Portrait of Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell

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Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell

Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, English general, co-founded The Scout Association (died 1941)

Born
February 22, 1857
Died
January 8, 1941
Zodiac sign
Pisces
Birth year
1857

About Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell

Lieutenant-General Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell (22 February 1857 – 8 January 1941), was a British Army officer, writer, founder of The Boy Scouts Association and its first Chief Scout, and founder, with his sister Agnes, of The Girl Guides Association. Baden-Powell wrote Scouting for Boys, which with his previous books – such as his 1884 Reconnaissance and Scouting and his 1899 Aids to Scouting for N.-C.Os and Men, which was intended for the military, and The Scout magazine – helped the rapid growth of the Scout Movement. Educated at Charterhouse School, Baden-Powell served in the British Army from 1876 until 1910 in India and Africa. In 1899, during the Second Boer War in South Africa, Baden-Powell defended the town in the Siege of Mafeking. His books, written for military reconnaissance and scout training, were also read by boys and used by teachers and youth organisations. In August 1907, he held an experimental camp, the Brownsea Island Scout camp to test his ideas for training boys in scouting. He wrote Scouting for Boys, published in 1908 by C. Arthur Pearson Limited, for boy readership. In 1910, Baden-Powell retired from the army and formed The Scout Association. In 1909, a rally of Scouts was held at The Crystal Palace. Many girls in Scout uniform attended and, in front of the press, a small group told Baden-Powell that they were the "Girl Scouts". In 1910, Baden-Powell and his sister Agnes started The Girl Guides Association. In 1912, Baden-Powell married Olave St Clair Soames. He gave guidance to The Scout Association and Girl Guides Association until retiring in 1937. Baden-Powell lived his last years in Nyeri, Kenya, where he died and was buried in 1941. His grave is a national monument. Baden-Powell's first introduction to outdoor skills was through stalking and cooking games while avoiding teachers in the nearby woods, which were strictly out-of-bounds. Baden-Powell was influenced by Ernest Thompson Seton, who founded the Woodcraft Indians.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

The world when Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell was born

Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell was born in 1857. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Headlines and milestones

  • Top headlineDred Scott decision — Supreme Court denies Black citizenship
  • Technology milestoneFirst passenger elevator installed (NYC)
  • World population~1.37B

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderJames Buchanan
  • U.S. population27.8M

1857 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure18572026
Population27.8M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

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