No less than fifty Old Boys from Magdalen College School, Oxford died during or as a result of The Great War. Set against the hundreds of thousands of their countrymen this number may seem small but it left an indelible mark not only on their 'alma mater' but on the lives of their families and friends. Indeed the names of five of the School's six Houses are a permanent reminder of this extraordinary sacrifice (Callender, Chavasse, Leicester, Maltby, Wilkinson-Blagden). One hundred years after the start of the War the background, school and service record, and circumstance of death of each of these young men is revealed for the first time. While every school in the country will have suffered loss, Magdalen College School is unique in that it numbers Noel Chavasse (the only double Victoria Cross winner of the War) as well as John Fox Russell VC MC among the Old Boys who fell. Others honoured in this fine book include a 1st Class cricketer, Francis Roberts, and a member of the inaugural Welsh Rugby team, Richard Garnons Williams.
Thanks to meticulous research each of the fifty accounts reveal fascinating snippets of social, school, sporting and military history, spanning the period leading up to and including the years and theatres of The Great War. Mister Brownrigg's Boys will not only be especially significant to anyone connected with the school or the Oxford area, but will also provide a moving and informative personal level account of The Great War to the general reader.