A ‘MISSING’ scrapbook which belonged to one of Britain’s greatest war heroes has been acquired by his old school.
Magdalen College School in East Oxford has bought the childhood ‘scrapbook’ of former pupils Noel Godfrey Chavasse, VC & Bar, MC and his twin brother Christopher Maud Chavasse, later Bishop of Rochester and founder of St Peter’s Hall, later St Peter’s College.
The acquisition also includes the Second World War gallantry medals of the latter’s son, Major Noel W Chavasse.
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Noel Godfrey Chavasse is the most highly decorated British officer of the First World War, and one of only three men to be awarded the Victoria Cross twice.
He and his brother Christopher were pupils at Magdalen College School between 1896 and 1900, before the family moved to Liverpool.
The 209 page ‘scrapbook’ was created over the winter of 1900-1901 and is called Snow Flakes.
It takes the form of a hand-written magazine, written by Christopher and illustrated with sketches and watercolours by Noel, depicting scenes from their lives in Oxford.
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The items came to the school’s attention by chance after a teacher spotted the scrapbook on television show History Hunters.
The school bought Snow Flakes and the medals from antiques sellers War & Son on April 10, just over a week after the programme aired, with the help of a generous donor.
The items will go on display alongside an already extensive collection of personal effects belonging to the brothers, including Noel Chavasse’s Field Cap and Death Penny.
The former pupil died on August 4, 1917, in the Battle of Passchendaele.
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A commemorative paving stone dedicated to Noel Chavasse is situated outside the school gates. There is also a memorial stone at St Peter’s College.
Helen Pike, Master of Magdalen College School, said of the acquisition: “The Snow Flakes scrapbook looks back on the Chavasse twins’ time at Magdalen College School, so I could not be more delighted that it is now returning to Oxford to be treasured by us.”
In light of the school’s closure due the Coronavirus pandemic, the MCS Archive recently announced the founding of a new collection of pupil, parent, staff and alumni reactions to the crisis.
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Called The Pandemic Papers, MCS hopes to collate the school community’s reactions to the pandemic, encouraging pupils to create ‘scrapbooks’ of their own 120 years after Snow Flakes was created.
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