus - Chania and Piraeus - Irakleio between 1965 and 1966. The ship capsized and sank on 8 December 1966 in the Aegean Sea, resulting in the death of over 200 people.-Background:...
, and Timothy; - BettyBetty ClayThe Hon. Betty St. Clair Baden-Powell, Mrs. Clay, CBE was the daughter of Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting and Olave Baden-Powell...
(1917–2004), who married Gervas Charles Robert Clay in 1936 and had a daughter: Gillian, and three sons: Robin, Nigel and Crispin.
In addition, when Olave's sister Auriol Davidson née Soames died in 1919, Olave and Robert took her three nieces, Christian (1912–1975), Clare (1913–1980), and Yvonne, (1918–1995?), into their family and brought them up as their own children.
Mount Kenya
Mount Kenya is the highest mountain in Kenya and the second-highest in Africa, after Kilimanjaro. The highest peaks of the mountain are Batian , Nelion and Point Lenana . Mount Kenya is located in central Kenya, just south of the equator, around north-northeast of the capital Nairobi...
, where he had previously been to recuperate. The small one-room house, which he named Paxtu, was located on the grounds of the Outspan Hotel
Outspan Hotel
The Outspan Hotel is in Nyeri, Kenya. It was built up from an old farm by Eric Sherbrooke Walker in the 1920s. Famous visitors include Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell and his wife Olave Baden-Powell from 1938 until Baden-Powell's death in 1941...
, owned by Eric Sherbrooke Walker
Eric Sherbrooke Walker
Major Eric George Sherbrooke Walker, MC was hotelier and founder of the Outspan Hotel and Treetops Hotel in Kenya, as well as a decorated military officer...
, Baden-Powell's first private secretary and one of the first Scout inspectors. Walker also owned the Treetops Hotel
Treetops Hotel
Treetops Hotel is a hotel in Aberdare National Park in Kenya near the township of Nyeri, 1,966 m above sea level on the Aberdare Range and in sight of Mount Kenya...
, approx 17 km out in the Aberdare Mountains
Aberdare Range
The Aberdare Range is a 160 km long mountain range of upland, north of Kenya's capital Nairobi with an average elevation of . It is located in west central Kenya, northeast of Naivasha and Gilgil and just south of the Equator...
, often visited by Baden-Powell and people of the Happy Valley set
Happy Valley set
The Happy Valley set was a group of privileged British colonials living in the Happy Valley region of the Wanjohi Valley,near the Aberdare mountain range, in the colonies of Kenya and Uganda during the 1920s - 1940s...
. The Paxtu cottage is integrated into the Outspan Hotel buildings and serves as a small Scouting museum.
Baden-Powell died on 8 January 1941 and is buried in Nyeri, in St. Peter's Cemetery His gravestone bears a circle with a dot in the centre, which is the trail sign for "Going home", or "I have gone home": When his wife Olave died, her ashes were sent to Kenya and interred beside her husband. Kenya has declared Baden-Powell's grave
Baden-Powell grave
The grave of Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell and Olave Baden-Powell is in Nyeri, Kenya, near Mount Kenya. Baden-Powell died on 8 January 1941 and is buried in St. Peter's Cemetery in the Wajee Nature Park...
a national monument.
Personal beliefs
Tim Jeal
Tim Jeal is a British novelist, and biographer of notable Victorian men. His publications include biographies of Baden-Powell, Livingstone and his most recent, Henry Morton Stanley . In 2004 his memoir Swimming with my Father was acclaimed and was shortlisted for the J.R...
, who wrote the biography Baden-Powell
Baden-Powell (book)
Baden-Powell is a 1989 biography of Robert Baden-Powell by Tim Jeal. Tim Jeal's work, researched over five years, was first published by Hutchinson in the UK and Yale University Press . It was reviewed by the New York Times...
, argues that Baden-Powell's distrust of communism led to his implicit support, through naïveté, of fascism. In 1939 Baden-Powell noted in his diary: "Lay up all day. Read Mein Kampf
Mein Kampf
Mein Kampf is a book written by Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. It combines elements of autobiography with an exposition of Hitler's political ideology. Volume 1 of Mein Kampf was published in 1925 and Volume 2 in 1926...
. A wonderful book, with good ideas on education, health, propaganda, organisation etc. – and ideals which Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
does not practise himself." Baden-Powell admired Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
early in the Italian fascist leader's career.
