Lt Col PR Papillon, DSO. First Commanding Officer - *updated*

Pelham Rawstorn Papillon, born 22 June 1864 at Devonport Street in London's Hyde Park, was raised at Lexden Manor in Colchester, educated at Winchester School and studied at University College Oxford (BA Law). He played cricket for County and the MCC, although I believe this is the Madras Cricket Club and not Middlesex. He was the Sussex magistrate with the longest service, first appointed to the bench in 1888 aged 24, serving until his death March 18th 1940.

In his youth he was a bit of an amateur archeologist, donating this lovely piece of ivory shaped like a Gladiator which he dug up at Lexden in Colchester. It's currently on display at the British Museum:

Lexden Manor and its Parish Church was one of the large, influential Papillon family 'seats' dotted around various parts of the country. Others were the main family seat Crowhurst Park and his private home Catsfield Place just outside Battle in Sussex. Other properties included Acrise Place in Kent and Papillon Hall in Leicestershire.

His family were very established in 'society' and extremely well connected, even from the earliest dates.

here's his sister Bertha, sketched by John Singer Sargent in 1912:

The Papillons were originally Huguenots.

Thomas Papillon was Captain of the Guard to Henri IV of France but he sent his family to England in 1588 to avoid persecution as Protestants. His second son David (d. 1659) became an expert on fortification and built Papillon Hall in Lubenham (Leicestershire), an unusual octagonal house constructed according to his own theories of stategic defense.

Rumour says he bricked his first wife, a Spaniard, into one wall in the roof of of Papillon Hall. She died a prolonged death and apparently haunted the place until it was sold in the mid 18thC and finally demolished in the 1950's, becoming a cropfield which the current farmer insists is haunted still.

He married as his second wife Anne Marie Calandrini, whose family had fled Italy as Protestants. Thomas (b. 1702) the eldest son of this marriage purchased Acrise Park (Kent). He was a prominent merchant and campaigner for civil and religious freedoms as M.P. for Dover and then for Colchester. His son Philip (b. 1736) was also M.P. for Dover and Colchester. He married Emily Caroline Garnier, daughter of the Very Rev. Thomas Garnier, Dean of Lincoln.



Pelham was one of seven children (he and his three brothers all played cricket for Sussex) and determined after studying Law to have his career in the Army. He served in the Boer War, became Captain some time before 1902 (as he is shown listed on board the 'Wakool', June 1902, on the way to St Helena. I presume this was for guard duty. The other mention is of him on board the 'Dominion', Aug 21 1902, presumably on his way home to England) and he was mentioned in Kitcheners Final Dispatch of June 23rd 1902.

He began WW1 with 9th (S) Bn, Royal Sussex Regiment










Although married, Pelham still had his old batchelor pad at 35 Eaton Place, SW1 and his phone number was 4271. His old apartment is now the Hungarian Embassy and flats in the street go for £5,000 per week in rent!

His country home was at Catsfield, one of the many properties belonging to the vast Crowhurst Estate.










He then was offered Command of a brand new Battalion, one of Kitcheners 'New Army'. He was 51 years old. I cannot concieve of a 'posher' more straight-back 'Toff' put in charge of what must have been the most 'cockney-est' bunch of ill disciplined, rowdy 'football crowd' Cockneys! And I bet he relished it!

I really do think that after the intial 'testing' that he would undoubtedly have been given by the Men, that they would come to respect him - for his 'fairness' (as a cricket man); for his combat experience in South Africa; for his impeccable qualifications as a man of Justice (he was an Appeals Magistrate), and of his respect for the traditions of the Past and of the value of recording data for the Future - he compiled a 'stock take' of all the interesting old documents hidden away in the stately homes of England on behalf of the Government before WW1. It began with his own collection of family letters, eventually becoming the Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts in 1904.

The Volunteers would have got to know Papillon, from that first parade at St Lukes Church, West Ham on February 7th 1915, or over on Wanstead Flats for the initial training sessions - where I imagine he probably showed great 'public school' & Army enthusiasm, gave encouraging speeches and did equally as much hard graft as he expected others to : in other words he 'mucked in'.

The response was enormous: word went around and the 13th Essex were overwhelmed with fresh volunteers - so many, in fact, they even considered raising a second "Hammers" Battalion. The Thames Ironworks Band played the music at the drumhead at Wanstead on May 16th, and by May 19th 1915, 1,300 smartly turned out soldiers, including my GtGrandfather, marched from Stratford to Brentford and began their journey to France & Flanders.

