Author:  Keith    Rev. Theodore Bayley Hardy was my grandpa Huntley’s half-brother.  My great-grandmother Sarah Beedle married my great-grandfather Henry Frederick Olive Huntley in 1847.  They had three children - Henry, Georgina and Hubert (my grandpa).  But sadly, a few years later in the autumn of 1855 Henry Frederick died when he was only 32 years old.  After four years of widowhood great grandma Sarah married again to a George Hardy, commercial traveller, from whom she bore four more children - Alfred, Ernest, Theodore and Robert. By 1861 the Hardy family had moved to a new residence, Southernhay, but in the same St. Sidwell, Devon area as the original Huntley home.  The first Hardy boy was now one year old and, in addition to the three Huntley children, the household included grandma Sarah’s mother Elizabeth Beedle and sister Georgina.  In 1870, after only 11 years of marriage, George Hardy died at the age of 50, and Sarah was widowed for a second time.  She now had five children to look after - Georgina and Hubert Huntley (Henry had died in ?? at the age of 20) together with  Ernest, Theodore and Robert (Alfred also had not survived and died in 18??).  One year later at the time of the census in 1871, the family was still living in Southernhay but great-grandma Sarah was working as a school mistress and Georgina Huntley, now 20 years old, was working as a daily governess. At some time in the following ten years the family moved to Kensington in London and the 1881 census showed Sarah now living on private means (actually she opened a preparatory school which she owned) with my grandpa and Theodore.  There was also a lodger, but no servants.  Theodore was now 17 and still a scholar but, according to the Devon Heritage, he “went on to London University and in 1889 was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree. The previous year, he had married Florence Hastings in Belfast. He embarked on a career as a schoolmaster and it was not until 1898 that he was ordained. His career as a teacher continued and eventually, he became headmaster of Bentham Grammar School, a post he held until 1913.” At the time of the census in 1901 Theodore Hardy and his wife Florence were living in Nottingham where he was working as a school master and a Church of England  clergyman.  Although by then married for 13 years, there were no children reported.  The next census in 1911 recorded the family as living in Settle, Yorkshire with their two children Mary Elizabeth (arts student), now 21 years old, and their son William Hastings (medical student), aged 18.  Mary was born in Middlesex while William was born in Nottingham.  Rev. Hardy had joined Bentham Grammar School in Settle, North Yokshire as  Headmaster in 1907 and stayed there until 1913 when  he moved to become the Vicar of Hutton Roof.  One year later, in the year 1914 Theodore’s wife died at the age of 53 and England was at war with Germany. Theodore Hardy was highly regarded at Bentham and during an expansion to the school in the 1920s a new science laboratory, Hardy Hall, was named after him.  For more information about Bentham Grammar School and its association with Theodore Bayley Hardy click on this link. The Great War (1914 - 1918) With the outbreak of war Teodore Hardy wanted badly to join the military as a Chaplain.  Due to his age he was turned down but eventually, in August 1916, just two months before his fifty-third birthday, he was accepted as a Chaplain 4th. Class.  Within another year, this remarkable man was excelling himself with kindness to his fellow soldiers , helping and comforting the mortally wounded both physically and spiritually.  He  became one of the most outstanding chaplains in military history and is listed among “Notable Army Chaplions” by the Royal Army Chaplins Department..  He was awarded the Distinguihed Service Order (DSO) in October 1917, the Military Cross (MC) in December 1917 and the Victoria Cross (VC) in July 1918.  In September 1918, he was appointed  Kings Chaplin (King George V). On 18th October 1918, Captain Theodore Batley Hardy was mortally wounded in Rouen, France and died a few days later.  There is plenty of literature available about Theodore Hardy, but the following  links are particularly recommended: • Devon Heritage • Wikipedia • In Honoured Memory • Exeter Memories