Some very early Scouting "Thanks" badges had a swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
symbol on them. According to biographer Michael Rosenthal, Baden-Powell used the swastika because he was a Nazi sympathiser. Jeal, however, argues that Baden-Powell was naïve
Naïve
Naivety , is the state of being naive—having or showing a lack of experience, understanding or sophistication. One who is naive may be called a naif.- Etymology :...
of the symbol's growing association with fascism and maintained that his use of the symbol related to its earlier, original meaning of "good luck" in Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
, for which purpose the symbol had been used for centuries prior to the rise of fascism. In conflict with the idea that Powell was a Nazi supporter is the fact that Baden-Powell was a target of the Nazi regime in the Black Book
The Black Book
The Black Book was the post-war name given to the Sonderfahndungsliste G.B. , the list of prominent British to be arrested in the case of a successful invasion of Britain by Nazi Germany in World War II.-Background:The list was similar to earlier lists prepared by SS like the Special Prosecution...
, which listed individuals who were to be arrested during and after an invasion of Great Britain as part of Operation Sea Lion. Scouting was regarded as a dangerous spy organisation by the Nazis. Baden-Powell used the swastika as a "Thanks" badge for the Scout Movement well before Hitler used it, and when Hitler did start to use it, Baden-Powell ceased to use it. Previously, the swastika had been used by Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
as a logo on his books.
Artist and writer
Baden-Powell made paintings and drawings almost every day of his life. Most have a humorous or informative character. He published books and other texts during his years of military service both to finance his life and to educate his men.Baden-Powell was regarded as an excellent storyteller. During his whole life he told 'ripping yarns' to audiences. After having published Scouting for Boys, Baden-Powell kept on writing more handbooks and educative materials for all Scouts, as well as directives for Scout Leaders. In his later years, he also wrote about the Scout Movement and his ideas for its future. He spent the last decade of his life in Africa, and many of his later books had African themes.
Currently, many pages of his field diary, complete with drawings, are on display at the National Scouting Museum
National Scouting Museum
The National Scouting Museum, located at 1329 West Walnut Hill Lane in Irving, Texas, is the official museum of the Boy Scouts of America.-Locations:The museum was first opened in 1959 in New Brunswick, New Jersey. It closed in 1979...
in Irving, Texas
Irving, Texas
Irving is a city located in the U.S. state of Texas within Dallas County. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city population was 216,290. Irving is within the Dallas–Plano–Irving metropolitan division of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan area, designated...
.
Sexuality
Early discussion of Baden-Powell's sexuality focused on his relationship with his close friend Kenneth McLarenKenneth McLaren
Kenneth McLaren , DSO, was a Major in the 13th Hussars regiment of the British Army. After his military service he assisted with the growth of the Scouting movement founded by his friend Robert Baden-Powell....
. Tim Jeal's later biography discusses the relationship and concludes that there is no conclusive evidence that this friendship was physical. Jeal then examines Baden-Powell's views on women, his appreciation of the male form, his military relationships and his marriage, indicating that Baden-Powell could be a repressed homosexual
Latent homosexuality
Latent homosexuality is an erotic inclination toward members of the same sex that is not consciously experienced or expressed in overt action...
. Jeal's conclusion is shared by some biographers and disputed by others, but not yet examined in any detail by scholars.
Works
Military books- 1884: Reconnaissance and Scouting
- 1885: Cavalry Instruction
- 1889: Pigsticking or Hoghunting
- 1896: The Downfall of Prempeh
- 1897: The Matabele Campaign
- 1899: Aids to Scouting for N.-C.Os and Men
- 1900: Sport in War
- 1901: Notes and Instructions for the South African Constabulary
- 1914: Quick Training for War
Scouting books
- 1908: Scouting for BoysScouting for BoysScouting for Boys: A Handbook for Instruction in Good Citizenship is the first book on the Scout Movement, published in 1908. It was written and illustrated by Robert Baden-Powell, its founder...
- 1909: Yarns for Boy Scouts
- 1912: The Handbook for the Girl Guides or How Girls Can Help to Build Up the EmpireHow Girls Can Help to Build Up the EmpireThe Handbook for the Girl Guides or How Girls Can Help to Build Up the Empire is the full title of the book more commonly known as How Girls Can Help to Build up the Empire. It was the first handbook for Girl Guides. The author was Agnes Baden-Powell in conjunction with Lieutenant-General Sir...
