Geoffrey Parker Brooke-Taylor (25 October 1895 – 13 January 1968) was an English

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er who played first-class cricket for

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

in 1919 and 1920, for

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

in 1920 and for

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

(MCC) in 1928. Brooke-Taylor was born at Bakewell Hall,

Bakewell Bakewell is a market town and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England, known also for its local Bakewell pudding. It lies on the River Wye, about 13 miles (21 km) south-west of Sheffield. In the 2011 census, ...

, Derbyshire. He was educated at

Cheltenham College ("Work Conquers All") , established = , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent School Day and Boarding School , religion = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head , head = Nicola Huggett ...

where he was cricket captain in his last year. On 6 October 1914 he joined the 4th North Midland (Howitzer) Brigade of the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of t ...

as a Second Lieutenant. and served with them in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In January 1918 he was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

"for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty when under heavy and continuous shell fire for five hours with his battery. During the shelling a dump of charges caught fire, and he, with others, succeeded in removing a large pile of neighbouring shell which was all the time in imminent danger of explosion. His prompt action and gallantry saved a large amount of ammunition and material and probably many lives." After the war, Brooke-Taylor attended

There he played nineteen matches for

in 1919 and 1920. In the

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 ...

in 1919 he scored 55 in the second innings, helping

Gilbert Ashton Gilbert Ashton MC (27 September 1896 – 6 February 1981) was an English cricketer who played 62 first-class matches between the wars, mostly for Cambridge University (whom he captained in 1921, and also captained at football) and Worcestershi ...

to put on 74 for the fifth wicket before he was run out. However Oxford won that year, and the match the following year was a draw. He made his top score for Cambridge in 1920 against

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

. He also appeared in one match for Derbyshire in the 1920 season against

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

and made 30 and 14. By 1926 he was in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

where he played two matches against MCC that winter. Back in England in 1928 he played for MCC against Derbyshire, and in 1930 had returned to Argentina where he played two matches against

Julien Cahn Sir Julien Cahn, 1st Baronet (21 October 1882 – 26 September 1944) was a British businessman, philanthropist and cricket enthusiast. Early life and family Cahn was born in Cardiff in 1882 to parents of German Jewish descent. His father, Alber ...

's XI.Geoffrey Brooke-Taylor at Cricket Archive
/ref> Brooke-Taylor was a left-hand batsman and played 40 innings in 25 first-class matches with an average of 19.94 and a top score of 84. He was an occasional wicket-keeper. Brooke-Taylor died at Hurlingham,

Buenos Aires, Argentina Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

at the age of 72. His nephew David Brooke-Taylor also played for Derbyshire.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooke-Taylor, Geoffrey 1895 births 1968 deaths People educated at Cheltenham College Alumni of the University of Cambridge Derbyshire cricketers Cambridge University cricketers English cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers Royal Field Artillery officers Cricketers from Gloucestershire Argentine cricketers British Army personnel of World War I Recipients of the Military Cross Sportspeople from Bakewell