Anthony F George has had a long and distinguished career with the Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers Militia (RMonRE(M)). He joined 225 squadron as a Captain in 1969; promoted to Major in 1974, Lieutenant Colonel in 1980 and Colonel in 1984, he was Commanding Officer from 1980 to 1982, and retired in 1992. In January 1997 he was appointed Joint Honorary Colonel, a position re-titled Honorary Colonel in 2004, and which he held until mid-2006.
A qualified solicitor and retired Company Secretary in civilian life, he is extremely interested in the history of the Regiment and of Great Castle House, Monmouth, its headquarters. He has contributed a great deal to understanding this history, carrying out a considerable amount of detailed historical and archival research over a number of years. He was a very active trustee of the Castle and Regimental Museum, first as ex-officio trustee while Honorary Colonel 1997-2006, and subsequently as a trustee in his own right 2006-2016
The papers reflect both Colonel George's position as Honorary Colonel of the Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia), from 1997 to 2006, and his historical research interests. They include papers relating to his work supporting and promoting the Regiment, setting up the Regimental Charitable Trust and working on the resolution of a dispute over a right of way over the parade ground at Great Castle House, Monmouth. They also include much historical research material as well as papers relating to his work as a trustee of the Castle and Regimental Museum, Monmouth, over a long period. Note that they do not include any papers relating to his time as an officer of the Regiment 1969-1992
Guided by the original order of the papers, the arrangement outlined below has been adopted. However, note that there are some overlaps between the different sections, reflecting the ways in which different issues arose and were dealt with: for example, the dispute over the right of way necessarily involved much historical research, so that historical material will be found in this section as well as in the Historical Research section. Significant overlaps are noted at the relevant places in the catalogue.
DGEO/1 Papers relating directly to work as (Joint) Honorary Colonel
DGEO/2 Papers relating to Officers' Mess Trusts
DGEO/3 Papers relating to the Regimental Charitable Trust
DGEO/4 Papers relating to Right of Way Dispute and 'Secret Garden'
DGEO/5 Historical Research material
DGEO/6 Papers relating to position as a trustee of the Castle and Regimental Museum Trust
The papers when received were well-organised and labelled but included a considerable number of obvious duplicates. These have been removed and destroyed. A number of other duplicates, more difficult to assess without detailed examination, have been left.
Three items related to the activities of the Regiment rather than Colonel George; these have been added to the Regimental archive at RMRE/21/6, RMRE/26/21 and RMRE/28/9
Some papers had originally been part of the 'Lumsdaine' collection (DLums), the research papers of A A M Lumsdaine, a civilian working with the Regiment from the 1950s to the early 1970s. These papers had been passed to Colonel George, who in his role as museum trustee was working to identify and secure the return of material given by Lumsdaine to other repositories without permission; they were relevant to this work as they contained information on records Lumsdaine had found in Great Castle House. The papers have now been reunited with the Lumsdaine collection and catalogued as DLums/5.
A small number of papers relating to Lieutenant Colonel E D Smeedon clearly formed a separate unit. These have been catalogued as DP46.
No accruals expected
Description compiled by Rosemary Boyns, consultant archivist, with funding from the donor, and with reference to
The papers were kept by Colonel George, and apart from the four items noted below were donated by him to the Castle and Regimental Museum in March 2021. They were given the accession number D690.
Four items were sent to the Durham County Record Office in error along with Colonel George's material relating to the Durham Light Infantry. These items, given the accession numbers 10122/6,10122/7, 10122/14 and 10122/15 by the Durham County Record Office, were returned to the Regimental Museum in November 2022. Item 10122/15 was found to be an exact duplicate of DGEO/6/7 and was therefore destroyed.
The papers were donated by Colonel George to the Castle and Regimental Museum in March 2021.
The collection includes copies of the deeds, minutes and other official records relating to several trusts. The originals are held by the relevant trusts.
The historical research material in the collection includes a considerable number of copies of documents from the National Archives and other record offices. It has not been possible within the time available to identify the origin of all these copies.
A number of sets of minutes of trustees' meetings are included in the papers. These are the donor's own sets. Other sets may exist elsewhere, in the papers of other trustees
Colonel George was also a trustee of the Regimental and Chattels Charity of the former Durham Light Infantry, and carried out research into the history of this regiment. Papers relating to this work have been donated to the Durham County Record Office.
