This is a list of notable Old Derbeians, former pupils and masters of

Derby School Derby School was a school in Derby in the English Midlands from 1160 to 1989. It had an almost continuous history of education of over eight centuries. For most of that time it was a grammar school for boys. The school became co-educational a ...

(from the 12th century to 1989) and of

Derby Grammar School Derby Grammar School is a selective independent day school in Littleover near the city of Derby, England. Founded in 1995 as a continuation of Derby School, founded in 1160, it educates girls and boys between the ages of 4 and 18. The school c ...

(since 1994), in

Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Notable old boys

Born in the 16th century

* Blessed

Edward James Edward Frank Willis James (16 August 1907 – 2 December 1984) was a British poet known for his patronage of the surrealist art movement. Early life and marriage James was born on 16 August 1907, the only son of William James (who had inheri ...

(1557–1588), Roman Catholic martyr * John Cotton (1585–1652),

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to rid the Church of England of what they considered to be Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should b ...

Born in the 17th century

George Sitwell Sir George Reresby Sitwell, 4th Baronet (27 January 1860 – 9 July 1943) was a British antiquarian writer and Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1885 and 1895. Early life Sitwell was born in London, the son of Sir ...

(c.1600-1667),

Ironmaster An ironmaster is the manager, and usually owner, of a forge or blast furnace for the processing of iron. It is a term mainly associated with the period of the Industrial Revolution, especially in Great Britain. The ironmaster was usually a larg ...

and High Sheriff *

John Flamsteed John Flamsteed (19 August 1646 – 31 December 1719) was an English astronomer and the first Astronomer Royal. His main achievements were the preparation of a 3,000-star catalogue, ''Catalogus Britannicus'', and a star atlas called '' Atlas ...

(1646–1719), England's first

Astronomer Royal Astronomer Royal is a senior post in the Royal Households of the United Kingdom. There are two officers, the senior being the astronomer royal dating from 22 June 1675; the junior is the astronomer royal for Scotland dating from 1834. The Astro ...

* Anthony Blackwall (1672–1730), classical scholarDistinguished Alumni of Derby School by James Michael John Fletcher (Derby Reporter, 1872) * Henry Cantrell (1684–1773),

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

and religious controversialist''Cantrell, Henry, Church of England clergyman and religious controversialist'' by David L. Wykes in ''

Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'' (

OUP Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, 2004) *

William Budworth William Budworth (1699 – September 1745) was a schoolmaster at Brewood in Staffordshire, England. He taught several notable pupils, but he is most remembered for not employing Samuel Johnson as an assistant at Brewood Grammar School. Lif ...

(c. 1699–1745), schoolmaster

Born in the 18th century

Sir John Eardley Wilmot Sir John Eardley Wilmot PC SL (16 August 17095 February 1792) was an English judge, Chief Justice of the Common Pleas from 1766 to 1771. Family and early life Wilmot was the second son of Robert Wilmot (1669–1738), of Osmaston Hall, near ...

(1709–1792),

Chief Justice of the Common Pleas The chief justice of the common pleas was the head of the Court of Common Pleas, also known as the Common Bench, which was the second-highest common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body ...

* Joseph Wright (1734–1797), artist *

Daniel Coke Daniel Parker Coke (17 July 1745 – 6 December 1825), was an English barrister and Member of Parliament. Early life Coke was the only son of Thomas Coke (1700–1776), a barrister, and his wife, Matilda Goodwin (1706–1777). He belonged ...

(1745–1825), barrister and member of parliament''Coke, Daniel Parker (1745–1825), barrister and politician'' by Mark Pottle in ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (Oxford University Press, 2004) *

Alleyne FitzHerbert, 1st Baron St Helens Alleyne FitzHerbert, 1st Baron St Helens, PC (1 March 1753 – 19 February 1839)''Fitzherbert, Alleyne, Baron St Helens (1753–1839), diplomatist'' by Stephen M. Lee in ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' was a British diplomat. He was ...

(1753–1839), diplomat * Joseph Strutt (1765–1844), cotton manufacturer and philanthropist *

Sir William Gell Sir William Gell FRS (29 March 17774 February 1836), pron. "Jell", was a British classical archaeologist and illustrator. He published topographical illustrations of Troy and the surrounding area in 1804. He also published illustrations show ...

(1777–1836), archaeologist

Born in the 19th century

* Sir Francis Seymour Haden (1818–1910), surgeon and artist''The Derby School Register, 1570-1901'', ed. Benjamin Tacchella (London, 1902) *

Henry Howe Bemrose Sir Henry Howe Bemrose (19 November 1827 – 4 May 1911) was a British printer and publisher, as well as mayor and later Conservative Member of Parliament for Derby. Life Bemrose was the first son of William Bemrose, and was educated at Derb ...

(1827–1911), member of parliament for

Unwin Sowter Unwin Sowter (22 April 1839 – 14 April 1910) was an English corn factor and miller and cricketer who played for Derbyshire between 1871 and 1876. He was a member of the team that played Derbyshire's first match in May 1871. Sowter was born a ...

(1839–1910), maltster, cricketer and Mayor of Derby *

John Cook Wilson John Cook Wilson (6 June 1849 – 11 August 1915) was an English philosopher, Wykeham Professor of Logic and Fellow of New College. Early life and career John Cook Wilson was born in Nottingham, England, in 1849. He was the son of James Wil ...

(1849–1915), philosopher * J. M. J. Fletcher (1850–1934),

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

Frank Styant Browne Frank Styant Browne (10 July 1854 – 17 April 1938), also known as Styant Browne, was an Australian pharmacist, artist, photographer and X-ray pioneer from Tasmania. In Australia, the medical men of the day took a slow approach in the adoption ...

