The numbers of Old Boys serving in the 1st World War – or the Great War as it was known then – was 580. In a school with a nominal intake of 120 pupils per annum that is a huge percentage:
Royal Navy 29
Royal Marines 3
Army 491
Royal Air Force 57
Total distinctions gained were (in hierarchical order):
KCB – Knight Commander of the Bath: 1 (a British order of chivalry founded in 1725, awarded for service to the Crown and one of the ranks within that Order)
CB – Companion of the Order of the Bath: 3 (honour awarded for service to the Crown, typically to senior military officers or civil servants; one of the distinctions included in the 1918 New Year Honours list, recognising significant contributions during that time)
CBE – Commander of the Order of the British Empire: 1 (honour established in 1917 to recognize significant contributions to the British Empire, particularly during World War I)
DSO – Distinguished Service Order 9
OBE – Officer of the Order of the British Empire: 3 (established in 1917 to recognize significant contributions to the British Empire, particularly during World War I; one of the five classes of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire which includes various levels of recognition for both military and civilian services)
MBE – Member of the Order of the British Empire: 5 (awarded to individuals for significant contributions to their communities or the nation; established in 1917 and included in the 1918 Birthday Honours list to recognise various services, particularly during World War I)
MC & Bar – Military Cross and Bar: 3 (Military Cross with an additional bar awarded for further acts of gallantry, given to officers for exemplary bravery during active operations)
MC – Military Cross: 25 (decoration awarded for exemplary gallantry during active operations against the enemy, primarily to officers and warrant officers; established on December 28 1914 to recognise acts of bravery that did not meet the criteria for the Victoria Cross)
DFC – Distinguished Flying Cross: 1 (a military decoration established in 1918, awarded for exemplary gallantry during active operations against the enemy in the air and primarily given to officers and warrant officers of the Royal Air Force and other services)
AFC – Air Force Cross: 1 (a military decoration established in 1918, awarded for exemplary gallantry while flying, though not in active operations against the enemy; primarily given to officers and warrant officers and later extended to all ranks)
MSM – Meritorious Service Medal: 3 (awarded for distinguished service or acts of gallantry by non-commissioned officers and warrant officers)
Foreign distinctions awarded were:
French Légion d’Honneur: 2
French Croix de Guerre: 4
Belgian Croix de Guerre: 3
Belgian Ordre de la Couronne: 1
Italian Silver Medal: 2
Italian Croce di Guerra: 1