Access to much of the material is restricted under UK data protection legislation as it contains personal information, and occasional 'special personal data', on living individuals. Access may exceptionally be granted to bona fide researchers, on application to the honorary museum curator in the first instance. Details of access restrictions to individual items are noted in the catalogue, with dates that the restrictions will end.
Documents to which there is open access may usually be copied, but permission should first be obtained from the museum trustees or honorary curator.
The majority of the papers were received in lever-arch files and ring-binders, with a small number loose. In order to ensure their long-term preservation, they have been repackaged: papers have been removed from the files, with the original order maintained by means of archival tape threaded through the existing holes in the papers. The contents of each file were then tied into bundles with archival tape and placed in acid-free archive boxes. Some lever-arch files contained section separators made of plastic or plasticised paper; in these cases, each section has been removed and placed in individual acid-free archival folders, maintaining the original order.
Since 1977 the post of Colonel has been shared between HRH the Duke of Gloucester, the Regiment's royal patron, and a senior retired officer. From 1977 until 2004, both were titled 'Joint Honorary Colonel'. In 2004, the Duke's title changed to 'Royal Honorary Colonel', while the other holder of the post - at the time Colonel George - became 'Honorary Colonel'.
The Honorary Colonel is the guardian of the status and traditions of the Regiment; the purpose of the role is to support and promote the Regiment, giving advice and assistance when required, attending and if necessary hosting functions and escorting dignitaries. The Honorary Colonel is also ex-officio chair of the trustees of the Castle and Regimental Museum, and President of the Dining Club
Includes: papers and correspondence re. appointment of Colonel George as Honorary Colonel; correspondence and papers relating to the previous Joint Honorary Colonel, Brigadier John Hooper; staff lists, establishment and strength; biographical information on former officers; correspondence with the Commanding Officers; RE TA training plan c.2001; visitors' brief for Annual Camp 1998; recruitment publicity leaflets; programmes, papers and correspondence re. fundraising and social events; Regimental Dining Club newsletters and correspondence, 2002-2004; minutes of Officers' Mess meetings; correspondence, papers and copy photographs re. visit of Colonel George to Six Field Engineer Squadron, Canadian Military Engineers, North Vancouver, BC, Canada, to open the restored 1860 Royal Engineers Log Cabin, September 2000. Also includes some correspondence re the Castle and Regimental Museum (see DGEO/6) the Regimental Charitable Trust (see DGEO/3), and the right of way dispute (see DGEO/4)
Access restricted under UK data protection legislation until 2081
Includes: staff lists; papers and correspondence re. Army Policy and Resources Committee paper Running the TA Differently 2004; report on Operation TELIC2 (Iraq); correspondence, papers and newspaper reports on the Medal Parade July 2004 to present medals to members of the Regiment who had been deployed in Operation TELIC2; correspondence with Commanding Officers; programmes and correspondence re social events; Regimental Dining Club newsletters, 2004-2005; letters and cards of congratulation to Colonel George on award of MBE; Order of Service for the thanksgiving for life of Colonel Smeedon; correspondence re selection of next Honorary Colonel. Also includes correspondence and papers re the Regimental Trust (see DGEO/3) and the history of Great Castle House (see DGEO/4 and DGEO/5)
Access restricted under UK data protection legislation until 2085
Includes: memorial service address and obituary for Colonel Smeedon; copies of documents re title and precedence of the Regiment, and other historical research material; copy of Dining Club Constitution and Rules; correspondence re. Changes to Royal Engineers Territorial Army under Future Army Structures; correspondence re. ending of Colonel George's position as Honorary Colonel, including guest list for dining out; email re documents and artefacts of Colonel Smeedon offered to the Castle and Regimental Museum.
Access restricted until 2061 under UK data protection legislation
Includes: extension of Col George's term of office as Honorary Colonel; notes on the functions and responsibilities of the Honorary Colonel written by Brigadier John Hooper, Colonel George's immediate predecessor; correspondence re Honorary Patrons; correspondence re choice of new Honorary Colonel
Access restricted until 2050 under UK data protection legislation
Colonel George's notes on the role of Honorary Colonel and reflections on his time in post. Includes copies of the Trust Deed of the Castle and Regimental Museum, with accounts for 2004, Trust Deed for the Regimental Charitable Trust, with accounts for 2004-2005, the Constitution of the Regimental Dining Club, with accounts for 2004-2005 and "Job Description" for Regimental Patrons
No restrictions on access
Guidance for officers joining the Regiment
No restrictions on access
In 1998, concern over the legal status of the Officers' Mess trusts, and over the fate of Mess property should the Regiment ever be disbanded, led to a review of the trusts. Colonel George made a significant contribution to the review. The material includes copies of trust deeds of 1907, 1938 and 1969, copies of correspondence 1923, 1926, and 1980, and copies of legal precedents; correspondence with the Charity Commissioners; legal advice from solicitors.
