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Apart from all the horses in his stables, in August 1914 Mr. Claude Borrett, of Hatton Court, Hanslope, who had held a commission in an artillery regiment, offered the use of his Rolls Royce to the War Office, plus his own services as driver. With his offer accepted he was to become driver to General Smith Dorrien, the second in command to General French.

Towards the weekly maintenance and support of a Belgian refugee family, who were shortly to be welcomed to the village, during November 1914 a house to house collection raised £2 7s 4d. Also during the month, one Friday evening a crowded public meeting was held in the schools, with the object being to raise a sum to purchase Christmas gifts for the village men serving in the 4th Division, Kitchener’s Army. Mrs. Borrett had organised and made the stirring appeal, and as a result £6 6s was raised or promised.

As a memorial to the 58 men from the village serving King and Country, in April 1915 an illuminated scroll, enclosed in a massive oak frame, was placed in the church porch. Preceding the names read the inscription;

‘To the glory of God, and in deathless memory of men of this village who so loyally took up arms in defence of King and Country in the great war of 1914, this roll of honour is erected.’

Mr. S. Platten had taken a prominent role in organising the memorial, with valuable assistance from Mrs. Claude Borrett, of Hatton Court, and others.

In May 1915 the secretary of the National Egg Collection approached the headmistress of Hanslope Infant School, Miss Cox, to solicit the schoolchildren’s help in collecting eggs for wounded soldiers. Including the teachers, a committee was duly formed, with the managers giving permission for the school be used one evening a week to receive and pack the eggs. Due to the encouragement of Miss Cox, and the assistance given by Miss E. Neale Miss M. Neale and others, by the end of July 1915 nearly 1,500 eggs would be collected, with the packing performed by the three lady infant teachers. Without charge, Mr. W. Willingham took the boxes to the station, and the returned empties were similarly conveyed by Mr. Eakins. For the first week Mr. S. Platten had lent egg boxes free, until the arrival of a supply from the London depot (accommodated at Messrs. Harrods Ltd., Trevor Square, London, S.W.) and although most of the produce was sent to the National Egg Collection, quantities were also despatched to Northampton Hospital. Having written their names on the eggs, several children received letters by return, and between May 17th and August 26th 1915, 3,681 eggs would be despatched.

On Wednesday, September 1st 1915, at the fortnightly meeting of the Newport Pagnell Board of Guardians a letter was considered from the Medical Officer for the Hanslope district, Dr. Rutherford, who wrote;

“I am told they want doctors badly in the Army, and I feel it my duty to join. I have been offered a commission in the R.A.M.C. for home and foreign service. In case I am passed fit for military service, I ask the Board to release me from my duties. While away, Dr. Easte, of Hanslope, has willingly consented to do my work in the meantime.”

The chairman congratulated Dr. Rutherford on his decision, and offered thanks to Dr. Easte, who said that he had applied to join the Army but was medically unfit. The question of payment then arose, and it was agreed that the salary of Dr. Rutherford would be continued, with him to come to an arrangement with Dr. Easte.

By October 1915 Mrs. J. Elkington, of the Watts Arms, had collected 4,485 cigarettes over three months for the wounded soldiers at Northampton Hospital. Quantities were being despatched weekly.

A Zeppelin raid had been launched on the country on the night of Tuesday, February 8th 1916, but it was emphatically denied that a Hanslope man had painted his white pig black, to prove a less attractive target for the enemy vessels.

At a Local Appeal Tribunal, held on the afternoon of Monday, March 6th 1916, the case was heard of a Hanslope man who was employed as a coach maker at Wolverton Works. He applied for total exemption of the grounds that his invalid mother depended on him, but the Military Representative, Captain Sir Everard Duncombe, pointed out that the man was well known as a slacker, and not only did his mother get up at 5a.m. every morning to cook his breakfast, but she also did all the housework. Exemption was not granted.

At a Local Tribunal, held at Newport Pagnell on Tuesday, March 7th 1916, Albert Woodland, of Rookery View, had written for exemption from military service on the grounds of religious belief, being a member of the Plymouth Brethren. However, the chairman told him they had read his application and it didn’t carry much weight with them. In the various exchanges the applicant said “… If I saw it was my duty to join His Majesty’s forces I should have joined long ago. If I joined I should be dishonouring God’s name, and therefore I claim total exemption,” but in the view of the Tribunal “If everyone was like you the Germans would soon be here.” He was refused exemption, whereupon he said he would appeal.

A semi military wedding took place at the parish church on Easter Monday 1916, when Trooper Frederick Kerridge, of the Royal Horse Guards, who was home on a short leave, married Miss Ellen Allen. The groom, whose brother ran the Cock Inn, was a well known local sportsman, and both he and his bride were from families who had long been associated in the business life of the village. He was the second son of his late parents, and she was the only daughter of her late parents. Carrying a bouquet of pale pink carnations, the bride, who wore a navy blue tailor made costume and white Leghorn hat, was given away by her brother, and it would be at her home that after the ceremony a reception was held.

