Aged 35, Major Geoffrey Spencer Bull was the second oldest Oundelian to die in the conflict. He was born in Rawal Pindi in India in 1880 and came to Laxton House at the age of 10. Whilst at school, he developed a fine baritone voice described in the Laxtonian magazine as “one of the best we have heard”, and was a keen debater. He played a few games for the cricket XI. Although seen as “a fair fielder”, the Laxtonian judged that “he was absolutely useless as a bat.” Despite this deficiency, he was a senior scholar, became Head of School in 1897, and was a member of the XV for several seasons, described as the best all-round forward of the team in his last season.
After leaving Oundle he went to Woolwich – he passed 12th in the entrance exams - and was gazetted to the Royal Garrison Artillery and sent back to India. In 1903, he transferred to the 58th (Vaughan’s) Rifles and from 1908-13, he served on India’s lawless and troubled North-West Frontier, seeing active service for most of that time. In 1913 he came home on a year’s leave, spending part of the time in Turkey.
When war broke out in 1914, he was attached as Major to the 6th East Lancashire Regiment and sent to France. In November 1914, he rejoined his old regiment when it came to Europe with the Meerut Division. There is no doubting his gallantry and courage under fire. He won the DSO and Military Cross for “his gallant defence of a trench near Festubert”. In May 1915, he was seriously wounded in the right arm and recuperated back in England, where he married.
Fully recovered, he was sent to Egypt, to help guard the Suez Canal from the Turks and it was there that he died on 25th March 1916. There are no details about the circumstances surrounding his death, but one book on the deaths of army officers during the war claimed that his death was “self-inflicted”. Possibly this might mean an accident of some kind, but more likely it hints at suicide. Unusually, Geoffrey Bull has his own memorial plaque in the School Chapel, which says that he died “in a further heroic effort to serve his country”.
However he died, Geoffrey Bull was a great soldier who suffered and died for country. As the Chapel plaque dedicated to his memory concludes: “Who dies if England lives?”
C Pendrill
Yarrow Fellow