William Carr Crofts (10 February 1846 – 26 November 1912) was an English schoolmaster and

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is ...

who won the

Diamond Challenge Sculls The Diamond Challenge Sculls is a rowing event for men's single sculls at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders w ...

at Henley Royal Regatta twice and was an influential teacher of

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

. Crofts was born at Hampstead, the eldest son of William Crofts, a barrister. He attended Bedford School, where he was head boy, and in 1864 he went to Merton College, Oxford. After a year he gained a first in Moderations, and was awarded a scholarship to Brasenose College, Oxford. He won the Reading Prize and became a Hulme Exhibitioner. He studied "Greek, Latin, Logic, Philology and elegant translation". In his second year he became involved in rowing and in 1867 won the Diamond Challenge Sculls at Henley. In 1868 he lost the Diamond Challenge Sculls to Stout, but won the

Silver Goblets The Silver Goblets & Nickalls' Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless pairs at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing club A rowing club ...

with W B Woodgate. He won the Diamond Challenge Sculls again in 1869. At Oxford he was Captain of the Brasenose College Eight, but did not take part in the

Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

. Distracted by rowing and other social activities, he managed a third in his finals, and a year after graduation he joined the staff of a prep school. He moved school four times in six years before arriving in 1875 at the

United Services College The United Services College was an English boys' public school for the sons of military officers, located at Westward Ho! near Bideford in North Devon. Almost all boys were boarders. The school was founded to prepare pupils for a career as of ...

Westward Ho! Westward Ho! is a seaside village near Bideford in Devon, England. The A39 road provides access from the towns of Barnstaple, Bideford, and Bude. It lies at the south end of Northam Burrows and faces westward into Bideford Bay, opposite Sau ...

. In 1879 he became senior classics master and senior housemaster. It was at the school that he taught

. Crofts has been seen as the model for Kipling's character "Mr King" in Stalky & Co. He resigned from USC in 1892 after differences with the proprietor and moved between jobs as a tutor and a partner in Lunn's travel agency. He settled on the island of

Sark Sark (french: link=no, Sercq, ; Sercquiais: or ) is a part of the Channel Islands in the southwestern English Channel, off the coast of Normandy, France. It is a royal fief, which forms part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, with its own set of ...

where he took a swim in the sea regularly throughout the year and was drowned in one of these outings in November 1912. M. C. Rintoul ''Dictionary of real people and places in fiction'' 1993
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crofts, William Carr 1846 births 1912 deaths People educated at Bedford School Alumni of Merton College, Oxford Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford English male rowers British male rowers