3rd Bombay Regiment - The Steel Heads 3rd Bombay Regiment - Those of you who know something about the history of the Beauchamp Lodge will recall that its founding Brethren came predominantly from the Royal Engineers and 109th Regiment of Foot, both of whom were stationed at Roorkee in 1872. The military reputation of the […]

Order of the Garter King Edward III founded the Order of the Garter around the time of his claim to the French throne. The traditional year of foundation is usually given as 1348 (when it was formally proclaimed). However, The Complete Peerage, under ”The Founders of the Order”, states the order was first instituted on 23rd April […]

The George Cross GC The George Cross is a British civilian and military decoration, instituted in 1940 by King George VI for “acts of the greatest heroism or of the most conspicuous courage in circumstances of extreme danger.” The award, which can be conferred posthumously, is usually given to civilians, although it can be bestowed on military personnel […]

Birth date - Guy Fawkes Guy Fawkes (English Catholic Conspirator) was born in 1570. Guy is infamous for trying to blow up the English Parliament - with King James I in it. He is now the 'guy' that is burned on bonfires in England on 5th November. The Gunpowder Plot The tradition of Guy Fawkes-related […]

Titanic - Maiden Voyage Maiden Voyage - The Titanic sailed out of Southampton, England, on its maiden and only voyage on April 10th, 1912. Construction of the ship began two years earlier in Belfast, Ireland and was completed March 31st, 1912. Days after setting sail, on April 15th, 1912, the Titanic sank after colliding with an […]

SS Canberra sails 9th April 1982 at 2015hrs, SS Canberra slips her moorings as the band on the quayside strike up Rod Stewart’s, ‘ We Are Sailing’. SS Canberra was an ocean liner, which later operated on cruises, in the P&O fleet from 1961 to 1997. She was built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Northern Ireland […]

07-12-1917 The United States of America enter World War I On this day 07-12-1917 On April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson went before a joint session of Congress to request a declaration of war against Germany. Wilson cited Germany’s violation of its pledge to suspend unrestricted submarine warfare in the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean, as well […]

Colonel R. K. Ridgeway, V.C., C.B., 44th Gurkha Regiment of Bengal Infantry, awarded the Victoria Cross for gallantry at Konoma in the Naga Hills when he was severely wounded. Victoria Cross London Gazette 11th May 1880, Companion of the Bath London Gazette 4th July 1905 Richard Kirby Ridgeway, the second son of R. Ridgeway, Esq., […]

The Mother Lodge - Rudyard Kipling The Mother Lodge - According to the English magazine Masonic Illustrated, Kipling became a Freemason in about 1885, before the usual minimum age of 21, being initiated into Hope and Perseverance Lodge No. 782 in Lahore. He later wrote to The Times, "I was Secretary for some years of the Lodge... which included Brethren of at least […]