Francis Nathaniel Tarr (14 August 1887 – 18 July 1915) was an English international

rugby union player Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

. He played

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

for the

Leicester Tigers Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...

and, between 1909 and 1913, won four

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for England, scoring two tries. He also earned three

Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

while

reading law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

. He later became a solicitor in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

before volunteering for overseas service during the First World War. He was killed in July 1915 near

Ypres Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality co ...

on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

, after being hit by a shell splinter while serving as a lieutenant in the 1/4th Battalion,

Leicestershire Regiment The Leicestershire Regiment (Royal Leicestershire Regiment after 1946) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, with a history going back to 1688. The regiment saw service for three centuries, in numerous wars and conflicts such as both W ...

. Tarr was one of 27 former England internationals killed in the war.

Early life

Born on 14 August 1887 at

Ironville Ironville in Derbyshire, England, was built about 1830 by the Butterley Company as a model village to house its workers. The population of the civil parish was 1,930 at the 2021 Census. It is situated between Riddings and Codnor Park. John Wrig ...

, near

Belper Belper is a town and civil parish in the local government district of Amber Valley in Derbyshire, England, located about north of Derby on the River Derwent. As well as Belper itself, the parish also includes the village of Milford and the ha ...

, Derbyshire, Frank Tarr was the only son of Frederick and Emma Tarr. His father was a coal merchant. He was educated at Stoneygate School, Leicester, where he began playing rugby, before moving up to

Uppingham School Uppingham School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils 13-18) in Uppingham, Rutland, England, founded in 1584 by Robert Johnson (rector), Robert Johnson, the Archdeacon of Leicester, who also established Oa ...

in 1902, where he was Captain of Games and played three-quarter in the rugby team for two years, encountering a future Oxford and England teammate

Ronald Poulton-Palmer Ronald 'Ronnie' William Poulton (later sometimes Poulton-Palmer) (12 September 1889 – 5 May 1915) was an English rugby union footballer, who captained . He was killed in the First World War during the Second Battle of Ypres. Born in nort ...

playing for

Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. Up ...

. From 1906 to 1910 he

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

University College, Oxford University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the univer ...

Rugby career

In his first season at Oxford, Tarr played for the 'A' team, which also included another future England player

Anthony Henniker-Gotley Anthony Henniker-Gotley (2 March 1887 – 4 May 1972) was a rugby union international who represented England national rugby union team, England from 1910 to 1911. He also captained that country. Early life Anthony Henniker-Gotley was born on ...

. He was later selected for the senior team and gained three

from 1907 to 1909. He won his first Blue in the 1907

Varsity Match A varsity match is a fixture (especially of a sporting event or team) between two university teams, particularly Oxford and Cambridge. The Scottish Varsity rugby match between the University of St Andrews and the University of Edinburgh at Murray ...

on 10 December, alongside

Henry Vassall Henry Holland "Jumbo" Vassall (23 March 1887 – 8 October 1949)
Scrum.com was an

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, with some notable international players on the team, were the clear favourites on the day. After they won the toss and elected to kick off with the wind behind them, the majority of the first 40 minutes was played in Oxford's half, much of it in their 25. Yet Cambridge failed to break through Oxford's defence, chiefly that of the centres Vassall and Tarr. Just before half time, with a

scrum Scrum may refer to: Sport * Scrum (rugby), a method of restarting play in rugby union and rugby league ** Scrum (rugby union), scrum in rugby union * Scrum, an offensive melee formation in Japanese game Bo-taoshi Media and popular culture * M ...

deep in Oxford's half, Rupert Williamson fed George Cunningham. The ball came to Tarr, who drew his opposite man, K. G. Macleod, and timed his pass to Vassall so that he, in turn, drew the Cambridge left

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expres ...

near the half-way line and put H. Martin to run in a

try Try or TRY may refer to: Music Albums * ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio * ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs * "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987) * "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014) * "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004) * " Try (Ju ...

from there. Oxford went on to win 16–0. Oxford University XV 1907

With Oxford having won the Varsity Match in 1906 and again in 1907,

Harold Hodges Harold Augustus Hodges (22 January 1886 – 22 March 1918) was an English sportsman and soldier who played international rugby union for England. He also played first-class cricket for Nottinghamshire. Hodges, a prop, was capped twice for Englan ...

