Chaplain to the Forces 1st Class, The Reverend Hugh Mortimer Eyton-Jones, MA (Cantab) (17 September 1863 – 25 March 1943) was a clergyman, missionary and member of the

Church Missionary Society The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British mission society working with the Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as mission ...

, preaching the Gospel in Fuh Ning, China from 1889 – 1900, serving as Vicar of St. Paul's, Hounslow later in life.

Early life

The son of the Dr.

Thomas Eyton-Jones Thomas Eyton-Jones Justice of the peace, JP, Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons, FRCS (20 March 1832 – 12 February 1893), was a significant figure in Wrexham in the 19th century. Working as a surgeon, physician, magistrate, local pol ...

of Wrexham, a nephew of Sir Edward Samuelson who was Lord Mayor of Liverpool 1872 – 1873 and a great nephew of

Sir Rowland Hill Sir Rowland Hill, KCB, FRS (3 December 1795 – 27 August 1879) was an English teacher, inventor and social reformer. He campaigned for a comprehensive reform of the postal system, based on the concept of Uniform Penny Post and his soluti ...

, the inventor of the Penny Post. Eyton-Jones was brought up as a devoutly conservative Christian and was encouraged to develop an interest in theological, political and social matters.

Career

Eyton-Jones took his theological education at

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's full name is The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge. Its common name comes fr ...

, where he obtained a B.A. degree in 1885 and an M.A. in 1894, before going to study at

Ridley Hall Ridley Hall is a theological college located on the corner of Sidgwick Avenue and Ridley Hall Road in Cambridge (United Kingdom), which trains men and women intending to take Holy Orders as deacon or priest of the Church of England, and membe ...

, Cambridge. He was ordained deacon in 1886 and on 18 December 1887 he was ordained a priest at Worcester Cathedral. From 1886 to 1889 he was curate of St. Clement's, Birmingham, which is where he met Jane Elizabeth Savage, who would later become his wife, both of whom had a shared interest in volunteering and overseas missionary work. Having been influenced by the

Cambridge Seven The Cambridge Seven were six students from Cambridge University and one from the Royal Military Academy, who in 1885, decided to become missionaries to China through the China Inland Mission. The seven were: * Charles Thomas Studd * Montagu H ...

, who had formed to preach in China through the

China Inland Mission OMF International (formerly Overseas Missionary Fellowship and before 1964 the China Inland Mission) is an international and interdenominational Evangelical Christian missionary society with an international centre in Singapore. It was founded i ...

in 1885, Eyton-Jones was initiated into the Church Missionary Society (CMS) in March 1889. In October 1889, at a valedictory meeting held in the Henry Martyn Memorial Hall, a centre of Christian and missionary influence, Eyton-Jones was one of eight men who had named themselves The Cambridge Eight to discuss their departure under the Church Missionary Society. Eyton-Jones volunteered for the mission field in China, then under the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

. Eyton-Jones and his wife sailed in 1889 and stayed in the area around

Fuzhou Fuzhou (; , Fuzhounese: Hokchew, ''Hók-ciŭ''), alternately romanized as Foochow, is the capital and one of the largest cities in Fujian province, China. Along with the many counties of Ningde, those of Fuzhou are considered to constitute t ...

on the south east coast for eight years. This one hundred mile expanse became his parish including two large harbours and their surrounding villages as well as several islands located twenty miles from the mainland. The couple's first three children were born in China, where they spent eight years with the CMS. For transport he sailed up the rivers in a yacht presented to him by his uncle Sir Edward Samuelson. Within a year his language became fluent and his background in boxing gave him a good foundation in

Jujutsu Jujutsu ( ; ja, link=no, 柔術 , ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat (unarmed or with a minor weapon) that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdu ...

. In March 1895 at the Consular District of

where Eyton-Jones had opened a book shop having been provided a passport by the Prefect of Fujian, an attempt was made on his life by a follower of the ''zhaijiao'' "fasting school" who had been protesting against the Christian missionaries for some time, the culprit drew a knife and ran at him before being rendered defenceless by eyewitnesses and was identified as a servant of the local magistrate and so received no punishment. On 2 August 1895 Eyton-Jones conducted the funeral service for the Rev. Robert Stewart, who was murdered along with ten other people including his family members in 1895. Known as The Kucheng Massacre, this traumatic incident would have had a lasting psychological effect on Eyton-Jones. Ill health made him return to the United Kingdom in 1900, spending one year living with the family of his older brother

John Eyton-Jones John Arthur Eyton-Jones (25 September 1862 – 3 March 1940) was a Welsh footballer who played as a forward. He was part of the Wales national team between 1883 and 1884, playing four matches and scoring one goal. He played his first match on ...

at Abbotsfield, Wrexham, before moving to London. From 1900 to 1911 Eyton-Jones was curate of St. Stephen's, Ealing, then became vicar of St. Paul's Hounslow Heath in 1911. Over 31 years in this role, Hounslow developed from a semi-rural district to a significant London suburb. He was appointed surrogate in 1918. During

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 ...

he was appointed as clergyman assisting the Chaplain to the Forces in presiding over servicemen. He was later chosen by the Chaplain-in-Chief of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

to be minister to squadrons in training on Hounslow Heath, also serving as Chaplain to the Officer Training Corps of the

Inns of Court Regiment The Inns of Court Regiment (ICR) was a British Army regiment that existed under that name between May 1932 and May 1961. However, the unit traces its lineage back much further, to at least 1584, and its name lives on today within 68 (Inns of Cour ...

until the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Eyton-Jones was employed by the

Royal Army Chaplains' Department The Royal Army Chaplains' Department (RAChD) is an all-officer department that provides ordained clergy to minister to the British Army. History The Army Chaplains' Department (AChD) was formed by Royal Warrant of 23 September 1796; until the ...

to work as chaplain at

Hounslow Barracks Cavalry Barracks is a former British Army installation located north of Hounslow Heath in Hounslow, west London. Hounslow was one of 40 new barracks established around the country in the wake of the French Revolution, to guard against the dual t ...

for four months. Throughout the war he worked closely with the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

, allowing the church hall to be used as a rest and social centre for military people stationed locally. During

The Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

he visited bomb shelters to preach and counsel the occupants. Eyton-Jones was known to be a member of the Sir Garnet Wolseley Lodge of the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes.

Death

His wife Jane Elizabeth Eyton-Jones died during the war in May 1940. A severe attack of shingles inspired him to write a letter of resignation to the bishop in the winter of 1942, however he died in the spring of 1943.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eyton-Jones, Hugh 1863 births 1943 deaths British chaplains Missionary educators People from Hounslow British Army personnel of World War I British Army personnel of World War II Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers Royal Air Force chaplains