Walter Tull
Encyclopedia
Walter Daniel John Tull (28 April 1888 – 25 March 1918) was an English
professional footballer
who played as an inside forward
for Tottenham Hotspur
and Northampton Town
. He was the second person of Afro-Caribbean/mixed heritage to play in the top division of the Football League, the first Afro-Caribbean/mixed heritage outfield player in the top division of English football, and the first to be commissioned as an infantry
officer in the British Army
. His professional football career began after he was spotted whilst playing for his local amateur club, Clapton
Tull was brought up in a National Children's Home orphanage in Bethnal Green
, London
, along with his brother, following the death of their parents. He joined Tottenham in 1909, and transferred to Northampton Town in 1911, where he made 111 first-team appearances.
During the First World War, Tull served in the Footballers' Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment
, and fought in the Battle of the Somme in 1916. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant
on 30 May 1917 despite the 1914 Manual of Military Law specifically excluding "Negroes"/"Mulattos" from exercising command as officers. Tull fought in Italy
in 1917–18, and was Mentioned in Despatches for "gallantry and coolness" while leading his company of 26 men on a raiding party into enemy territory. He returned to France
in 1918, and was killed in action on 25 March during the Spring Offensive
; his body was never recovered.
Campaigners have called for a statue to be erected in his honour, and Northampton South
MP
Brian Binley
has campaigned for Tull to be posthumously awarded the Military Cross
.
, Kent
, the son of Barbadian
carpenter Daniel Tull and Kent-born Alice Elizabeth Palmer. His grandmother was a slave in Barbados Despite being of mixed heritage, he was referred to as 'black
'. He began his education in what is now Mundella Primary School. Following the deaths of his parents, his mother Alice dying in 1895 and his father Daniel in 1897, he was brought up in a National Children's Home orphanage in Bethnal Green
with his brother Edward. Edward was adopted by the Warnock family of Glasgow
, and qualified as a dentist
, the first black/mixed heritage person to practise this profession in the United Kingdom.
and Uruguay
, making him the first black/mixed heritage professional footballer to play in Latin America
. Tull made his debut for Tottenham in September 1909 at inside forward
against Sunderland
, making him the second mixed heritage player to play in the top division after goalkeeper Arthur Wharton
of Darlington
, but only made 10 first-team appearances, scoring twice, before he was dropped to the reserves. This may have been due to the racial abuse he received from opposing fans, particularly at Bristol City
, whose supporters used language "lower than Billingsgate
" according to a report at the time in the Football Star newspaper.
Further appearances in the first team (20 in total with four goals) were recorded before Tull was bought by Herbert Chapman
's Northampton Town on 17 October 1911 for a "substantial fee" plus Charlie Brittain
joining Tottenham Hotspur in return. Tull made his debut four days later against Watford wearing the number 9 shirt, and made in all 111 first-team appearances and nine goals for the club. He lived in Rushden
and at one time at 26 Queen Street. When war broke out Tull enlisted in the army, in December 1914, the first Northampton Town player to do so. It was reported in the Glasgow Evening Times in 1940, in an article about Tull being the first black infantry officer in the British Army, that he had signed to play for Rangers
once the war was over.
and fighting in the Battle of the Somme
in 1916. When Tull was commissioned as Second Lieutenant
on 30 May 1917 (still in the Middlesex Regiment)/ he became the first black/mixed race combat officer in the British Army
, despite the 1914 Manual of Military Law specifically excluding Negroes/Mulatto
s from exercising actual command as officers. (Though Nathaniel Wells
, the son of a white plantation owner and a black slave, received a Yeomanry
commission in 1818). Tull's superior officers recommended him for a commission regardless. Tull fought in Italy in 1917/18 and was cited for his for "gallantry and coolness" by Major General Sydney Lawford
, commander of the 41st division, having led his company of 26 men on a night raiding party, crossing the fast-flowing rapids of the River Piave
into enemy territory and returning them unharmed. Soon after was recommended for a Military Cross
. He returned to northern France in 1918, and was killed in action
on 25 March during the Spring Offensive
, near the village of Favreuil
in the Pas-de-Calais. His body was never recovered, despite the efforts of Private Billingham to return him while under fire.