At the Central Schools, before a large audience on Saturday, April 8th 1916 Mrs. Borrett, of Hatton Court, presented Patrol Leader Albert Meadows, of the Hanslope Troop of Boy Scouts, with a gilt medal and diploma signed by Baden Powell, who was, she said to loud cheers, “one of the very best and greatest of men.” Under the command of Scoutmaster Washbrook the troop, who were very smartly turned out, had paraded at 3.30p.m., and the ceremony was opened with a speech by the vicar, the Reverend Harkness. After the presentation by Mrs. Borrett the details of the incident were then given by Scoutmaster Washbrook. A party of boys had been swimming in the river when a lad named Chilton got into difficulty. Seeing this, Albert Meadows immediately dashed into the water and rescued him.

(In the summer of 1915 Mrs. Borrett had provided a rifle range for the scouts, three of whom - Patrol Leaders Jones and Meadows and Bugler Rainbow - would subsequently gain their marksmen badges.)

Mr. R. Dickens, a builder and decorator of Hanslope, had lost four of his men through enlistment, but by May 1916 his daughter, Miss Gertrude Dickens, had become quite an expert at painting, paper hanging etc.

During the first year of egg collecting, centred on Church End Infant School under Miss Cox, the headmistress, and her staff, 7,324 eggs had been gathered by the end of May 1916 for wounded soldiers. Most had been sent to the headquarters in London, and many letters of thanks had been received from France and England, including a very appreciative one from an Indian soldier. Certificates issued by the Headquarters Committee had been awarded to those children who had collected the most, these being Edward and Reginald Ditum, Lennie Horn, Michael Ryan, Nellie Hillyer, Fred and Miriam Tompkins, Willie Slade, and Herbert Simons.

As one of the infants school’s most consistent collectors for the National Egg Collection, during the first week of August 1916 Florence Greenwood, the six year old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. A. Greenwood, of the Green Man, received two very appreciative letters. One was from Private Sidney Wall, of the Coldstream Guards, at Alnwick, Northumberland, and the other was from Rifleman P. Lapworth, who had received his egg whilst in a field hospital in France.

In aid of funds for Northampton Hospital, Mrs. Claude Borrett, of Hatton Court, lent the grounds of her home for a social evening and open air concert on the evening of Wednesday, August 16th 1916. The arrangements had been made by Mrs. Fred Tompkins, a keen local fund raiser, and despite the rain there was a good attendance, with some £6 being raised for the village Hospital Week Committee. During the first class programme of vocal and instrumental music Cadet Giles Borrett sang ’Loch Lomond,’ to which the accompaniment was played by his mother, and with the piano having been lent by Mr. C. Lane, Mr. H. Middleton, of Castlethorpe, gave his services as pianist. During the evening refreshments and ice cream were dispensed by Mrs. Tompkins and others.

For raising funds to send New Year parcels to the village men in the Forces, at the Council Schools one Wednesday evening in December 1916 a whist drive and dance was held. Mrs. Fred Tompkins, who had performed much work for the various war charities, had organised the event, and about £8 was raised. Refreshments provided by residents of the village were dispensed throughout the evening.

Early on the morning of Tuesday, March 13th 1917 Mr. William John Quixley, the village schoolmaster, was found with his throat cut. Calling at the house with the milk, Robert Bavington had discovered him on the floor with blood flowing from a throat wound, and having been hastily summoned Dr. Easte attended to the injured man, who was then removed to Northampton Hospital. For some months he had been living alone, and was said to be depressed allegedly because of the health of his wife, who, due to mental trouble, had been away from her home for the past few years. Mr. Quixley was aged 61, and had been in the scholastic profession for over 40 years.

Twenty five year old Corporal Alfred Evans, of the Oxon and Bucks Light Infantry, is reported to have died from wounds in action against the Bulgars on May 12th 1917. He was the third son of Mr. and Mrs. Evans, of Newport Road, to whom on the third of the month he wrote that he was well, and in the fighting line. On the 15th he then wrote that his platoon was taking a rest. From employment as a body maker at Wolverton Works, he had enlisted early in September 1914, and after awhile in France was sent to Salonica. Two of his brothers were serving in the R.A.M.C., with the other in the Royal Engineers.

Jointly with Miss Muriel Brown, of Princes Risborough, in May 1917 Miss Dorothy Greenwood, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. A. Greenwood, of the Green Man, came first in the Church History exam of the Council for Church Defence and Instruction for the Archdeaconry of Buckingham.

