The greatest Chief of the Imperial General Staff Sir Alan Brooke entered The Royal Military
Academy at Woolwich with a need to prove himself. He had entered the school at the end of the
passes and was driven to leave the Shop, as the cadets called Woolwich, at a
higher standing. Though he had scored
poorly on his Latin exam receiving the next to last score amongst the new
cadets and the lowest score in English composition with 273 points, he was not
without his triumphs. He had earned the
second highest score in French, earning 1,500 out of 2,000 points, and the
highest score in freehand drawing earning 457 points. His mathematics and geography scores were
average.
Brooke had his character to help
guide him through his education. On his
entrance application to Woolwich the St. Georges’ principal noted that Alan’s
high character would make him a successful candidate and he held Alan in the
same regard as another St. George’s student, Victor Brooke, who had shown
himself to be a successful officer.
Brooke was a young man whom he held in the deepest regard and whose
character and courage were irreproachable.
Pau’s British doctor reported on the same application that Brooke had
the material to become a useful officer. To those who observed Brooke’s character, it
appeared clear he would be successful in the Army. As a young man Brooke admired gentlemanly
virtues which he attempted to follow in his own doings. This idea of honor came to become part of his
personality and decision making.
Those lacking public school
education were a minority at Woolwich.
In fact, sixty-two percent of all officers during the Boer War had
attended public schools. It was at
Woolwich and Sandhurst, the Army school for infantry and cavalry cadets, which
the most intellectually adept young men attempted to enter the Army. However, many of them, including those with
public school education, needed time like Brooke at preparatory schools to
prepare for the entrance examinations.
Woolwich provided Brooke the uniform Army education necessary to become
a typical officer. In 1913, ninety-nine
percent of all Royal Artillery officers had passed through Woolwich. Clearly at Woolwich, Brooke believed that the
world included insiders and outsiders, and Brooke did not wish to be seen as
different or on the outside.
Dedicated to his education and
future advancement, he largely ignored organized games at Woolwich and
dedicated himself to study. However, he
did take with him a pistol and shot regularly. He recalled his days at the Shop as:
a happy but strenuous time during which I learned much, not
only of the normal subjects, but more especially in the
most important of all accomplishments in life, that
of sizing up the relative values of one’s fellow men.
His time at the
Shop was a highly formative period for Brooke.
For the first time he was constantly in contact with a large group of
his English-speaking peers.
Another important event during
Brooke’s years at Woolwich was the Boer War.
He would have been unable to avoid thinking of British action in South
Africa since two of his brothers served against the Boers. Both brothers, Ronald and Victor, became the
acquaintances of journalist and future Prime Minister Sir Winston
Churchill. Churchill described Captain
Ronald Brooke of the 7th Hussars as a soldier who had seen as much
fighting as any other British officer.
Captain Brooke was an experienced officer seeing his first action in
1895 with the British relief force in Chitral, having his name mentioned in
dispatches to the London Gazette.
His successful career continued in 1898 in the Nile Expedition earning
him additional mentions in dispatches followed by a Distinguished Service Order
(DSO) in the Battles of Atbara and Khartoum in 1898. Meanwhile Churchill predicted that Alan’s
personal hero, Lieutenant Victor Brooke of the 9th Lancers was a man
to be noticed in the future. Lieutenant
Brooke suffered a smashed left hand serving with the Kimberley Relief Force. As a cadet, the heroic actions of his
brothers would not have escaped his notice.
He was an heir to a proud family military tradition. Brooke’s admiration of his elder brothers and
their military service would help frame his personal beliefs, leading to his
willingness to see military force as a legitimate tool for the obtainment of
political goals.
Brooke proved a good cadet at
Woolwich. His “Report for Autumn Term,
1902” stated that he had the qualities to be an excellent officer. He had earned “Very Good” on Mathematics
& Mechanics, Artillery, Electricity and Magnetism, and “Good” in tactics. He was evaluated as a “good all round cadet
who would make a smart field artillery officer.” He received a commission in the Royal Field
Artillery (RFA). Through hard work and
study, Brooke had worked himself up to the 50th position in his class. Based on the fact that twenty commissions had
been distributed into the Royal Engineers in prior years, he believed he had
safely earned an appointment as an Engineer.
However, in the last few weeks he had slipped to the seventeenth slot
and only fifteen Sapper commissions were issued. He was disappointed with losing out on an
Engineering commission but was still pleased to find himself in the
Artillery. Brooke was also denied the
Tomb’s Memorial, awarded to the top Artillery cadet, by only 17 points.
A classmate at
Woolwich described Brooke as an average student. However his hard work allowed him to pass in
the top third of his class of eighty cadets.
He had never been an outstanding student but his tenacity reaped rewards. His classmates noted that he was a
high-strung young man who had a hard time relaxing. Sport provided him the outlets he needed for
relaxation; and he rode and shot as often as possible. At Woolwich, his peers recognized Brooke’s
work ethic and love of sport. And Brooke
appeared to learn the value of hard work in reaching one’s goals. The value in preparing for an action would
resurface throughout Brooke’s lifetime.