(co-authored with Agnes Baden-Powell) - 1913: Boy Scouts Beyond The Sea: My World Tour
- 1916: The Wolf Cub's HandbookThe Wolf Cub's HandbookThe Wolf Cub's Handbook is an instruction handbook written by Baden-Powell for Wolf Cubs and pack leaders. The book is based on the theme of the jungle, described in a children's book, The Jungle Book, written by Baden-Powell's friend Rudyard Kipling.-Origins:By 1913, Baden-Powell's Boy Scout...
- 1918: Girl Guiding
- 1919: Aids To Scoutmastership
- 1921: What Scouts Can Do: More Yarns
- 1922: Rovering to SuccessRovering to SuccessRovering to Success is a book written by Robert Baden-Powell in 1922. It is focused on Rover Scouts....
- 1929: Scouting and Youth Movements
- est 1929: Last Message to Scouts
- 1935: Scouting Round the World
Other books
- 1905: Ambidexterity (co-authored with John Jackson)
- 1915: Indian Memories
- 1915: My Adventures as a Spy
- 1916: Young Knights of the Empire: Their Code, and Further Scout Yarns
- 1921: An Old Wolf's Favourites
- 1927: Life's Snags and How to Meet Them
- 1933: Lessons From the Varsity of Life
- 1934: Adventures and Accidents
- 1936: Adventuring to Manhood
- 1937: African Adventures
- 1938: Birds and beasts of Africa
- 1939: Paddle Your Own Canoe
- 1940: More Sketches Of Kenya
Sculpture
- 1905 John Smith
Awards
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit is a British dynastic order recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture...
, one of the most exclusive awards in the British honours system, and he was also awarded 28 decorations by foreign states, including the Grand Officer of the Portuguese Order of Christ
Order of Christ (Portugal)
The Military Order of Christ previously the Royal Order of the Knights of Our Lord Jesus Christ was the heritage of the Knights Templar in Portugal, after the suppression of the Templars in 1312...
, the Grand Commander of the Greek Order of the Redeemer
Order of the Redeemer
The Order of the Redeemer , also known as the Order of the Savior, is an order of Greece. The Order of the Redeemer is the oldest and highest decoration awarded by the modern Greek state.- History :...
(1920), the Commander of the French Légion d'honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
(1925), the First Class of the Hungarian Order of Merit (1929), the Grand Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog
Order of the Dannebrog
The Order of the Dannebrog is an Order of Denmark, instituted in 1671 by Christian V. It resulted from a move in 1660 to break the absolutism of the nobility. The Order was only to comprise 50 noble Knights in one class plus the Master of the Order, i.e. the Danish monarch, and his sons...
of Denmark, the Grand Cross of the Order of the White Lion
Order of the White Lion
The Order of the White Lion is the highest order of the Czech Republic. It continues a Czechoslovak order of the same name created in 1922 as an award for foreigners....
, the Grand Cross of the Order of the Phoenix, and the Order of Polonia Restituta.
The Silver Wolf Award worn by Robert Baden-Powell is handed down the line of his successors, with the current Chief Scout, Bear Grylls
Bear Grylls
Edward Michael "Bear" Grylls is an English adventurer, writer and television presenter. He is best known for his television series Man vs. Wild, known as Born Survivor in the United Kingdom...
wearing this original award.
The Bronze Wolf Award, the only distinction of the World Organization of the Scout Movement
World Organization of the Scout Movement
The World Organization of the Scout Movement is the Non-governmental international organization which governs most national Scout Organizations, with 31 million members. WOSM was established in 1920, and has its headquarters at Geneva, Switzerland...
, awarded by the World Scout Committee for exceptional services to world Scouting, was first awarded to Baden-Powell by a unanimous decision of the then International Committee on the day of the institution of the Bronze Wolf in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
in 1935. He was also the first recipient of the Silver Buffalo Award
Silver Buffalo Award
The Silver Buffalo Award is the national-level distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America. It is presented for noteworthy and extraordinary service to youth on a national basis, either as part of, or independent of the Scouting program...
in 1926, the highest award conferred by the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
.
In 1927, at the Swedish National Jamboree he was awarded by the Österreichischer Pfadfinderbund
Scouting in Austria
Scouting in Austria is served by multiple Scout associations, among them*Boy Scouts and Girl Guides of Austria, member of World Organization of the Scout Movement and WAGGGS, member of the Austrian National Youth Council...
with the "Großes Dankabzeichen des ÖPB.
