Eric Sherbrooke Walker
Encyclopedia
Major Eric George Sherbrooke Walker, MC
(1887–1976) was hotelier
and founder of the Outspan Hotel
and Treetops Hotel
in Kenya
, as well as a decorated military officer. He is remembered as the host of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip when they visited Treetops in 1952, shortly before receiving news of the death of King George VI and Elizabeth's accession to the throne.
, Birmingham
in Warwickshire on 4 July 1887 , and brought up in March, Cambridgeshire
where his father was Rector
. He was educated at Oxford University. Walker was associated with the Scouting
movement, and was a personal secretary to Baden-Powell
, the founder of the movement. He was one of the first two Scout inspectors, overseeing all of Wales
and the South of England
. He was present at Baden-Powell's first Scout camp in Humshaugh
in 1908, and toured Canada
with sixteen Scouts in 1910 to demonstrate Scouting.
Walker joined the Royal Flying Corps
during World War I
, but was shot down and held as a prisoner of war
in Germany
. He is said to have made 36 attempts to escape. Apparently, on one occasion, a German girlfriend from before the war helped him by supplying him with wire cutters provided by Baden-Powell hidden inside a piece of ham
.
After the War's end he was employed as a temporary Captain on the General List, fighting against the Bolshevik
s with the British Military Mission in South Russia alongside the White Army
in the Russian Civil War
. He was awarded the Military Cross
for his gallantry at Ushun in the Crimea
on 8 and 10 March 1920, where he attached himself to the Police Regiment and remained with them throughout the two days of counter-attacks, during which they sustained heavy casualties. By his personal example and coolness, under heavy machine-gun fire, he was largely responsible for the decisive success gained. In addition, he received the Order of St. Anne
and the Order of St. Stanislaus from the grateful White Russian
authorities.
Walker returned to England
after the war, and became engaged and ultimately married to Lady Bettie Feilding, the daughter of Rudolph Feilding, 9th Earl of Denbigh
, on 26 July 1926.
Needing money to finance his marriage, he ran a bootlegging
business, smuggling liquor into America during the Prohibition
era, while his fiancée Lady Bettie worked as Social Secretary in the British Embassy in Washington DC. When Walker shot and wounded a corrupt state trooper who had tried to steal his cache of whiskey, the couple fled to Canada
. Walker later wrote The Confessions of a Rum-Runner under the pseudonym
of James Barbican about his life during this period.
, where Walker purchased approximately 70 acres (28.3 ha) of Crown Land
in Nyeri
and - in 1928 - opened the Outspan Hotel
, overlooking the gorge of the Chania
River in the Aberdare Range
(near the present day Aberdare National Park
).
In 1932, he opened the adjunct Treetops Hotel
as a night-viewing station for wildlife. These business ventures may well have been based on profits made during his bootlegging days in America.
He saw further military service during World War II
, first enlisting in the Royal Air Force
, and then going on to serve with the South African forces in Abyssinia
and in the Western Desert during the North African campaign
, narrowly avoiding capture at Sidi Rezegh.
He was host to Princess Elizabeth and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh
, during their February 1952 visit to Kenya. The couple had accepted an invitation to spend a night at Treetops, and arrived there on the afternoon of 5 February 1952. During the night, unknowingly, the Princess succeeded to the throne of England
. Her father, King George VI, died in his sleep at Sandringham
in England in the early hours of 6 February, and the Princess received the news later that day, after leaving Treetops, at the Royal Lodge, Sagana
.
Walker was again employed on military duties during the Mau Mau Uprising
in the early 1950s. Treetops was offered as a lookout point for the King's African Rifles
, but it was burned down by Mau Mau fighters on 27 May 1954. Walker built a bigger hotel at the same location in 1957, and business prospered - encouraged by public interest in the accession of Elizabeth II some years earlier. His hotel business was even featured in National Geographic Magazine
, and famous celebrities like Charles Chaplin and Paul McCartney
visited the hotel. Walker also wrote a book about his life in Kenya and Treetops, named Treetops Hotel.
His former employer Lord Baden-Powell retired to the Outspan Hotel (Baden-Powell once remarked "closer to Nyeri, closer to bliss"), bought a share of Walker's hotel business to pay for his cottage (named Paxtu and now home to a Scouting museum) in the hotel grounds, and died there in 1941. The famous hunter Jim Corbett
moved to Kenya after the Independence of India, took up residence at the Outspan, and became a resident hunter at Treetops. A house on the Walkers' farm was used during the shooting of the film version of Born Free.
An avid hunter during his younger days, Walker, like many others, became an advocate of wildlife conservation
in his final years in Kenya
.
He retired to live in Majorca, Spain
, and died there at his home, Cás Fidavé, on 13 May 1976.
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
(1887–1976) was hotelier
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
and founder of the Outspan Hotel
Outspan Hotel
The Outspan Hotel is in Nyeri, Kenya. It was built up from an old farm by Eric Sherbrooke Walker in the 1920s. Famous visitors include Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell and his wife Olave Baden-Powell from 1938 until Baden-Powell's death in 1941...
and Treetops Hotel
Treetops Hotel
Treetops Hotel is a hotel in Aberdare National Park in Kenya near the township of Nyeri, 1,966 m above sea level on the Aberdare Range and in sight of Mount Kenya...
in Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, as well as a decorated military officer. He is remembered as the host of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip when they visited Treetops in 1952, shortly before receiving news of the death of King George VI and Elizabeth's accession to the throne.