Walter Tull is remembered at the Arras
Memorial, Bay 7, for those who have no known grave. He fought in six major battles: Battle of Ancre, November 1916 (first Battle of the Somme); Battle of Messines
, June 1917; 3rd Battle of Ypres, July–August 1917 (Passchendaele, Menin Road Bridge); September 1917; Second Battle of the Somme, St.Quentin, March 1918; Battle of Bapaume
, March 1918 (2nd Somme).
, a goalkeeper for Darlington
and Rotherham United
who became the first black/mixed heritage professional in 1889, and Andrew Watson, an amateur, who is credited as the earliest black international football player, winning his first cap for Scotland
in 1881.
Campaigners have called for a statue to be erected in his honour at Dover
, and Northampton South MP
Brian Binley
and Phil Vasili, has begun campaigning for Tull to be posthumously awarded the Military Cross. However as the Military Cross was not authorized to be awarded posthumously until 1979, and the change did not include any provision for retrospective awards, this would not be possible without a complete change in the rules for awarding that medal.
at Sixfields Stadium
. The epitaph, written by Phil Vasili the author of Colouring Over the White Line: History Of Black Footballers in Britain (ISBN 1-84018-296-2) and Walter Tull, 1888–1918, Officer, Footballer. All the guns in France couldn't wake me, (London: Raw Press 2009) (isbn 9780956395405) reads:
The road which runs behind the North Stand (The Dave Bowen Stand) at Sixfields Stadium is named Walter Tull Way.
In 2004, Tottenham Hotspur and Rangers contested the Walter Tull Memorial Cup. Rangers won the Cup after defeating Spurs 2–0 with goals from Dado Pršo
and Nacho Novo
on the 28 July.
On 8 January 2009, plans were announced in the media to construct a statue in memory of Walter Tull outside the proposed new Tottenham Hotspur ground. Early backers of an online petition included Lynne Featherstone
, MP for Hornsey and Wood Green
.
As of 29 June 2010, plans to erect a bronze memorial statue of Walter Tull in the Geraldine Mary Marmsworth Park which lies within the grounds of the Imperial War Museum
had reached the stage of formal consultation with local residents. Permission for the statue was later refused by Southwark council
.
Walter's War, a drama about the life of Walter Tull, starring O. T. Fagbenle and written by Kwame Kwei-Armah
, was made by UK channel BBC Four
and screened on 9 November 2008 as part of the BBC's Ninety Years of Remembrance season. It drew 406,000 viewers and was the third most watched program on BBC4 during w/e 9 November 2008.
Two films have been made for Teachers TV
focusing on teaching about Walter Tull, and were launched in May 2008.
Respect! a factual account of the life of Walter Tull written for young people by Michaela Morgan
was published by Barrington Stoke
in 2005. The book was shortlisted in the Birmingham
Libraries young readers' book festival May 2008.
A book about Walter Tull for young readers Walter Tull: Footballer, Soldier, Hero written by Dan Lyndon was published by Collins Educational in January 2011.
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...
professional footballer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
who played as an inside forward
Inside forward
In football, the position of inside forward was popularly used in the late nineteenth and first half of the 20th centuries. The inside forwards would support the centre forwards, running and making space in the opposition defence, and, as the passing game developed, supporting him with passes...
for Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
and Northampton Town
Northampton Town F.C.
Northampton Town Football Club are an English professional football club based in Northampton, Northamptonshire. They currently play in Football League Two, the lowest league division, after being relegated from League One on the last day of the 2008–09 season...
. He was the second person of Afro-Caribbean/mixed heritage to play in the top division of the Football League, the first Afro-Caribbean/mixed heritage outfield player in the top division of English football, and the first to be commissioned as an infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
officer in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
. His professional football career began after he was spotted whilst playing for his local amateur club, Clapton
Clapton F.C.
Clapton F.C. is an English association football club, who play in Forest Gate, in the London Borough of Newham, England.Founded by W.R. Davis at a meeting in his father's house at 11 Queensdown Road, Clapton in August 0f 1877. Downs F.C. started playing on Hackney Downs. They changed their name a...