Access restricted until 2030 under UK data protection legislation.
The trust was set up in 2002, on the initiative of Colonel George and Lieutenant Colonel Ian Thompson, then Commanding Officer of the Regiment. The overall aims as stated in the trust deed are to promote the efficiency of the Regiment, educate the public concerning the history of the Regiment and encourage recruitment, and to relieve need in persons serving or having served in the Regiment. Among the first actions of the trust were accepting the transfer of ownership of the Regimental silver and other chattels from the Officers' Mess, and purchasing from Monmouthshire County Council the war memorial and the strip of land on which it stands, located at the far end of the parade ground
Includes letter from the Charity Commission confirming that the charity has been entered in the Central Register of Charities, together with a print-out from the Register
No restrictions on access
Includes: papers and correspondence re setting up of trust; minutes of meetings; copy of registration of title to land; registration with Charity Commission; annual report and financial statement 2003; annual return to Charity Commission; draft of publicity leaflet to encourage donations; correspondence with potential trustees and donors; record of donations. It also includes duplicates of some of the papers in DGEO/2, and some papers and correspondence relating to the dispute over the right of way over the parade ground (DGEO/4).
Access restricted until 2050 under UK Data Protection legislation
Includes: minutes of trustees' meetings; annual reports and financial statements, 2004-2005; annual returns to the Charity Commission; requests for financial assistance by the Regiment. It also includes a copy of the archaeological/historic environment assessment of the secret garden (see DGEO/4
Access restricted until 2050 under UK Data Protection legislation
Includes: correspondence with the Charity Commission, the Land Registry and Monmouthshire County Council; copies of land registry and Charity Commission entries. Part duplicate of material in DGEO/3/2 and DGEO/3/3. Also includes correspondence and papers relating to the right of way over the parade ground (see DGEO/4).
Access not restricted
The owner of the 'secret garden' next to the parade ground in front of Great Castle House claimed a right of way over the parade ground for vehicles as well as on foot. The Regiment, and the RFCA for Wales, which was the owner of Great Castle House and the parade ground, disputed this. The case was complex; a considerable amount of evidence was collected and barristers instructed, but the case was ultimately settled out of court with the RFCA buying the garden. Maintenance of the garden was passed to the Regimental Charitable Trust. Colonel George acted as 'coordinator and process chaser' from mid-2003, carrying out a considerable amount of historical research into Great Castle House and the properties adjacent to the parade ground. He also gathered evidence from current and previous owners of these properties and from previous officers of the Regiment. Note that there is also a small amount of material relating to the dispute in DGEO3/2, DGEO/3/3 and DGEO/3/4, mainly but not entirely duplicates of material in DGEO/4
Access restricted until 2050 under UK data protection legislation
Access restricted until 2050 under UK data protection legislation
Includes: copy of Ordnance Survey first edition (1881) large-scale map showing Great Castle House; correspondence with and statements from former Commanding Officers and Adjutants; correspondence re. witness statements; settlement proposals; copies of planning applications; letters of thanks
Access restricted until 2080 under UK data protection legislation
Partial duplicate of material in DGEO/4/3, but also includes additional material
Access restricted until 2080 under UK data protection legislation
Papers found loose, probably duplicates of material in DGEO/4/1-4/4. Includes copy of the plan accompanying the 1901 conveyance, and modern Ordnance Survey site plan.
Access restricted until 2070 under UK data protection legislation
Prompted in part by the need to discover detailed information on the history of Great Castle House for the right of way dispute (see DGEO/4), Colonel George carried out a considerable amount of research into the history of the House and adjacent properties. In the course of this research, he compiled files of notes and correspondence and collected a number of copies and transcripts. Most relate to Great Castle House and the area immediately surrounding it in Monmouth. He also collected a small amount of historical research material relating to the Regiment, to the militia more widely, and to the Corps of Royal Engineers.
