The Roxburgh Society was founded to recognise, honour and thank those kind enough to support Stowe by pledging a gift in their Will. The Society is named after the School's first headmaster J F Roxburgh, arguably the greatest public school headmaster of the 20th Century, and provides an opportunity to thank members for their contribution.
Pledging a legacy is a wonderful way of assisting the School in a very meaningful way and we are proud to have the support of over 160 Old Stoics to date and the ranks are steadily increasing. Each of our members has pledged a bequest to whichever aspect of Stowe they care about most: such as providing bursaries for talented and exceptional children, or helping to fund the continued restoration work, which is preserving Stowe Mansion for generations to come.
An annual Roxburgh Society Lunch is held each summer at Stowe, at which members may enjoy the conviviality of being with like-minded people, and to see for themselves the developments in both the School and the House. We also host an annual Roxburgh Society Open Day Lunch which aims to promote the Roxburgh Society to the wider Stowe community and members are very welcome to bring an Old Stoic guest who might be interested in joining the Society. Members receive a Roxburgh Society tie or brooch and have a lifetime subscription to The Stoic, as well as being invited to Stowe events both at the School and elsewhere.
Trees at Stowe are one the great characteristics of our beautiful landscape gardens. Trees are planted in the School grounds, in memory of our Legacy donors. Members’ names are recorded in the Stowe Tree Book which is stored in the School Library, and tree planting ceremonies are held for the families of Roxburgh Society members to be commemorated. Introduced in June 2016, tree planting is a wonderful addition to the Society and we are thankful to The National Trust for working with us.