John Kipling was the son of Rudyard and Caroline. He was initially turned down by the Navy and the Army because of his short sight, something he shared with his father. Rudyard was very influential and wrote a lot of propaganda for the Government in support of the British war aims, so he used his influence to gain John a commission with the Irish Guards. He was just 18 years old when he went missing at the Battle of Loos in 1915. He was last seen blundering, bleeding in the face and screaming towards the enemy lines that he couldn't really see, but no trace of him after that. His parents searched and searched for him but they sadly never found him.
His bedroom is set up as it would have been with bed made, sports equipment in the wardrobe and his school uniform hung on the bedstead. Poignant but also touches of humour remained. Absolutely loved this framed print on cloth on the wall. Laughed out loud when we saw it and hoped there were not any Scots in the room!