Includes correspondence, print-outs of online searches, handwritten notes, details of research avenues explored/to be explored. Also includes correspondence re. the right of way dispute, some of which duplicates correspondence in DGEO/4. Note that sections D, T and 1 were empty when received.
Access restricted until 2070 under UK data protection legislation
Includes correspondence, print-outs of online searches, handwritten notes, details of research avenues explored/to be explored; correspondence with CADW re. reprinting of guidebook to Great Castle House; correspondence re. the Secret Garden (possibly duplicates of DGEO/4); initial archaeological/Historic Environment Assessment of the Secret Garden by Defence Estates Archaeological Adviser, 2005. Note: section 4 of numbered sections at end of file missing on receipt.
No restrictions on access
Includes correspondence, print-outs of online searches, handwritten notes, details of research avenues explored/to be explored; correspondence with CADW re reprinting of guidebook to Great Castle House
Access restricted until 2090 under UK data protection legislation
Includes correspondence, print-outs of online searches, handwritten notes, copies of documents from British Library, House of Lords Record Office, Gwent Record Office, some with transcriptions
No restrictions on access
Includes 'Background Note' on history and ownership of Great Castle House, the Castle, War Memorial, Secret Garden and Inglis Bridge, and their association with the Regiment, written by Colonel George; Land Registry searches and copy deeds for properties adjacent to Great Castle House; plans and aerial photographs; reproduction large-scale 1918 Ordnance Survey map of Monmouth; also material re. right of way dispute (see DGEO/4).
Access restricted until 2050 under UK data protection legislation
Copies of pages from directories, census returns, maps, photographs (some from the museum collection); newscuttings concerning the dedication of the war memorial, 1923
No restrictions on access
'Castle House Barracks, Monmouth', scale 1/500; plans drawn by Habershon and Fawkner, Architects and stamped 'Monmouthshire Territorial Army Association'.
No restrictions on access
Scale 1:2500. Plans drawn by Habershon and Fawkner, Architects and stamped 'Monmouthshire Territorial Army Association'
No restrictions on access
No restrictions on access
A reproduction of the guidebook to Monmouth Castle and Great Castle House, originally published by the Ministry of Public Buildings and Works in 1951. The reproduction was made purely for internal reference purposes within the Regiment and the Castle and Regimental Museum. One copy of the guidebook contains a page written by Colonel George correcting errors in the original, revealed by his research. Related papers include some correspondence and notes concerning the reproduction of the guidebook. Further correspondence and notes can be found in DGEO/5/2-3
No restrictions on access
Includes notes, print-outs of online searches, summary histories of the Regiment
No restrictions on access
Taken from the 'The History of the Welsh Militia and Volunteer Corps, Volume 1 Anglesey and Caernarfonshire' by Bryn Owen (1989), with additional material to cover the period 1908-1924
No restrictions on access
No restrictions on access
compiled by staff of the bibliographical services, Gwent County Library
No restrictions on access
Presented to Parliament (Cd.3296)
No restrictions on access
by Dr Graham Watson.
Published by the R Mon RE
Received via the Durham County Record Office, accession number 10122/6
(1 booklet, typescript, spiral bound)
second edition, by Dr. Graham Watson, with a foreword by Colonel A F George.
Published by the R Mon RE
Received via the Durham County Record Office, accession number 10122/7
(1 booklet, typescript, spiral bound)
Copy of draft of 'Corps of Royal Engineer Units and Organisations, 1889-2001' by Dr Graham E Watson and Richard A Rinaldi, with correspondence between Colonel A F George and Lt. Col (Retd) M C McCabe expressing concerns about the accuracy of some of the work, and discussing options for further research and publication.
Received via the Durham County Record Office, accession number 10122/14
(1 bundle; originally a ring-binder, removed to ensure long-term preservation)
The museum was formally established by a trust deed in 1977, and opened to the public in 1989/90. As (Joint) Honorary Colonel, Colonel George was ex-officio chair of the trustees from 1997 to 2006, and he was appointed as a trustee in his own right after retiring as Joint Honorary Colonel, serving until 2016
Includes: minutes of trustees' meetings, 1993, 1997-1998; schedule of minutes of trustees' meetings, with some brief comments on significant points, 1978-1997; minutes of management committee meetings 1994-1998; balance sheets and accounts, 1996-1997; Newsletters of the Friends of the Museum, 1990-1991; correspondence and papers concerning acquisition and disposal policies, museum registration, rationalising the appointment and tenure of trustees, and changes to the honorary curatorial staff of the museum.
