Alban Preedy, Captain, Devonshire Regiment

Alban Preedy, matriculated in 1911 after attending Allhallows School, Honiton and Plymouth College.

Born: Plymouth, Devon on 1 August 1892

Fell in action: 1 July 1916

Distance runner

He was by all accounts a good middle and long distance runner and was chosen to represent the University at Cross Country. He was a valuable member of the Jesus College Athletics team that met the Trinity College, Oxford Athletics team in March 1913, winning by 8 events to 2, with Preedy winning both the mile and the half mile race.

The following year, this time at Oxford, he won the one mile (4mins 40secs) and two mile (10mins 21secs) races, coming third in the half-mile. On this occasion the match was a draw, according to Chanticlere because both the Jesus College President and Secretary were “crocked”. Preedy ran “very pluckily” (Lent Term 1914, p44).

Sadly we cannot find a photograph of Alban Preedy. There is a chance he is on the matriculation photograph for 1911 but the list of names for the picture is incomplete. However, we can add one small characteristic about him which comes from “A College Alphabet” published in Chanticlere:

P stands for Pr**dy, who’d soon get a “blue,”If M*ck*nt*sh only gave talking its due! (Michaelmas Term 1913, p9). He was awarded a BA in 1915 in virtue of his military service. He had taken special papers in Maths and Theology while here.

"Cool and plucky"

The Jesus College Society Annual Report, 1917 obituary says that he had spent more than a year in France before his death and that letters had referred to him as “cool and plucky” (p34).

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