Tull was brought up in a National Children's Home orphanage in Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green is a district of the East End of London, England and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, with the far northern parts falling within the London Borough of Hackney. Located northeast of Charing Cross, it was historically an agrarian hamlet in the ancient parish of Stepney,...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, along with his brother, following the death of their parents. He joined Tottenham in 1909, and transferred to Northampton Town in 1911, where he made 111 first-team appearances.
During the First World War, Tull served in the Footballers' Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment
Middlesex Regiment
The Middlesex Regiment was a regiment of the British Army. It was formed in 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms when the 57th and 77th Regiments of Foot were amalgamated with the county's militia and rifle volunteer units.On 31 December 1966 The Middlesex Regiment was amalgamated with three...
, and fought in the Battle of the Somme in 1916. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
on 30 May 1917 despite the 1914 Manual of Military Law specifically excluding "Negroes"/"Mulattos" from exercising command as officers. Tull fought in Italy
Italian Campaign (World War II)
The Italian Campaign of World War II was the name of Allied operations in and around Italy, from 1943 to the end of the war in Europe. Joint Allied Forces Headquarters AFHQ was operationally responsible for all Allied land forces in the Mediterranean theatre, and it planned and commanded the...
in 1917–18, and was Mentioned in Despatches for "gallantry and coolness" while leading his company of 26 men on a raiding party into enemy territory. He returned to France
Western Front (World War I)
Following the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by first invading Luxembourg and Belgium, then gaining military control of important industrial regions in France. The tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne...
in 1918, and was killed in action on 25 March during the Spring Offensive
Spring Offensive
The 1918 Spring Offensive or Kaiserschlacht , also known as the Ludendorff Offensive, was a series of German attacks along the Western Front during World War I, beginning on 21 March 1918, which marked the deepest advances by either side since 1914...
; his body was never recovered.
Campaigners have called for a statue to be erected in his honour, and Northampton South
Northampton South (UK Parliament constituency)
Northampton South is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was created for February 1974 general election when the old constituency of Northampton was split into Northampton North and Northampton South.-Boundary...
MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Brian Binley
Brian Binley
Brian Arthur Roland Binley is a British Conservative politician, and the Member of Parliament for Northampton South.-Early life:...
has campaigned for Tull to be posthumously 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....
.
Early life
Tull was born in FolkestoneFolkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, the son of Barbadian
Barbadian people
Barbadians are people originating on the Caribbean island of Barbados whether they live there or in the Barbadian diaspora.Rihanna is by far the most popular Barbadian on the planet.-Diaspora:...
carpenter Daniel Tull and Kent-born Alice Elizabeth Palmer. His grandmother was a slave in Barbados Despite being of mixed heritage, he was referred to as 'black
Black people
The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
'. He began his education in what is now Mundella Primary School. Following the deaths of his parents, his mother Alice dying in 1895 and his father Daniel in 1897, he was brought up in a National Children's Home orphanage in Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green
Bethnal Green is a district of the East End of London, England and part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, with the far northern parts falling within the London Borough of Hackney. Located northeast of Charing Cross, it was historically an agrarian hamlet in the ancient parish of Stepney,...
with his brother Edward. Edward was adopted by the Warnock family of Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, and qualified as a dentist
Dentist
A dentist, also known as a 'dental surgeon', is a doctor that specializes in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of diseases and conditions of the oral cavity. The dentist's supporting team aides in providing oral health services...
, the first black/mixed heritage person to practise this profession in the United Kingdom.
Football career
Tull signed for Tottenham Hotspur in 1909, after a close-season tour of ArgentinaArgentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, making him the first black/mixed heritage professional footballer to play in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
. Tull made his debut for Tottenham in September 1909 at inside forward
Inside forward
In football, the position of inside forward was popularly used in the late nineteenth and first half of the 20th centuries. The inside forwards would support the centre forwards, running and making space in the opposition defence, and, as the passing game developed, supporting him with passes...
against Sunderland
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...
, making him the second mixed heritage player to play in the top division after goalkeeper Arthur Wharton
Arthur Wharton
Arthur Wharton is widely considered to be the first black professional association football player in the world...
of Darlington
Darlington F.C.