I expect he was very anxious after seeing the HS Anglia blow up in Folkestone Harbour, as two of his sisters, Kate and Cicely, were serving as Nurses with the French Red Cross.

On the European battlefield, the combat action slowly built from relatively calm Trench training area's through to the full horrors of WW1 Warfare, the death count kept building, finally culminating in a crescendo when he was severely wounded by artillery 'crumping' his HQ Command Post more than once while at Delville Wood.
















On the 28th August, he 'proceeded to England on special leave'. It may have had something to do with his wife being pregnant, although I very much doubt it because as a Hospital Matron she would'nt think to bother her husband fighting at the Front.

It's more likely that the War was carving a very deep wound inside Pelham.

Whatever caused the Special Leave, he returned to the Battalion on September 5th, while they were at billets in Courcelles. On 16th September he was awarded his DSO, principally for the action at Delville Wood but also for an earlier attack he actually described in a stern letter up to Brigade HQ as a "useless waste of my best officers and NCOs".

The West Ham Battalion were due back in the Line, on the way to relieve the 16th Sherwood Foresters at Sailly-au-Bois on October 1st, 1916. Pelham Papillon never made it to the Front Line, suddenly 'taken sick' and then quickly invalided home within 24hours.

After several Medical Boards, opinion held that he was clearly suffering 'Shell Shock' - most likely 'burnt-out' by the harsh, fierce, savagery which surrounded any Commanding Officer on the Western Front. He was stone deaf in traffic, but could hear a watch at two inches away. He had 'exaggerated knee jerks' as well as suffering 'great restlessness' overall.

Papillon was Mentioned in General Haig's Despatches for Tuesday 2nd January 1917 and then joined Eastern Command, Home Service on 17th February 1917.

By March, 1917, it was all over, in the Gazette and Official:








Immediately after the Great War, he did two things.

He reformed Crowhurst Cricket Club in 1919.

And, as he was most definately made an Honourary Hammer by the 'Originals' of the 13th Essex, he renamed one of the properties on his Crowhurst estate Green Street Farm.

Not bad for a man with Colchester streets named for his family - Papillon Road intersects Rawstorn Road and Crowhurst Road in Colchester, Essex. Close by, at Lexden Church, you'll find plenty of stained glass memorial windows to the Papillon family, images of which were kindly sent me by the Church Warden Vivien Mendham.

He was visited at home by Queen Mary in 1935. He was the British Legion Crowhurst Branch President and Battle Branch vice President. At his funeral on March 19th (he died the day before) 1940 at Crowhurst Parish Church, Pelham was carried on a farm waggon with workers from the estate dressed in old Sussex smocks acting as bearers.

Sadly, I can only find one image of him, from a photocopy of his obituary kindly sent to me by the current captain of Crowhurst CC, Kevin Cornwall. I'm sure there is a wonderful portrait or two out there somewhere of Pelham, perhaps even one in uniform. Maybe one day we'll find it.



Pelham Rawstorn Papillon, DSO, JP, ensured that the name of pretty much every wounded and killed man of the West Ham Battalion was recorded in the War Diary, during his Command. It's only because of him that I know the circumstances of my GtGrandfathers death and am able to assist others to discover about their ancestors part in The Great War.

He shook the hand of every soldier he sent 'Over the Top'.


A very honourable man.

















































Two years later, on Mar 5th 1942, Crowhurst Park was sold - furniture, paintings and library collection, everything put up for auction by his son John and soon scattered to the four corners.

The beautiful stone mansion, a park of 240 acres plus 4 farms, in total 930 acres, the whole lot.

Sometimes, pieces from that old sale still come up.

The land, house and contents were finally sold under the hammer during December 1944, and his son moved to the Cotswolds.

Crowhurst is now a posh caravan site.



The Papillon family line passed to Pelham's nephew, David, of Lexden. He served in North Africa during WW2 and it was there he was awarded the MBE.

Pelham's son-in-law, lies buried almost alongside him, as if keeping sentry on a treasure.

Flight Lieutenant Hankey was killed while transporting secret agents in France by Lysander aircraft and was the son of Pelham's great friend Alers Hankey. They had served very closely alongside each other in 3rd Sussex during the Boer War.

The story now has an update! Following on from an anonymous tip off regarding a portrait of Pelham, I can now confirm that it does exist, it's location is known and that it's owner has been contacted and replied positively!

What's more, it's a portrait of Lt-Col PR Papillon in uniform!