With brilliant lightning and loud thunder, in the early hours of May 21st 1917 a terrific storm broke over North Bucks. Partially flooding the village streets the rain fell in torrents, and startled by the lightning two horses of Arthur Paybody, a local farmer, bolted into a pond. One was found dead, hanging from the wire fence with its head in the water, and only with difficulty was the other dragged out, having been standing up to its stomach in the pond. Grazing in a neighbouring field, when startled by the storm two cobs belonging to Dr. Easte dashed into an iron fence, which they broke in 3 places. One of the animals was badly cut about the legs, head, and body, and Mr. W. Powell, a Newport Pagnell vet, had to be called.

At the Bucks Summer Assizes, on Wednesday, June 6th 1917 William John Quixley, a 61 year old schoolmaster of Hanslope, was charged with having attempted to commit suicide at Hanslope on March 13th, by cutting his throat with a razor. He pleaded guilty, and on behalf of the National Union of Teachers, of which Mr. Quixley was a member, Mr. H. Maddock appeared for his defence. Giving evidence, Dr. Easte said that on the date in question he had been called to the schoolhouse, but found that the wound to the throat was not serious. The defence then said that Mr. Quixley was of excellent character, and his scholastic work had been spoken of in the highest terms by H.M. Inspectors. Confirming the defendant’s good character, the Reverend W. Harkness, the vicar of Hanslope, said he had known him for 25 years, and the recent domestic trouble had in his view caused the strain and worry which lead to the rash act. The judge agreed, and binding him over in the sum of £10, to appear for judgment if called, said that he hoped Mr. Quixley would resume his former position.

When delivering meat along Long Street, in June 1917 a village butcher was stopped by a weights and measures inspector, for a check on the accuracy of his spring balance scales. These were found to be incorrect, and in explanation the butcher said that the mechanism must have been disturbed when his horse bolted, while he was serving a customer. A fine of £2 10s was imposed, although an application to confiscate the scales was disallowed. Bertie Payne was also a village butcher, and with a view to merging the two businesses the military call up of the two men had been adjourned. Thus at the Bucks County Military Appeal Tribunal at Aylesbury, on Wednesday, July 18th 1917 it was agreed that with his business being merged with the other, Mr. Payne’s three months certificate of exemption would be allowed to run to completion.

On Wednesday, August 8th 1917 William Howes, a boarding house keeper, was summoned at Newport Pagnell Divisional Petty Sessions for having failed to register the date of departure and destination of ‘aliens.’ This had occurred on July 27th 1917, and he pleaded guilty to the charge. In explaining the case Superintendent Dibben said that on visiting the house on July 21st he found 3 aliens, who said that they were Swiss. Since the official papers were not in order, one of them was given 48 hours to produce his nationality papers, but this would not be complied with in time. Later he found that the three men had left Hanslope, and when on July 27th he again visited the house he found that the lodger forms had not been completed, and the alien register contained no entry of destination. Two of the lodgers had left on the 26th and the other on the 27th, and in his evidence Mr. Howes said that they had been sent to him on the recommendation of a clergyman. As for the register discrepancy, his wife was in charge of such matters, and she forgot. One of the men had been in London for 26 years, and another occupied a good position as a master of languages, and although the sum could have been £100, a fine of £5 was imposed.

In October 1917 Margaret Evans, of Bunce’s Lane, was fined 5s, this being in respect of a lodger who had failed to fill in Registration Form A.R.E. Police constable Bonner said that on October 22nd he had visited the house, where the defendant admitted having two lady lodgers. However, she was unable to produce the registration forms, but said that she would get some. The two lodgers were down from London to escape the air raids, and during the past three months many different people had stayed at the house. Police constable Bonner had only been at Hanslope for a week or so, having succeeded police constable Washbrook, who, after some years in the village, was transferred to Bletchley in the second week of October. Apart from being involved in local charities, whilst at Hanslope he had taken an active interest in the Scout movement, and as Scoutmaster had done much to bring the village troop to a high standard.

At the Newport Pagnell Divisional Petty Sessions, on Wednesday, December 12th 1917 Annie Rebinstoff, of Greenfield Road, Newport Pagnell, was summoned for failing to notify a change of her address at Newport Pagnell on November 16th. German by marriage, this was under the Aliens Restriction Order, and she pleaded not guilty. Police constable Marsh said that on November 16th at 6.30p.m. she had called at Newport Pagnell police station, and there handed in her travelling permit from Luton to no. 1, Greenfield Road. Superintendent Dibben said that he was the Alien Registration Officer for the Division, and having on November 17th received a communication from Luton Borough Police, notifying the change of address of the defendant, it was owing to a query regarding her actual whereabouts that he had made enquiries. Eventually she was located by Wolverton police, and at the request of Superintendent Dibben she attended Newport Pagnell police station on November 23rd. There it was revealed that she had been residing at Wolverton from November 16th to the 20th, and he pointed out that under Article 19 1c of the Alien Restriction Order she, within a certain number of hours, should have furnished the Registration Officer of any change. However, saying that she knew nothing about this she countered that Wolverton was within the 5 mile limit for day travelling. Born at Hanslope, where her father still lived, she had met her husband at Ostend, and being at Bruges when the war broke out she got to England by the last boat. Concluding the case the chairman said that it was a technical offence, since Article 21 of the Order said nothing about the need for a permit, but nevertheless a fine of 5s was imposed.