Darlington Football Club is a professional association football club based in Darlington, County Durham, currently playing in the Conference National. The club was founded in 1883, and originally played its games at Feethams, before moving to the Darlington Arena in 2003...
, but only made 10 first-team appearances, scoring twice, before he was dropped to the reserves. This may have been due to the racial abuse he received from opposing fans, particularly at Bristol City
Bristol City F.C.
Bristol City Football Club is one of two football league clubs in Bristol, England . They play at Ashton Gate, located in the south-west of the City...
, whose supporters used language "lower than Billingsgate
Billingsgate
Billingsgate is a small ward in the south-east of the City of London, lying on the north bank of the River Thames between London Bridge and Tower Bridge...
" according to a report at the time in the Football Star newspaper.
Further appearances in the first team (20 in total with four goals) were recorded before Tull was bought by Herbert Chapman
Herbert Chapman
Herbert Chapman was an English association football player and manager. Though he had an undistinguished playing career, he went on to become one of the most successful and influential managers in early 20th century English football, before his sudden death in 1934.As a player, Chapman played for...
's Northampton Town on 17 October 1911 for a "substantial fee" plus Charlie Brittain
Charlie Brittain
Richard Charles ' Charlie ' Brittain was an English professional footballer who played for Portsmouth, Northampton Town, Tottenham Hotspur and Cardiff City.- Football career :...
joining Tottenham Hotspur in return. Tull made his debut four days later against Watford wearing the number 9 shirt, and made in all 111 first-team appearances and nine goals for the club. He lived in Rushden
Rushden
Rushden is a town and civil parish in the county of Northamptonshire, England.The parish of Rushden covers an area of some and is part of the district of East Northamptonshire. The population of Rushden was estimated at around 28,368, making it the fifth largest town in the county...
and at one time at 26 Queen Street. When war broke out Tull enlisted in the army, in December 1914, the first Northampton Town player to do so. It was reported in the Glasgow Evening Times in 1940, in an article about Tull being the first black infantry officer in the British Army, that he had signed to play for Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
once the war was over.
First World War
During the First World War Tull served in both Footballers' Battalions of the Middlesex Regiment, 17th and 23rd, and also in the 5th battalion, rising to the rank of sergeantSergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
and fighting in the Battle of the Somme
Battle of the Somme (1916)
The Battle of the Somme , also known as the Somme Offensive, took place during the First World War between 1 July and 14 November 1916 in the Somme department of France, on both banks of the river of the same name...
in 1916. When Tull was commissioned as Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
on 30 May 1917 (still in the Middlesex Regiment)/ he became the first black/mixed race combat officer in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
, despite the 1914 Manual of Military Law specifically excluding Negroes/Mulatto
Mulatto
Mulatto denotes a person with one white parent and one black parent, or more broadly, a person of mixed black and white ancestry. Contemporary usage of the term varies greatly, and the broader sense of the term makes its application rather subjective, as not all people of mixed white and black...
s from exercising actual command as officers. (Though Nathaniel Wells
Nathaniel Wells
Nathaniel Wells , was the son of a Welsh merchant and a black slave. After inheriting his father's plantations, he became a wealthy land owner, magistrate, the second black person to hold a commission in the Armed Forces of the Crown Nathaniel Wells (10 September 1779 – 13 May 1852), was the son...
, the son of a white plantation owner and a black slave, received a Yeomanry
Yeomanry
Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Territorial Army, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units may serve in a variety of different military roles.-History:...
commission in 1818). Tull's superior officers recommended him for a commission regardless. Tull fought in Italy in 1917/18 and was cited for his for "gallantry and coolness" by Major General Sydney Lawford
Sydney Turing Barlow Lawford
Lieutenant-General Sir Sydney Turing Barlow Lawford, KCB was a British Army officer, and the father of movie star Peter Lawford.-Biography:...
, commander of the 41st division, having led his company of 26 men on a night raiding party, crossing the fast-flowing rapids of the River Piave
Piave River
Piave is a river in north Italy. It begins in the Alps and flows southeast for into the Adriatic Sea near the city of Venice....
into enemy territory and returning them unharmed. Soon after was recommended for a 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....