Access restricted until 2050 under UK data protection legislation
Includes minutes of trustees' meetings, 1998-2000 and 2003; minutes of management committee meetings, 1998-2002; balance sheets and accounts, 1998-2002; programmes and attendance lists for AMOT conferences, 1998, 2000-2002; correspondence and papers re. MOD policy towards regimental and corps museums; correspondence re. donations; conditions of acceptance of gifts; papers re. museum strategy; resignation and appointment of curators.
Access restricted until 2050 under UK data protection legislation
Includes: minutes of trustees' meetings, 2006-2008; minutes of management committee meetings, 2003-2009; statements of accounts, 2004-2009; Dining Club newsletter Feb. 2009; Forward Plan, 2009-2014; report on museum security, 2007; annual report to the Charity Commission, 2006; Programmes and attendance lists for AMOT conference, 2004, 2005, 2008; correspondence and papers relating to cataloguing the regimental archive, including bids for funding; correspondence and papers re. the return of items from the regimental archives which had been given to other repositories without permission; correspondence re. the return to Badminton Archives of items loaned to the museum; aerial photographs of Great Castle House and surrounding area; also includes copy of Declaration of Trust, 1977 and note on the roles of management and executive committees.
Access restricted until 2080 under UK data protection legislation
Includes: minutes of trustees' meetings, 2009-2012 and 2014; minutes of management committee meetings, 2010-2016; balance sheets and accounts, 2009, 2011-2014 and 2016; Dining Club newsletters 2007 and 2014; papers re AMOT conferences 2012-2014; papers and correspondence re. renewal of museum accreditation, including copies of various policies and of forward plan 2009-2014; discussion paper on possible merger with the Regimental Charitable Trust; correspondence with National Army Museum re. material transferred by Lumsdaine; report of Visitor Attraction Quality Assurance Service, 2011; proposals for topics to be covered in follow-on publication to Militiamen and Sappers to bring it up to date.
Access restricted until 2080 under UK data protection legislation
A A M Lumsdaine worked as a civilian at Great Castle House from the 1950s to the early 1970s. He was very interested in military history, and carried out a great deal of research into the history of the Regiment, using the records in the regimental archive which was not at that date catalogued. In the course of his research, he removed some items from the archive and gave them, without the knowledge or permission of the Regiment, to a number of different record repositories. When the archive was professionally catalogued and lists of records held elsewhere were compiled between 2007 and 2009, these unauthorised 'gifts' were identified. Each of the repositories which had received items from Lumsdaine were contacted and ultimately returned the items to the museum.
This volume of papers includes correspondence with the repositories, biographical information on Lumsdaine, with copy documents, and witness statements. It also includes correspondence with the archivist at Badminton House about the return of documents loaned to the museum. The 'green ring-binder' referred to in section 4 is now catalogued as DGEO/6/6.
The papers were originally in a lever-arch file separated by plastic section divider; the sections were removed and placed in individual folders to ensure long-term preservation. Note that contents for section 16 listed on the index sheet were not present when received; section 16 instead contained the contents of section 17 as listed on the index sheet; sections 17,18 and 19 were empty on receipt
Access restricted until 2050 under UK data protection legislation
Original file 'C R O 63' with some additional loose papers, created by Monmouthshire County Record Office (predecessor to Gwent Record Office). Includes correspondence on a range of matters connected to Lumsdaine's research into the history of the Regiment and his proposals for the potential location of the regimental records. The file was given to the museum by Gwent Record Office in 2008 to help with identifying material given by Lumsdaine to Monmouthshire County Record Office and other repositories
No restrictions on access
Titled: 'The Castle & Regimental Museum Monmouth. Archie Lumsdaine & Gwent County Record Office copy correspondence file returned to Monmouth in 2008'
No restrictions on access
File kept by Lumsdaine containing copies of his letters to the Record Office and their replies to him
No restrictions on access
File kept by Lumsdaine containing copies of his letters to the museum and their replies to him, 1969-1974; notes written by Colonel George on the correspondence, c.2008
No restrictions on access
No restrictions on access
Several unpublished articles written by Lumsdaine include references to Regimental records which he used in his research. As part of the work of tracking down records possibly transferred to other repositories, Colonel George noted all these references. The articles in which the references appear have now been catalogued as DLums/2/14 and DLums/5.
No restrictions on access