(At the Stony Stratford Petty Sessions on Friday, December 14th 1917 Ralph Hopkins, a grocer, was summoned for failing to notify the presence of an alien at his residence. He was a special constable, and wrote to say that he had not known of the requirement. The ‘alien’ was Mrs. Rebinstoff, the cousin of his wife, and he was fined 2s 6d.)

For Peace Day, July 19th 1919, a collection in the parish raised £89 10s, and the organising committee decided to provide a plain tea for the children, and a meat tea for the soldiers and sailors, all men and women aged over 70, widows, and recipients of parish relief. If there was a surplus of food, then the public would be entertained. With the whole affair being managed by the Parish Council, the proceedings began with an open air Divine service for all denominations, at which prayers were offered from a platform in the market square. At 1p.m. the Hanslope Band, which would play throughout the day, proceeded to Long Street to collect the schoolchildren, and on their return the ranks were swelled by 250 others at the Central Schools. Assisted by the teachers, at this point an imposing procession was then marshalled for a tour of the village. Instead of the Watts Arms field, due to the rain the children’s tea was transferred to the schools, and here 300 boys and girls aged under 14 enjoyed a good meal. At 4p.m. the soldiers, sailors and old folk - a total of over 150 persons - sat down to their meat tea of beef, mutton, lamb, ham salad, bread and butter, cake and tea, and there was no limit as to how much each could have. Gifts of food had been received from many people, and a company of 30 ladies gave their services as waitresses. About 300 sat down to the subsequent public tea, served at two sittings, and for those old people who were not able to attend, parcels were sent to their homes. Sports were then held in the early evening. Mr. A. Sawbridge acted as the judge, with the prizes being presented by the Reverend Bale, and at 10.15p.m. an effigy of the Kaiser was burnt, followed by a fireworks display.

For the unveiling and dedication of a stained window, a service took place in the parish church on the afternoon of Sunday, November 21st 1920. The window commemorated the men from the village who had fallen during the war, and with the cost having been about £150 Mrs. F. Tompkins, of The Green Farm, had collected the money, and brought the project to a successful conclusion. The window consisted of three lights, representing St. Michael, St. Alban, and St. George, and a tablet of Hopton Wood marble bore the inscription ‘To the glory of God, and in memory of those from this parish who have fallen in the War.’ Then followed the 20 names, and at the base the words ‘May their souls rest in peace,’ and on the cross above the dates 1914-1918. To perform the unveiling, having motored over from West Haddon, as also Major, Mrs., and Miss Borrett (formerly of Hanslope Lodge), General Lord Horne G.C.B, K.C.M.G., was met at the church entrance by a guard of honour of about 100 ex servicemen of the village, and passing through their lines he expressed admiration at the smartness of the parade, which, having been organised by ex sergeant R.W. Garratt, was in the charge of Sergeant Birch, who was home on a short leave from Ireland. A massed choir of members from all the village churches led the singing for the service, and the vicar, the Reverend W.J. Harkness, conducted a shortened form of Evensong. During the hymn ‘For all the saints who from their labours rest,’ the vicar, with the Reverend G.F. Sams, and the General, who occupied the seat which had been used by Lord French when he was resident in the village, proceeded to the window, standing beneath which the General raised the curtain and said “I unveil this window to the glory of God, in glorious memory of the men of this parish who gave their lives during the Great War, 1914-1918.” He then read the names, and with the congregation still standing gave a short and stirring address which included “… It is our moral duty, and the duty of the nation, to help the men who served and who without consideration left homes, business and professions and stood up in the defence of the country….” The Last Post was then sounded by Corporal A. Lehrle, of Stony Stratford, and ex Bugler J. Scragg, D.C.M., of New Bradwell, both of whom had served with the Bucks Territorials in France. Next the Prayers of Commendation were read by the Reverend Sams, who also gave the dedicatory prayer, with the congregation joining in the singing of ‘Soldiers who are Christ’s below.’ Preaching a sermon from the 14th verse of the 72nd Psalm, the Reverend Sams said that the ceremony took him back over 70 years, when as a little lad playing in his father’s garden at Grafton Regis he could see Hanslope spire, and after his sermon the hymn ‘Fight the good fight’ was sung. The proceedings then concluded with the vicar pronouncing the Blessing, after which, as before the service, a muffled peal was rung.