In 1931 Baden-Powell received the highest award of the First Austrian Republic
First Austrian Republic
The Republic of Austria encompasses the period of Austrian history following the signing of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye of September 1919, the settlement after the end of World War I which put an end to the Republic of German Austria, continuing up to World War II...
(Großes Ehrenzeichen der Republik am Bande) out of the hands of President Wilhelm Miklas
Wilhelm Miklas
Wilhelm Miklas was an Austrian politician who served as the third President of Austria, from 1928 until its annexation by Nazi Germany in the Anschluss 1938.-Early life:...
. Baden-Powell was also one of the first and few recipients of the Goldene Gemse, the highest award conferred by the Österreichischer Pfadfinderbund.
In 1931, Major Frederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham
Frederick Russell Burnham, DSO was an American scout and world traveling adventurer known for his service to the British Army in colonial Africa and for teaching woodcraft to Robert Baden-Powell, thus becoming one of the inspirations for the founding of the international Scouting Movement.Burnham...
dedicated Mount Baden-Powell in California to his old Scouting friend from forty years before. Today their friendship is honoured in perpetuity with the dedication of the adjoining peak, Mount Burnham
Mount Burnham
Mount Burnham is one of the highest peaks in the San Gabriel Mountains. It is in the Sheep Mountain Wilderness. It is named for Frederick Russell Burnham the famous American military scout who taught scoutcraft to Robert Baden-Powell and became one of the inspirations for the founding of the Boy...
.
Baden-Powell was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
on numerous occasions, including 10 separate nominations in 1928.
As part of the Scouting 2007 Centenary
Scouting 2007 Centenary
The Scouting 2007 Centenary comprised celebrations around the world in which Scouts celebrated 100 years of the world Scout movement. The original celebrations were focused on the United Kingdom, such as the camp on Brownsea Island, the birthplace of Scouting, and the 21st World Scout Jamboree in...
, Nepal renamed Urkema Peak to Baden-Powell Peak
Baden-Powell Peak
Baden-Powell Peak, formerly known as Urkema Peak, in Nepal is part of the Himalayas, the highest mountain range in the world. It is on the border with China about a hundred miles west of Mount Everest...
.
Styles
- The family name legally changed from Powell to Baden-Powell by Royal Licence on 30 April 1902.
- 1857–1860: Robert Stephenson Smyth Powell
- 1860–1876: Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell
- 1876: Sub-LieutenantSub-LieutenantSub-lieutenant is a military rank. It is normally a junior officer rank.In many navies, a sub-lieutenant is a naval commissioned or subordinate officer, ranking below a lieutenant. In the Royal Navy the rank of sub-lieutenant is equivalent to the rank of lieutenant in the British Army and of...
Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell - 1876–1884: Lieutenant Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell
- 1884–1892: Captain Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell
- 1892–1896: Major Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell
- 1896-25 April 1897: Major (Bvt. Lieutenant-Colonel) Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell
- 25 April – 7 May 1897: Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell
- 7 May 1897–1901: Lieutenant-Colonel (Bvt. ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
) Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell - 1901–1902: Major-General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell
- 1902–1907: Major-General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, CB
- 1907–12 October 1909: Lieutenant-General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, CB
- 12 October – 9 November 1909: Lieutenant-General Sir Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, KCVORoyal Victorian OrderThe Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
, CB - 9 November 1909–1912: Lieutenant-General Sir Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, KCB, KCVO
- 1912–1923: Lieutenant-General Sir Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, KCB, KCVO, KStJVenerable Order of Saint JohnThe Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem , is a royal order of chivalry established in 1831 and found today throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Hong Kong, Ireland and the United States of America, with the world-wide mission "to prevent and relieve sickness and...
- 1923–1927: Lieutenant-General Sir Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, Bt, GCVO, KCB, KStJ
- 1927–1929: Lieutenant-General Sir Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, Bt, GCMG, GCVO, KCB, KStJ
- 1929–1937: Lieutenant-General The Right HonourableThe Right HonourableThe Right Honourable is an honorific prefix that is traditionally applied to certain people in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Anglophone Caribbean and other Commonwealth Realms, and occasionally elsewhere...
The Lord Baden-Powell, Bt, GCMG, GCVO, KCB, KStJ - 1937–1941: Lieutenant-General The Right Honourable The Lord Baden-Powell, Bt, OM, GCMG, GCVO, KCB, KStJ