Richard Rhodes James (Staff 1947-81), former HM of Melvill and erstwhile Haileybury Head of Economics, must count as one of those people who, if you’d never met him, you wish you had known.
We were recently contacted by his widow, Rachel, who in passing reminded us of three books written by Richard which tell of his extraordinary life; in particular, his reflections on the war in Burma (now Myanmar) and, in his autobiography, a reflection of the impact of British India on his life and those he knew.
Educated at Sedbergh and Queen’s College, Oxford, Richard joined the 3rd Gurkhas Rifles in 1941, which ultimately led to him signing up with the maverick garlic-chomping Major General Orde Wingate, DSO – an extraordinary leader who placed great store in single-mindedness, personal strength and attacking the enemy where he least expected it.
Chindit – the explosive truth about the last Wingate expedition (published 1980) was Richard’s first book and covers his military service as a cipher officer with 111 Brigade in India 1943-44 and in northern Burma with the Chindit expeditions in 1944, which he describes as “a campaign of uncertain wanderings and unsuccessful battles”. He was mentioned in dispatches.
In a gripping narrative, Richard described in vivid detail a type of special forces warfare which was plagued by lack of resources, indifferent political and military engagement, disease and constant danger. This squalid and exceptionally dangerous form of warfare, despite its limited tactical impact, nonetheless had a significant impact on Japanese strategy in terms of their plans against India.
Chindit is currently out of print but can still be found second hand through most online retailers
June 2022: We are delighted to share that Chindit has been republished by Penguin in partnership with Al Murray and James Holland’s podcast: ‘We have ways of making you talk’.
A novel of life in the Thirties
Richard also wrote a novel about life in the 1930s, although, as a novel, it has less of the urgency and strength of books written as primary source historical material. Years Between – a Tale of the 1930s is interpreted as semi-autobiographical, and has been described by one reviewer as a book about “when children were still sent off to (usually awful) public school, and whose parents were separated as the husband worked for the Empire”. Clearly this background did not impact on Richard’s later life – spending his career teaching at Haileybury!
Copies of Years Between are hard to find but copies can be found on Amazon
Reflections on a life well lived
Richard’s last book, published in 2007, The Road from Mandalay – a Journey in the Shadow of the East is one of those gems of autobiography which delivers much more than it appears to promise. Richard was born within a tradition of British India and the east at Mandalay in Burma (a place which, as he points out, despite the famous poem by Rudyard Kipling, had never been visited by the great man).
This was a world known to itself which would, after WW2, come suddenly to an end. This book is a reflection of a life and family history which originates in a world which has now completely disappeared. As he says, when he came to Britain he had no birth certificate; the only proof of his existence was the copy of a page of the baptismal register of St Mary’s Church, Mandalay in which his baptism was recorded.
It is difficult to imagine now a way of life, an infrastructure, a whole sub-culture of Britishness existing in a state of local renewal on the far side of the world. Yet this book opens a window on that world, and also reflects upon it. It is, as the cover suggests, a heartfelt goodbye to a way of life which had followed Richard around all his life.
In L.P. Hartley’s magnificent comment, the past is a foreign country; they do things differently there. It is fitting therefore that this book is dedicated to “the memory of those who bore the burden of Empire”.
The Road From Mandalay is available here
The importance of memory
Everyone carries with them the lives and experiences they have lived. They are shaped by events and by people but also by the unseen; of culture, of nuance, of serendipity. From his early years at Sedburgh to his experiences in the war and his life of service postwar at Haileybury, Richard Rhodes James saw a world in transition yet had the generosity of spirit and independence of insight to reflect upon his life and the times in which he lived.
In 1995, after he had retired from Haileybury, Richard appeared in Charles Wheeler’s BBC documentary, Burma, in which WW2 veterans retraced the steps of their fighting careers. It is so hard to imagine today the contrast between the mud and disease of the Burmese jungle and an afternoon spent in the English sunshine with a view over Lightning Oak.
(Above: journalist the late Charles Wheeler (left) talks to Richard during his 1995 documentary, Burma, in which veterans were encouraged to revisit the places in which they fought and to tell their stories)
Postscript – an OH remembers
Richard Rhodes-James (universally known as “RJ”) was housemaster of Melvill in the ’60s and ’70s. He is perhaps best known for his huge contribution to the Christian life of the school which extended into the ’80s by when he had moved to Hertford Heath. Hand in hand with his wartime heroism was a profound faith which influenced countless Haileyburians not just in Melvill but across the whole school. Every Sunday between Chapel and lunch, he and Rachel threw their home open to anyone who wanted to come along.
A communal coffee was followed by a bible-centred talk from a visiting speaker. The talks were always lucid, witty and great fun, without ever losing sight of their serious core. At its peak this was such a popular fixture that there was not enough floor space in their sitting room to accommodate everyone and a sound link had to be rigged up to an overspill room.
Hundreds of Christian Haileyburians will regard him as a formative influence on their faith and remember him with enormous gratitude and affection.
Richard was a gift to Haileybury who remains fond in the memories of all who knew him.
(Image of Richard with Charles Wheeler courtesy of BBC website)
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