Early life
The son of Reverend George Sherbrooke Walker and his wife, Jessie Elizabeth Carter, Eric Walker was born in EdgbastonEdgbaston
Edgbaston is an area in the city of Birmingham in England. It is also a formal district, managed by its own district committee. The constituency includes the smaller Edgbaston ward and the wards of Bartley Green, Harborne and Quinton....
, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
in Warwickshire on 4 July 1887 , and brought up in March, Cambridgeshire
March, Cambridgeshire
March is a Fenland market town and civil parish in the Isle of Ely area of Cambridgeshire, England. March was the county town of the Isle of Ely, a separate administrative county between 1889 and 1965, and is now the administrative centre of Fenland District Council.The town was an important...
where his father was Rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
. He was educated at Oxford University. Walker was associated with the Scouting
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
movement, and was a personal secretary to Baden-Powell
Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell
Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, Bt, OM, GCMG, GCVO, KCB , also known as B-P or Lord Baden-Powell, was a lieutenant-general in the British Army, writer, and founder of the Scout Movement....
, the founder of the movement. He was one of the first two Scout inspectors, overseeing all of Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and the South of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He was present at Baden-Powell's first Scout camp in Humshaugh
Humshaugh
Humshaugh is a parish in Northumberland, England. This small village is just north of Chollerford, which is located near Chesters Fort on Hadrian's Wall and is about 21 miles west of Newcastle upon Tyne. The village of Humshaugh lies just off the military road running from Newcastle to Carlisle...
in 1908, and toured Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
with sixteen Scouts in 1910 to demonstrate Scouting.
Walker joined the Royal Flying Corps
Royal Flying Corps
The Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, but was shot down and held as a prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. He is said to have made 36 attempts to escape. Apparently, on one occasion, a German girlfriend from before the war helped him by supplying him with wire cutters provided by Baden-Powell hidden inside a piece of ham
Ham
Ham is a cut of meat from the thigh of the hind leg of certain animals, especiallypigs. Nearly all hams sold today are fully cooked or cured.-Etymology:...
.
After the War's end he was employed as a temporary Captain on the General List, fighting against the Bolshevik
Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks, originally also Bolshevists , derived from bol'shinstvo, "majority") were a faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party which split apart from the Menshevik faction at the Second Party Congress in 1903....
s with the British Military Mission in South Russia alongside the White Army
White movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
in the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
. He was awarded the Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
for his gallantry at Ushun in the Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
on 8 and 10 March 1920, where he attached himself to the Police Regiment and remained with them throughout the two days of counter-attacks, during which they sustained heavy casualties. By his personal example and coolness, under heavy machine-gun fire, he was largely responsible for the decisive success gained. In addition, he received the Order of St. Anne
Order of St. Anna
The Order of St. Anna ) is a Holstein and then Russian Imperial order of chivalry established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp on 14 February 1735, in honour of his wife Anna Petrovna, daughter of Peter the Great of Russia...
and the Order of St. Stanislaus from the grateful White Russian
White movement
The White movement and its military arm the White Army - known as the White Guard or the Whites - was a loose confederation of Anti-Communist forces.The movement comprised one of the politico-military Russian forces who fought...
authorities.
Walker returned to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
after the war, and became engaged and ultimately married to Lady Bettie Feilding, the daughter of Rudolph Feilding, 9th Earl of Denbigh
Rudolph Feilding, 9th Earl of Denbigh
Rudolph Robert Basil Aloysius Augustine Feilding, 9th Earl of Denbigh, 8th Earl of Desmond GCVO TD DL JP , styled Viscount Feilding from 1865 to 1892, was the eldest son of the 8th Earl of Denbigh and Mary Berkeley, the daughter of Robert Berkeley and Henrietta Benfield.Feilding was an artillery...
, on 26 July 1926.
Needing money to finance his marriage, he ran a bootlegging
Rum-running
Rum-running, also known as bootlegging, is the illegal business of transporting alcoholic beverages where such transportation is forbidden by law...
business, smuggling liquor into America during the Prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
era, while his fiancée Lady Bettie worked as Social Secretary in the British Embassy in Washington DC. When Walker shot and wounded a corrupt state trooper who had tried to steal his cache of whiskey, the couple fled to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Walker later wrote The Confessions of a Rum-Runner under the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
of James Barbican about his life during this period.
Life in Kenya
The couple finally emigrated to KenyaKenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, where Walker purchased approximately 70 acres (28.3 ha) of Crown Land
Crown land
In Commonwealth realms, Crown land is an area belonging to the monarch , the equivalent of an entailed estate that passed with the monarchy and could not be alienated from it....
in Nyeri
Nyeri
Nyeri is a town in situated in the Central Highlands of Kenya Kenya, which was the administrative headquarters of the country's former Central Province...
and - in 1928 - opened the Outspan Hotel
Outspan Hotel
The Outspan Hotel is in Nyeri, Kenya. It was built up from an old farm by Eric Sherbrooke Walker in the 1920s. Famous visitors include Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell and his wife Olave Baden-Powell from 1938 until Baden-Powell's death in 1941...
