Baden Baden-Powell

For the town, see Baden-Baden.
Baden Baden-Powell
Born 22 May 1860
Kensington, London, England
Died 3 October 1937 (aged 77)

Baden Fletcher Smyth Baden-Powell, FS, FRAS, FRMetS (22 May 1860 – 3 October 1937) was the youngest son of Baden Powell, and the brother of Robert Baden-Powell, Warington Baden-Powell, George Baden-Powell, Agnes Baden-Powell and Frank Baden-Powell.

His mother, Henrietta Grace Smyth, was the third wife of Rev. Baden Powell (the previous two having died), and was a gifted musician and artist.

Baden-Powell was a military aviation pioneer and a Fellow and later President of the Royal Aeronautical Society and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. He was one of the first to see the use of aviation in a military context. He built his first balloons and planes together with his sister Agnes.

He invented a man-carrying kite system which he called the Levitor.[1] He also developed a collapsible military bicycle.[2] He was in the Relief Column that relieved the siege of Mafeking, where his elder brother was in command.

He contributed to the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition entry on 'kite-flying'.[3]

Scouting

Baden-Powell was the first who brought flying-based activities into Scouting, in the form of kite and model aeroplane building. He can be considered the founder of Air Scouting even though he thought it was hardly feasible to have special 'Air Scouts'.[4]

Baden-Powell was President and later District Commissioner of a North London District, was District Commissioner of Sevenoaks District, Kent between 1918 and 1935, and was Headquarters Commissioner for Aviation from 1923, until his death in 1937.

Preceded by
Unknown		 President of the Aeronautical Society
1902 - 1909 		Succeeded by
Edward Purkis Frost

Notes

  1. ↑ Pelham, D.; The Penguin Book of Kites, Penguin 1976
  2. ↑ http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1901-MILITARY-CYCLING-MAJOR-BADEN-POWELLS-COLLAPSIBLE-BICYCLE-/321445110312?pt=Antiquarian_Books_UK&hash=item4ad79f2228
  3. ↑ https://archive.org/stream/encyclopaediabri15chisrich#page/vi/mode/2up page 'iv' and page 840
  4. ↑ (Baden Baden-Powell in Scouter July, 1932)"...it has been suggested that Air Scouts should be organised in the same way as Sea Scouts. "Though the air is 'ever with us', access to aerodromes is not common and though Sea Scouts can mess about 'in any old boat', a Scout is unlikely to be able to get access to an aeroplane, and even if he did he would not be able to fly it. ...it seems hardly feasible to have special 'Air Scouts', yet a great deal may be accomplished by troops specialising in air-work... I shall always be pleased to give what advice I can."

External links