. He returned to northern France in 1918, and was killed in action
Killed in action
Killed in action is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their own forces at the hands of hostile forces. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA need not have fired their weapons but have been killed due to...
on 25 March during the Spring Offensive
Spring Offensive
The 1918 Spring Offensive or Kaiserschlacht , also known as the Ludendorff Offensive, was a series of German attacks along the Western Front during World War I, beginning on 21 March 1918, which marked the deepest advances by either side since 1914...
, near the village of Favreuil
Favreuil
Favreuil is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography:A farming village situated south of Arras, at the junction of the D36E and D10E roads.-Population:-Places of interest:...
in the Pas-de-Calais. His body was never recovered, despite the efforts of Private Billingham to return him while under fire.
Walter Tull is remembered at the Arras
Arras
Arras is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect...
Memorial, Bay 7, for those who have no known grave. He fought in six major battles: Battle of Ancre, November 1916 (first Battle of the Somme); Battle of Messines
Battle of Messines
The Battle of Messines was a battle of the Western front of the First World War. It began on 7 June 1917 when the British Second Army under the command of General Herbert Plumer launched an offensive near the village of Mesen in West Flanders, Belgium...
, June 1917; 3rd Battle of Ypres, July–August 1917 (Passchendaele, Menin Road Bridge); September 1917; Second Battle of the Somme, St.Quentin, March 1918; Battle of Bapaume
Battle of Bapaume
Battle of Bapaume may refer to:*Battle of Bapaume , a battle of the Franco-Prussian War*First Battle of Bapaume, a battle during the German Spring Offensive of World War I...
, March 1918 (2nd Somme).
Legacy
In the history of black/mixed heritage footballers in Britain, Tull may be mentioned alongside Arthur WhartonArthur Wharton
Arthur Wharton is widely considered to be the first black professional association football player in the world...
, a goalkeeper for Darlington
Darlington F.C.
Darlington Football Club is a professional association football club based in Darlington, County Durham, currently playing in the Conference National. The club was founded in 1883, and originally played its games at Feethams, before moving to the Darlington Arena in 2003...
and Rotherham United
Rotherham United F.C.
Rotherham United Football Club are an English professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, who compete in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club's colours have traditionally been red and white, although these have evolved through history...
who became the first black/mixed heritage professional in 1889, and Andrew Watson, an amateur, who is credited as the earliest black international football player, winning his first cap for Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
in 1881.
Campaigners have called for a statue to be erected in his honour at Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
, and Northampton South MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Brian Binley
Brian Binley
Brian Arthur Roland Binley is a British Conservative politician, and the Member of Parliament for Northampton South.-Early life:...
and Phil Vasili, has begun campaigning for Tull to be posthumously awarded the Military Cross. However as the Military Cross was not authorized to be awarded posthumously until 1979, and the change did not include any provision for retrospective awards, this would not be possible without a complete change in the rules for awarding that medal.
Memorial
On Sunday 11 July 1999, Northampton Town F.C. unveiled a memorial to Walter in a dedicated Garden of RemembranceGarden of Remembrance
Garden of Remembrance may be:*Garden of Remembrance , Ireland*Garden of Remembrance, Lockerbie, Scotland, see: Pan Am Flight 103#Memorials and tributes*Garden of Remembrance , by Oneiroid Psychosis...
at Sixfields Stadium
Sixfields Stadium
Sixfields Stadium is a 7,653-capacity all-seater sports stadium in Northampton, England. It has been the home ground of Northampton Town Football Club following their move from the County Ground in October 1994....
. The epitaph, written by Phil Vasili the author of Colouring Over the White Line: History Of Black Footballers in Britain (ISBN 1-84018-296-2) and Walter Tull, 1888–1918, Officer, Footballer. All the guns in France couldn't wake me, (London: Raw Press 2009) (isbn 9780956395405) reads:
Through his actions, Tull ridiculed the barriers of ignorance that tried to deny negroes/mulattos equality with their contemporaries. His life stands testament to a determination to confront those people and those obstacles that sought to diminish him and the world in which he lived. It reveals a man, though rendered breathless in his prime, whose strong heart still beats loudly.
The road which runs behind the North Stand (The Dave Bowen Stand) at Sixfields Stadium is named Walter Tull Way.
