Death: Jan. 8, 1941
Burial: St. Peter's Churchyard
Nyeri, Kenya, Africa
British Army General, Boy Scouts Movement Founder. Born in England, he and his brothers would explore the English countryside, pretending to be sailors, explorers or soldiers. He attended the Charterhouse School, and joined the British Army in 1876, serving in India, Afghanistan,and South Africa (1899 to 1902), he was a Colonel and senior commander of the garrison at Mafeking, when it came under siege for seven months by the Boers. His spirited and successful defense of Mafeking, in spite of disease, famine, and enemy attacks, made him a hero in the eyes of the press and the British public. He was later promoted to Lieutenant General and made Inspector General of Cavalry, and was awarded the title of Lord of Gilwell.
His experiences at Mafeking, in which young teenage boys were made into a "cadet corps" to carry messages, often under fire, thus relieving soldiers to serve at the front lines, convinced him of the worth of young boys in their patriotism and valor. Upon returning to England, he saw that British boys needed more physical training and outdoor experience than they were receiving in the then-existing youth programs, and in 1907, he started the Boy Scout movement. With the help of his sister, Agnes Baden-Powell, he organized the Girl Guides (in many countries, the Girl Scouts) movement two years later. Scouting quickly spread to other nations, and Baden-Powell quickly became influential in setting up scouting movements across the globe, while organizing the International Scouting Council.
He would retire from the Army in 1910, to devote himself to being the "Chief Scout of the World." His original book, "Scouting for Boys," is a combination of his philosophy of life and of his experiences in the Army, and contains many tips about living outdoors that he learned from native tribesmen. Although his book is heavily tailored on his wartime African experiences, Baden-Powell organized the Scouts to be scouts in peacetime, to learn those life skills that would enable teenagers to grow into worthwhile men and women and a credit to their society, no matter what their occupation would become. A bachelor most of his adult life, on October 30, 1912 he married Olave Soames, who shared his work in the Scouting movement, and they were active in World War I; they would have three children. In 1938, he retired to Nyeri, Kenya, where he died in 1941.
His decorations include the Order of Merit, Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Michael and St.George, Knight Commander of the Victorian Order, Knight Commander of the Bath, the title Lord Baden-Powell of Gilwell, and numerous honorary doctorate degrees and foreign awards.
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His experiences at Mafeking, in which young teenage boys were made into a "cadet corps" to carry messages, often under fire, thus relieving soldiers to serve at the front lines, convinced him of the worth of young boys in their patriotism and valor. Upon returning to England, he saw that British boys needed more physical training and outdoor experience than they were receiving in the then-existing youth programs, and in 1907, he started the Boy Scout movement. With the help of his sister, Agnes Baden-Powell, he organized the Girl Guides (in many countries, the Girl Scouts) movement two years later. Scouting quickly spread to other nations, and Baden-Powell quickly became influential in setting up scouting movements across the globe, while organizing the International Scouting Council.
He would retire from the Army in 1910, to devote himself to being the "Chief Scout of the World." His original book, "Scouting for Boys," is a combination of his philosophy of life and of his experiences in the Army, and contains many tips about living outdoors that he learned from native tribesmen. Although his book is heavily tailored on his wartime African experiences, Baden-Powell organized the Scouts to be scouts in peacetime, to learn those life skills that would enable teenagers to grow into worthwhile men and women and a credit to their society, no matter what their occupation would become. A bachelor most of his adult life, on October 30, 1912 he married Olave Soames, who shared his work in the Scouting movement, and they were active in World War I; they would have three children. In 1938, he retired to Nyeri, Kenya, where he died in 1941.
His decorations include the Order of Merit, Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Michael and St.George, Knight Commander of the Victorian Order, Knight Commander of the Bath, the title Lord Baden-Powell of Gilwell, and numerous honorary doctorate degrees and foreign awards.
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--from a biography by Kit and Morgan Benson at Find-A-Grave Memorial #1271, http://www.findagrave.com.
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Blog Value Added Saturday, Nov 1, 2009: From Scouts-L member Lorie McGraw comes this graphic of B-P's "gone home" symbol. Click on the address below and download it to your hard drive.
http://www.troop91bsa.org/images/gonehome.gif
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The Dean and Chapter of Westminster Abbey offered a place for Baden-Powell, between the graves of the Unknown Warrior and David Livingstone. After careful consideration, the family declined this great honour as not conforming to B-P's expressed wishes. He was buried in the Africa he loved with full military honors accorded to his rank of Lieutenant-General and with a guard of Boy Scouts European, African and Asian. His grave in the tiny cemetery of Nyeri, Kenya, is marked by a simple stone that carries his name and the Boy Scout trail sign for the end of the trail "I have gone home."
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Your WB Scribbler had the privilege of visiting B-P's grave in Nyeri, Kenya in 2005 at the invitation of WOSA officials, after attending a Southern Zone Africa Conference in Masero, Lesotho. It is humbling to walk in the small churchyard there and know you are standing at the grave of the founder of the worldwide Scouting movement, an experience I will never forget. Below is a picture I took of B-P's grave. (Sorry, it's a little fuzzy because it's hard to focus when you are all chocked up...)
--WB Scribbler
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Your WB Scribbler had the privilege of visiting B-P's grave in Nyeri, Kenya in 2005 at the invitation of WOSA officials, after attending a Southern Zone Africa Conference in Masero, Lesotho. It is humbling to walk in the small churchyard there and know you are standing at the grave of the founder of the worldwide Scouting movement, an experience I will never forget. Below is a picture I took of B-P's grave. (Sorry, it's a little fuzzy because it's hard to focus when you are all chocked up...)
--WB Scribbler
Blog Value Added Saturday, Nov 1, 2009: From Scouts-L member Lorie McGraw comes this graphic of B-P's "gone home" symbol. Click on the address below and download it to your hard drive.
http://www.troop91bsa.org/images/gonehome.gif
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