Roland Erasmus Philipps, (27 February 1890 – 7 July 1916) was a writer and a leading

Scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement * Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

official. He was the second son of

John Philipps, 1st Viscount St Davids John Wynford Philipps, 1st Viscount St Davids , (30 May 1860 – 28 March 1938) was a British Liberal politician. Background and education Philipps was the eldest son of Reverend Sir James Erasmus Philipps, 12th Baronet, Vicar of Warminste ...

and his first wife, Leonora Gerstenberg. He was educated at

Twyford School Twyford School is a co-educational, independent, preparatory boarding and day school, located in the village of Twyford, Hampshire, England. History Twyford states itself to be the oldest preparatory school in the United Kingdom. It moved to i ...

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of ...

and

New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at ...

. Philipps became an early

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement * Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

leader. In July 1912 he was appointed assistant district commissioner for

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...

. Towards the end of 1912 and into 1913 he and

Stanley Ince Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

established the ''Hackney Lectures on Scout Law''. In 1913 he was appointed commissioner for northeast

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, and in November 1913 he was made responsible for all of East London. He wrote several books on Scouting, some published after his death. Shortly before the war, he was adopted as prospective Liberal candidate for

South Glamorgan , Government= South Glamorgan County Council , Status= Non-metropolitan county (1974–1996) Preserved county (1996–) , Start= 1974 , End= 1996 , Arms= , HQ= ...

. Philipps served as an officer in the British Army during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...

. For his actions in the assault on the

Hohenzollern Redoubt The Hohenzollern Redoubt () was a strongpoint of the German 6th Army on the Western Front during the First World War, at Auchy-les-Mines near Loos-en-Gohelle in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France. Named after the House of Hohenzollern ...

, he was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

, as a temporary captain with 9th Battalion,

The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many wa ...

, in April 1916. He was killed on 7 July 1916 while leading his men into action during the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

and is buried at

Aveluy Aveluy () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. See also *Communes of the Somme department The following is a list of the 772 communes of the Somme department of France. The communes cooperate in the ...

in Aveluy Communal Cemetery Extension. accessed April 15, 2022 The inscription on his gravestone states: COMMISSIONER OF BOY SCOUTS FOR NORTH EAST AND EAST LONDON. Philipps' only sibling and previous heir apparent to the title (the Baron St Davids) had also been killed in the war on 13 May 1915. Roland House, 29,

Stepney Green Stepney Green Park is a park in Stepney, Tower Hamlets, London. It is a remnant of a larger area of common land. It was formerly known as Mile End Green. A Crossrail construction site occupies part of the green, with Stepney Green cavern ...

in the

East End of London The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have un ...

, which he left in his will to the Scouts of East London, was an important part of Scouting in London and more widely in

Scouting in the United Kingdom Scouting and Guiding in the United Kingdom is served by several different organisations: *The Scout Association, member of World Organization of the Scout Movement *Girlguiding UK, member of World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts **Trefo ...

. The House on the Green, as it was known, became a memorial to him. It was a home to several

Scout Leader A Scout leader or Scouter generally refers to the trained adult leader of a Scout unit. The terms used vary from country to country, over time, and with the type of unit. Roles There are many different roles a leader can fulfill depending on t ...

s from Groups in East London, a hostel for visitors, the headquarters of a

Rover Scout Rover Scouts, Rovers, Rover Scouting or Rovering is a program associated with some Scouting organizations for adult men and women. A group of Rovers is called a 'Rover Crew'. Rovers was originated by The Boy Scouts Association in the United K ...

Crew and a Scout Shop. It was sold in 1983. A Scout Group in

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

is named after him, and has recorded his biography in detail.Home page of Mexico biography
/ref> The Hon. Roland Augusto Jestyn Estanislao Philipps, (better known as blues musician Todd Sharpville), was named after his ancestor Roland Erasmus Philipps.

Partial bibliography

*''The Patrol System'', 1917 *''Letters to a Patrol Leader'', 1917

References

External links

Remembering Roland
(Scout Association's Heritage Collection)
Roland Philipps: Scout, Soldier, Somme
(Gateways to the First World War) {{DEFAULTSORT:Philipps, Roland Scouting pioneers Scouting and Guiding in the United Kingdom Recipients of the Military Cross British military personnel killed in the Battle of the Somme British Army personnel of World War I Younger sons of viscounts People educated at Winchester College Alumni of New College, Oxford Royal Fusiliers officers 1890 births 1916 deaths People educated at Twyford School Heirs apparent who never acceded