, overlooking the gorge of the Chania
Chania
Chaniá , , also transliterated Chania, Hania, and Xania, older form Chanea and Venetian Canea, Ottoman Turkish خانيه Hanya) is the second largest city of Crete and the capital of the Chania peripheral unit...
River in the Aberdare Range
Aberdare Range
The Aberdare Range is a 160 km long mountain range of upland, north of Kenya's capital Nairobi with an average elevation of . It is located in west central Kenya, northeast of Naivasha and Gilgil and just south of the Equator...
(near the present day Aberdare National Park
Aberdare National Park
- External links :* * * *...
).
In 1932, he opened the adjunct Treetops Hotel
Treetops Hotel
Treetops Hotel is a hotel in Aberdare National Park in Kenya near the township of Nyeri, 1,966 m above sea level on the Aberdare Range and in sight of Mount Kenya...
as a night-viewing station for wildlife. These business ventures may well have been based on profits made during his bootlegging days in America.
He saw further military service during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, first enlisting in the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
, and then going on to serve with the South African forces in Abyssinia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
and in the Western Desert during the North African campaign
North African campaign
During the Second World War, the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and in Morocco and Algeria and Tunisia .The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers, many of whom had...
, narrowly avoiding capture at Sidi Rezegh.
He was host to Princess Elizabeth and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh
Duke of Edinburgh
The Duke of Edinburgh is a British royal title, named after the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, which has been conferred upon members of the British royal family only four times times since its creation in 1726...
, during their February 1952 visit to Kenya. The couple had accepted an invitation to spend a night at Treetops, and arrived there on the afternoon of 5 February 1952. During the night, unknowingly, the Princess succeeded to the throne of England
Throne of England
The Throne of England is the English term used to identify the throne of the King of England. The term can refer to very specific seating, as in King Edward's Chair, which has been used in the coronations of British kings for eight centuries...
. Her father, King George VI, died in his sleep at Sandringham
Sandringham
Sandringham can refer to:Places*Sandringham, Johannesburg, a suburb of Johannesburg, Gauteng Province, South Africa*Sandringham, Norfolk, a village in Norfolk, England*Sandringham House in the aforementioned village, owned by the British Royal Family...
in England in the early hours of 6 February, and the Princess received the news later that day, after leaving Treetops, at the Royal Lodge, Sagana
Sagana
Sagana is a small town in Kirinyaga District, Central, Kenya. It is along the Nairobi-Nyeri highway, 100 kilometres north of Nairobi, the capital of Kenya. Its name comes from Kenyas longest river, Tana River which is also called Thagana.- See also :...
.
Walker was again employed on military duties during the Mau Mau Uprising
Mau Mau Uprising
The Mau Mau Uprising was a military conflict that took place in Kenya between 1952 and 1960...
in the early 1950s. Treetops was offered as a lookout point for the King's African Rifles
King's African Rifles
The King's African Rifles was a multi-battalion British colonial regiment raised from the various British possessions in East Africa from 1902 until independence in the 1960s. It performed both military and internal security functions within the East African colonies as well as external service as...
, but it was burned down by Mau Mau fighters on 27 May 1954. Walker built a bigger hotel at the same location in 1957, and business prospered - encouraged by public interest in the accession of Elizabeth II some years earlier. His hotel business was even featured in National Geographic Magazine
National Geographic Magazine
National Geographic, formerly the National Geographic Magazine, is the official journal of the National Geographic Society. It published its first issue in 1888, just nine months after the Society itself was founded...
, and famous celebrities like Charles Chaplin and Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
visited the hotel. Walker also wrote a book about his life in Kenya and Treetops, named Treetops Hotel.
His former employer Lord Baden-Powell retired to the Outspan Hotel (Baden-Powell once remarked "closer to Nyeri, closer to bliss"), bought a share of Walker's hotel business to pay for his cottage (named Paxtu and now home to a Scouting museum) in the hotel grounds, and died there in 1941. The famous hunter Jim Corbett
Jim Corbett (hunter)
Edward James "Jim" Corbett was a British hunter, conservationist, author and naturalist, famous for slaying a large number of man-eating tigers and leopards in India....
moved to Kenya after the Independence of India, took up residence at the Outspan, and became a resident hunter at Treetops. A house on the Walkers' farm was used during the shooting of the film version of Born Free.
An avid hunter during his younger days, Walker, like many others, became an advocate of wildlife conservation
Wildlife conservation
Wildlife conservation is the preservation, protection, or restoration of wildlife and their environment, especially in relation to endangered and vulnerable species. All living non-domesticated animals, even if bred, hatched or born in captivity, are considered wild animals. Wildlife represents all...
in his final years in Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
.
He retired to live in Majorca, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and died there at his home, Cás Fidavé, on 13 May 1976.