Biography:
Arthur Hugh Sidgwick was born 2 October 1882, the son of Arthur Sidgwick, later Fellow and Tutor of Corpus Christi College, Oxford and Reader of Greek at the University and Charlotte, daughter of the Reverend Arthur Wilson, Vicar of Nocton in Lincolnshire.
He entered came to Winchester College as a Schola, placed first on the roll, from the Oxford Preparatory School, in September 1895. Hugh won the Queen's Gold Medal for English Verse, and the Hawkins' English Literature Prize. He was Richardson Mathematical Prizeman in 1900 and Goddard Scholar in 1901 - a very rare combination - and played in College VI in his last year.
Hugh left Winchester in the summer of 1901 and went up to Balliol with a Scholarship in the autumn of that year. He then obtained distinction in the examination for the Ireland Scholarship and took his degree with First Classes in Mathematical Moderations, Classical Moderations and Literae Humaniores. In 1905 he was elected to a Fellowship at University College and in 1906 won the Chancellor's Prize for English Essay on 'The Influence of Greek Philosophy on English Poetry'. The same year he was appointed a Junior Examiner under the Board of Education and at the outbreak of war was acting as private secretary to Sir Lewis Selby-Bigge (College 1873-1879), Permanent Secretary of the Board, where he seemed assured of a brilliant career.
Hugh could not obtain his release from government service until the end of 1915, and after a year's service in the Royal Garrison Artillery, was recalled from France to assist his colleagues at the Board of Education in preparing for the Education Bill of 1917. He returned to his battery in April 1917, and was killed in action near Ypres on 17 September 1917.
Sidgwick is buried in Grave VII.E.6 of the Mendingham Military Cemetery.
He published in 1912 Walking Essays and in 1914 The Promenade Ticket, and was also a writer of light verse, a volume of which was published after his death under the title of Jones's Wedding, and other Verses. He was a keen supporter of the Workers' Educational Association and left a legacy to them and also to his schools and to Balliol College
Further information can be obtained from the Balliol College Archives: http://www.flickr.com/photos/balliolarchivist/sets/72157630871307304/. A biography of Sidgwick featuring many of his poems, letters and essay was written by Tom Patterson in 2017, Arthur Hugh Sidgwick (1882-1917) scholar, educationalist, poet, essayist. A biography