Topic: TEI #21 - Solved: 1905 Rolls-Royce 15HP, presented to Edmond Warre, Headmaster of Eton College

[Tom_I]

Here's a stately carriage for you to identify. For a point, you also need to identify its first owner, and the circumstances in which he came to acquire it. Any further information would of course be welcome, but is not essential to earn a point.

[bentleybob]

Oops, sorry..

[Tom_I]

I've a sneaking feeling there's an expert just waiting to grab this one.

So take it away, Bob... 

[bentleybob]

:lol Not really, Rolls Royce 15h.p. 3 cylinder with a 'de luxe'four seater phaeton with detachable top by Barker, chassis 23924, registration AX148 on per 15.12.1905. The car old-Etonians bought for the Dr.C.B.E.Warre, headmaster of Eton College as a gift upon his retirement. (High mileage by 1914 (125,000 mls),does not survive like this, second body on in 1920s)

[Tom_I]

That just about sums it up.

Edmond Warre was a distinguished sportsman in the field of rowing, and was headmaster of Eton College from 1884 to 1905, when this car was presented to him by a group of his ex-pupils. This group just happened to include C.S. Rolls, who no doubt influenced the choice of car to buy, and who probably gave himself a generous staff discount into the bargain. Or maybe they were having a joke, as the 3-cylinder model was advertised as "The ideal lady's carriage for use in town and country".

The car was mentioned again in the pages of The Motor of 21 October 1924, by which time it had been re-bodied, and had covered 190,000 miles.