, chemist and photographer * E. W. Hobson FRS (1856–1933), mathematician *

Richard Mansfield Richard Mansfield (24 May 1857 – 30 August 1907) was a German-born English actor-manager best known for his performances in Shakespeare plays, Gilbert and Sullivan operas, and the play ''Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1887 play), Dr. Jekyll and Mr ...

(1857–1907), actor * John Atkinson Hobson (1858–1940), social theorist and economist *

Walter Weston Walter Weston (25 December 1861 – 27 March 1940) was an English clergyman and Anglican missionary who helped popularise recreational mountaineering in Japan at the turn of the 20th century. Background and early life Weston was born 25 Dece ...

(1860–1940), missionary and mountaineer *

Frederic Creswell Colonel Frederic Hugh Page Creswell DSO (13 November 1866 – 25 August 1948) was a Labour Party politician in South Africa. He was Minister of Defence from 30 June 1924 to 29 March 1933. Early life and family The son of Edmund Creswell, Dep ...

(1866–1948), mining engineer and

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Minister of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

* Christopher Wilson (1874-1919), composer of theatre music and author, ''Shakespeare and Music'' (1922) * Stanley Hawley (1867-1916), pianist and composer. *

Lawrence Beesley Lawrence Beesley (31 December 1877 – 14 February 1967) was an English science teacher, journalist and author who was a survivor of the sinking of . Education Beesley was educated at Derby School, where he was a scholar, and afterwards at Ca ...

(1877–1967), RMS ''Titanic'' survivor and author * William Henry Ansell (1872–1959), architect, President of the

Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...

from 1940 to 1943 *

Walter Greatorex Walter Greatorex (30 March 1877 – 29 December 1949) was an English composer and musician. He is probably best remembered for his hymn tune ''Woodlands'' which has been used with hymns such as Henry Montagu Butler's '' Lift Up Your Hearts!'', '' ...

(1877–1949), composer *

Charles Tate Regan Charles Tate Regan (1 February 1878 – 12 January 1943) was a British ichthyology, ichthyologist, working mainly around the beginning of the 20th century. He did extensive work on fish classification schemes. Born in Sherborne, Dorset, he was ...

(1878–1943), ichthyologist * Sir George Simpson FRS (1878–1965), meteorologist * Geoffrey Shaw (1879–1943), composer and musician * Guy Wilson (1882–1917), cricketer and soldier * William George Constable (1887–1976),

art historian Art history is the study of artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Traditionally, the ...

Papers of William George Constable
at janus.lib.cam.ac.uk, ref. GBR/0275, accessed 14 July 2007 * Frank Conroy (1890–1964), actor * Robert Howe (1893–1981), last

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

of the

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

, 1947-1955 * Ernest Sterndale Bennett (1884-1982), Theatre Director and member of the Order of Canada

Born in the 20th century

Max Bemrose Sir John Maxwell Bemrose (1 July 1904 – 13 July 1986), known as Sir Max Bemrose, was an English industrialist, politician, and county officer for Derbyshire. Early life The younger son of Dr Henry Howe Bemrose, of Derby, and the grandson of S ...

(1904–1986), Chairman of Bemrose Corporation and

High Sheriff of Derbyshire This is a list of Sheriffs of Derbyshire from 1567 until 1974 and High Sheriffs since. The ancient Sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the invasion of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around ...

* George Timms (1910–1997), clergyman *

P. G. Ashmore Professor Philip George Ashmore, known as Sandy Ashmore, (5 May 1916 – 25 March 2002) was an English academic chemist and the first Professor of Physical Chemistry at UMIST, Manchester. Background and education The son of a schoolmaster who ...

(1916–2002),

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a graduated scientist trained in the study of chemistry, or an officially enrolled student in the field. Chemists study the composition of ...

* Gilbert Hodgkinson (1913–1987), cricketer * Spencer Barrett (1914–2001), classical scholar, Fellow and Sub-Warden of

Keble College, Oxford Keble College () is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its main buildings are on Parks Road, opposite the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, University Museum a ...

Hollis, Adrian
Spencer Barrett, Oxford don devoted to classics and his college
obituary in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', 17 October 2001, online at guardian.co.uk, accessed 14 August 2008 * George Bacon (1917-2011),

nuclear physicist Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the ...

Ted Moult Edward Walker Moult (11 February 1926 – 3 September 1986) was a British farmer at Scaddows Farm near Ticknall, Derbyshire, who became a radio and television personality. Early life Moult was born on 11 February 1926 in Derby. He left D ...

(1926–1986), farmer & TV personality * Alexander Morrison (1927-2012), judge * John Stobart (born 1929), maritime artist * Robert Grimley (born 1943),

Dean of Bristol The Dean of Bristol is the head of the Chapter of the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, Bristol, England. The Dean is Mandy Ford, since her installation on 3 October 2020. List of deans Early modern *1542–1551 William Sn ...

since 1997

Notable masters of Derby School

John Meade Falkner John Meade Falkner (8 May 1858 – 22 July 1932) was an English novelist and poet, best known for his 1898 novel ''Moonfleet (novel), Moonfleet''. An extremely successful businessman, he became chairman of the arms manufacturer Armstro ...

, novelist and poet * Rev. Robert de Courcy Laffan (Senior Classical Master, 1880–1884), principal of

Cheltenham College Cheltenham College is a public school ( fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18) in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The school opened in 1841 as a Church of England foundation and is known for its outstanding linguis ...

, member of the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

*Henry Judge Hose (Maths master, 1867–1874), mathematician''Henry Judge Hose (1826-1883)''
by K. J. Cable in ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' online, accessed 14 July 2007

References

Sources

*''Derby School: a Short History'' by George Percy Gollin {{DEFAULTSORT:List of Old Derbeians

Old Derbeians