, the Oxford captain, was inclined to keep the winning three-quarter line for 1908, including the centre combination of Vassall and Tarr. One of that year's

fresher A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...

s was Tennant Sloan, a

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Scottish centre, who chose to try out for full back, realising that he was unlikely to be picked ahead of either of the incumbent centres. Vassall and Tarr had excellent ball handling skills, were quick around the field and fine decision makers; Tarr was also a formidable tackler. Ronnie Poulton played several games for Oxford ahead of the Varsity Match but it was clear that Hodges preferred the Vassall-Tarr pairing and Poulton only played when Vassall was injured, as he did in the 20–0 defeat of

Richmond RFC Richmond Football Club is a rugby union club from Richmond, London. It is a founding member of the Rugby Football Union, and is one of the oldest football clubs (of any code). It fields teams in both men's and women's rugby; the men's first t ...

. On 12 December, the 1908 Varsity Match resulted in a hard-fought 5–5 draw, the Cambridge pack having improved considerably since the previous year. As it turned out, Vassall's persistent ankle injury rendered him useless just five minutes into the game. ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' noted Tarr's performance saying: "FN Tarr, at left centre three-quarter, gave a magnificent display of defensive play." Tarr earned his first England cap on 9 January 1909 against the touring Australians at

Rectory Field Rectory Field is a sports ground in Blackheath in the Royal Borough of Greenwich in south-east London. It was developed in the 1880s by Blackheath Cricket, Football and Lawn Tennis Company and became the home ground of rugby union team Blackheath ...

, Blackheath. His opportunity came up with both Vassall and

John Birkett John Birkett may refer to: * John Birkett (rugby union), English rugby union player * John Birkett (surgeon), English surgeon See also * John Burkett John David Burkett (born November 28, 1964) is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher. ...

injured. Also earning their first caps that day were

Edgar Mobbs Edgar Roberts Mobbs (1882–1917) was an English rugby union footballer who played for and captained Northampton R.F.C. and England. He played as a three quarter. Mobbs is commemorated in the Ella-Mobbs Trophy, first competed for by the Austr ...

on the right wing and Alex Ashcroft, of Cambridge University, at

fly-half In the game of rugby union, there are 15 players on each team, comprising eight forwards (wearing jerseys numbered 1–8) and seven backs (numbered 9–15). In addition, there may be up to eight replacement players "on the bench", numbered 16– ...

. England took an early lead, when Tarr put Mobbs in for a try in the opening stages. That try has been described by his contemporary, rugby journalist and author E. H. D. Sewell, as being "one of the very best ever scored, being perfect in execution from the moment Tarr first received the ball to the moment Mobbs touched it down for a try." However, Australia took control of the game to win 9–3. Tarr was selected to play Wales the following week in Cardiff. Although England played better than expected, Wales were favourites to win and beat the visitors 8–0. Two weeks later, on 30 January, England played France with a half back combination of Frank Hutchinson, earning his first cap, and Williamson; Poulton making his debut at centre alongside Tarr; and Mobbs and Tom Simpson on the wings. France was not yet part of what was to become the Five Nations tournament (now the Six Nations) and was a relatively easy side to play. England won the game comfortably 22–0, with Tarr scoring two tries, one through good interplay with Mobbs and the other, a fine individual run. Despite the tries, Tarr was dropped from the England squad. For the 1909 Varsity Match, Cunningham announced his choice of Poulton at a meeting on 2 December which Vassall was unable to attend. Cunningham sent him a letter by hand informing him of the decision. When the note returned undelivered, Cunningham hesitated, at which point Tarr offered to give up his own place for Poulton but Cunningham stuck to his initial selection. The game was played on 11 December, with Oxford at the start having the worse of it until one moment turned the game around: after the Oxford forwards got the ball back, Gotley, at scrum-half, sent the ball to Cunningham, who passed on to Tarr and he to his fellow centre

Colin Gilray Colin Macdonald Gilray (17 March 1885 – 15 July 1974) was a Scottish-born rugby union player, soldier and educationalist. He represented both New Zealand and Scotland in rugby union and won the Military Cross during World War I as a captain i ...