In 2004, Tottenham Hotspur and Rangers contested the Walter Tull Memorial Cup. Rangers won the Cup after defeating Spurs 2–0 with goals from Dado Pršo
Dado Pršo
Miladin "Dado" Pršo is a Croatian former professional footballer who played as a striker.Pršo played for seven different teams and made over 300 league appearances as a professional...
and Nacho Novo
Nacho Novo
Ignacio Javier "Nacho" Gómez Novo is a Spanish association footballer who plays for La Liga side Sporting Gijón.Novo formerly played for Huesca in Spain then moved to Scotland with Raith Rovers and Dundee. In July 2004, he moved to Rangers for £450,000. During his first season at the club he...
on the 28 July.
On 8 January 2009, plans were announced in the media to construct a statue in memory of Walter Tull outside the proposed new Tottenham Hotspur ground. Early backers of an online petition included Lynne Featherstone
Lynne Featherstone
Lynne Choona Featherstone , is a British Liberal Democrat politician, and the Member of Parliament for Hornsey and Wood Green....
, MP for Hornsey and Wood Green
Hornsey and Wood Green
Hornsey and Wood Green is a borough constituency in the London Borough of Haringey represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- Boundaries :...
.
As of 29 June 2010, plans to erect a bronze memorial statue of Walter Tull in the Geraldine Mary Marmsworth Park which lies within the grounds of the Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
had reached the stage of formal consultation with local residents. Permission for the statue was later refused by Southwark council
London Borough of Southwark
The London Borough of Southwark is a London borough in south east London, England. It is directly south of the River Thames and the City of London, and forms part of Inner London.-History:...
.
Media
Plans are under way to make a film about the life of Walter Tull with a screenplay written by Phil Vasili optioned by Araguaya Films based upon his biography Walter Tull, 1888–1918, Officer, Footballer. All the guns in France couldn't wake meWalter's War, a drama about the life of Walter Tull, starring O. T. Fagbenle and written by Kwame Kwei-Armah
Kwame Kwei-Armah
Kwame Kwei-Armah, is a British actor, playwright, singer and broadcaster. In 2005 he became the second black Briton to have a play staged in the West End...
, was made by UK channel BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
and screened on 9 November 2008 as part of the BBC's Ninety Years of Remembrance season. It drew 406,000 viewers and was the third most watched program on BBC4 during w/e 9 November 2008.
Two films have been made for Teachers TV
Teachers TV
Teachers TV was a website and former free-to-air Distance education television channel which provided video and support materials for those who work in education in the UK, including teachers, school leaders, governors, teacher trainers, student teachers and support staff.Its aims included raising...
focusing on teaching about Walter Tull, and were launched in May 2008.
Respect! a factual account of the life of Walter Tull written for young people by Michaela Morgan
Michaela Morgan
Michaela Morgan is a British children's author and poet. She has written more than 120 titles since 1987, ranging from picture books to junior novels...
was published by Barrington Stoke
Barrington Stoke
Barrington Stoke is a children's book publisher based in Edinburgh, Scotland.The company was founded in 1997. It publishes fiction and non-fiction adapted to a reading age of 8 for reluctant, underconfident and dyslexic readers aged 9–16....
in 2005. The book was shortlisted in the 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...
Libraries young readers' book festival May 2008.
A book about Walter Tull for young readers Walter Tull: Footballer, Soldier, Hero written by Dan Lyndon was published by Collins Educational in January 2011.
Further reading
(Please note: this is a fictional diary. There is no surviving diary written by Walter Tull)External links
- Guardian article March 25, 1998
- 100 Great Black Britons
- Memorial Garden at Sixfields Stadium, Northampton
- For teaching material about Walter Tull, produced for Northamptonshire Black History Association, www.blackhistory4schools.com
- Channel 4 News: The Walter Tull story
- Article on Spartacus Educational
- The Dover War Memorial Project
- Heritage Lottery Fund Project(HLF) to tell story of the remarkable life of the man who became both the first black British professional outfield footballer and the first black officer in the British Army is to be told thanks to a £49,900 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF)
- Tull's service record from Moving here, The National Archives and others. For more records relating to Tull in The National Archives, see Your Archives
- For Whom The Bell Tulls