Third child and third son of Arthur Charles ROPER (1856-1925) and Florence Wellersley SMITH (1861-1920)

Born 14th June 1890, Tasmania

Died 29th July 1978, Worthing, Sussex.

Married Frances Ann HUBBARD 22 August 1933 at St Stephen's Church, Cinderford, Gloucestershire.

Known as 'Doc'

In general conversation, Doc, who became a Major, never dwelt on his war years and army career. That was true of many who witnessed some of the worst years of the 20th century.

In World War 1 he was in the Royal Fusiliers as an officer, becoming Captain.

On 1 March 1916 he went to serve in France.

During the Second World War, Doc was in the Hampshire Regiment, being part of the important defence operations of the forts overlooking and commanding the Portsmouth Harbour - a key operation.

His only comments I fully remember were something like 'There was bad on both sides.' He had witnessed brutality in the British Army but never told the story.

2021

On August 22nd, 1933, I married Arthur Cecil Roper (“Doc”). He was the brother of a college friend of mine, and when she first introduced us in 1920 our dislike of each other was instant, mutual and intense. Many years later I learned that he had told her not to bring "That tow - headed chatterer” (me) near him” and to myself I always thought of him as “that great, rough bear”. We lost sight of each other for the next nine or ten years, but when we eventually met once more, it was another three years before we realised that we were right for each other and have now been blessed with 42 years of superbly happy life.

We have no children.

Doc was born 14th June 1890 and comes of a very old and interesting family. His Father was cousin of Lord Teynham and was for many years heir to the title and estates. When at last an heir in the direct line was born, he relinquished his heritage with the utmost relief. The name Musard was the original name of the family, and from this is derived the name Miserden, a village on the Cotswolds. In the grounds of Miserden House is an exceptionally large mound which obviously covers the original castle, for on a visit there we found roofing stones amid the grass and leaf mound at the top of the mound. An ancestor at the time of William Rufus must have been a most ferocious swashbuckler, for he gained the soubriquet of “de Rubra Spatha” (of the red sword). The name Roper is derived from this. The spatha is the huge double-handed sword, as distinct from the Gladius which was the short sword normally worn on the hip. One of the same family married Margaret, daughter of Sir Thomas (now Saint) More, who wrote the life of More. The name Roper has nothing to do with ropes or ropemaking. The name Musard means “the Dreamer”, and Doc has inherited these genes, for he is a prolific and most unusually interesting dreamer.

1950

Biography Major ‘Doc’ Roper The extraordinary life of a Dreamer, Archaeologist and Soldier by Judith F Hubbard, 2020

ISBN 9781513663326

Doc was a famous excavator locally, so much so that a saying went round, that if you saw a hole in the South Downs with a non-stop jet of rubble flying out of it, you would be sure to find Roper at the bottom!

(From a letter to me, Feb 1976)