. He fed the ball to Poulton on the left wing still inside the Oxford half. Poulton then broke through the defence to score under the posts. With Oxford eight points ahead at the end of the first quarter, Tarr was forced off the field after breaking his collarbone making a tackle, and missed much of what was described by referee F.C. Potter-Irwin as "the fastest and most spectacular Varsity Match he had ever witnessed". Oxford beat Cambridge 23–3, Poulton scoring five tries. After graduating a Bachelor of Arts, Tarr was

articled Apprenticeship is a system for training a new generation of practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading). Apprenticeships can also enable practitioners to gain a ...

to the solicitors firm of Owston, Dickinson, Simpson, and Bigg in Leicester, and also joined the

, then as now considered one of the strongest clubs in the country. He scored 72 points in 94 appearances. In 1913, having been dropped by England four years earlier, he was surprised to be called up again to play Scotland on 15 March at Twickenham. Tarr was not at his best and it was to be his last international appearance. England, meanwhile, only managed a 3–0 victory, but it was enough to regain the

Calcutta Cup The Calcutta Cup is the trophy awarded to the winner of the rugby match between England and Scotland played annually in the Six Nations Championship. Like the match itself (England–Scotland), the Calcutta Cup is the oldest trophy contested be ...

and earn its first

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

. Although Tarr spent the majority of his rugby career with Oxford and Leicester, he is recorded as representing club teams Headingley and

Richmond F.C. Richmond Football Club is a rugby union club from Richmond, London. It is a founding member of the Rugby Football Union, and is one of the oldest football clubs (of any code). It fields teams in both men's and women's rugby; the men's first t ...

and also Midland Counties.

International appearances

Military service and death

While at Oxford, Tarr had served in the

Officers' Training Corps The Officers' Training Corps (OTC), more fully called the University Officers' Training Corps (UOTC), are military leadership training units operated by the British Army. Their focus is to develop the leadership abilities of their members whilst ...

, reaching the rank of cadet sergeant. In 1911, he joined the

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry i ...

, serving with the 1/4th Battalion,

, as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

. In 1913, he was promoted to lieutenant and when war was declared the following year, Tarr enlisted almost immediately, becoming the regiment machine-gun officer. His battalion was deployed to the

with the

46th (North Midland) Division The 46th (North Midland) Division was an infantry division of the British Army, part of the Territorial Force, that saw service in the First World War. At the outbreak of the war, the 46th Division was commanded by Major-General Hon. E.J. Monta ...

and landed at

le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...

, France, on 3 March 1915. Following the

Second Battle of Ypres During the First World War, the Second Battle of Ypres was fought from for control of the tactically important high ground to the east and south of the Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium. The First Battle of Ypres had been fought the pre ...

, the battalion's

dugouts Dugout may refer to: * Dugout (shelter), an underground shelter * Dugout (boat), a logboat * Dugout (smoking), a marijuana container Sports * In bat-and-ball sports, a dugout is one of two areas where players of the home or opposing teams sit whe ...

were located between Lake Zillebeke and the Ypres–Comines railway line south-east of

, Belgium. On the afternoon of 18 July 1915, Tarr, who was the acting

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

of his battalion and whose name had been put forward for promotion to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

, had gone to the dugouts of the 5th Battalion,

Lincolnshire Regiment The Royal Lincolnshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army raised on 20 June 1685 as the Earl of Bath's Regiment for its first Colonel, John Granville, 1st Earl of Bath. In 1751, it was numbered like most other Army regiments ...

, towards Zillebeke, to liaise with the adjutant. While the Germans were shelling the position, Tarr put his head out to tell some men to remain under cover when a splinter from a shell struck him in the face, killing him. If it had struck any other part of his body, he would have survived. Tarr was buried in the Railway Dugouts Burial Ground that night, not far from where he was killed. Captain John Milne, in ''Footprints of the 1/4th Leicestershire Regiment'', described Tarr as

"...the most attractive personality in the battalion, young, good-looking, full of charm, with an eye that always had a twinkle in it, a born leader, yet the kindest person possible, a Rugger international, the idol of the machine-gun section, which he commanded before he became adjutant. Everybody was heartbroken, for everybody would miss him they would not look upon his like again...."

Tarr was one of 27 England rugby players killed in the First World War. There are memorials to him on the family headstone in Welford Road Cemetery, at Uppingham School, University College, Oxford, the Oxford University rugby club and the Richmond Athletic Ground.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tarr, Francis Nathaniel 1887 births 1915 deaths Leicester Tigers players Richmond F.C. players British military personnel killed in World War I England international rugby union players Alumni of University College, Oxford Oxford University RFC players Rugby union centres Rugby union players from Leicester People from Ironville British Army personnel of World War I Royal Leicestershire Regiment officers Burials at Railway Dugouts Burial Ground (Transport Farm) Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery Military personnel from Derbyshire