The View from My Study 15 May 2026
On Tuesday, in our Thought for the Week chapel service, we had the pleasure of listening to Mr Saul Foulds, Housemaster of Kilbracken at Rugby School. Mr Foulds explained the origin of the term ‘cap’ in relation to the number of appearances a sports professional makes for their country. The idea started in 1839 when Queen Adelaide, wife of King William IV, visited Rugby School and the boys of ‘School House’ wore special caps in her honour.
Incredibly, Mr Foulds brought with him one of those original caps from 1839 which usually resides in the School’s museum (see Mrs Brumpton’s Archive section below). And as if that wasn’t impressive enough, there were more gasps when he produced one of the three original caps remaining from the very first rugby international between England and Scotland in 1871. (That one lives in a glass cabinet in Mr Foulds’ Kilbracken living room). This was the first time in any sport that a ‘cap’ was awarded as a commemoration of the achievement. Other sports quickly followed suit.
Mr Foulds’ main point focused on what the cap represented – teamship, common purpose, identity and belonging. And that’s why they are still worn and presented today.
Cap, as a word, is used in many ways to denote positivity. “To cap it off” for instance means to finish something perfectly. Or we might describe an achievement as “a feather in one’s cap”. And we might “tip our cap” towards someone we admire and respect. If you think those are a bit old-fashioned then modern parlance leans on it too (apparently). My 15-year-old son might say to me, “You’re dope, Dad. No cap,” meaning, “I think you’re really cool, Dad, genuinely.”
Idioms involving caps or headwear are repeated across languages proving that belonging and camaraderie are important to all cultures. There is no evidence to suggest BG ever had a Latin motto but if it did, it could easily have been, Sub uno capite, unitas et virtus – under one cap, unity and excellence.
Thank you Mr Foulds – I tip my cap to you sir!
