partly be explained by the early loss of both parents. But he was close to his brother Martyn, who became a major in the Royal Artillery. After leaving Dulwich, Roger won an open exhibition to Magdalen College, Oxford. He cycled from London to Oxford in Autumn 1940 and sent his trunk of possessions separately. His passion for cycling continued while he was a student, with his happiest memories of time spent riding out to country churches. Christmas holiday distributing food in the bomb shelters of East London. In 1941 he tried to follow Martyn into the Royal Artillery but failed officer training because of his poor eyesight, so became an NCO in the 97th (Kent Yeomanry) survey section instead. He served in Italy initially and then ended up in Yugoslavia. Years later, he could still startle students by declaring “Death to Fascists!” in Serbo-Croat. But WW2 soon overshadowed everything, and he spent his In 1946 Magdalen College, Oxford, was crowded with demobbed servicemen, but Roger still managed to graduate in 1947 with a first class degree in Modern History and was rewarded with the Harmsworth Senior Scholarship at Merton College, Oxford so he migrated to the other side of Oxford High Street. After completing a PhD on King Edward III’s bishops, he was appointed as a Tutor in History at Merton College in 1951. He remained at Merton for the rest of his career, finally retiring in 1989, at which time he was appointed Emeritus Fellow. Roger was not only an outstanding history tutor, but also became the Merton College archivist. He shaped Merton’s sense of its own history with his History of Merton College (1997), which he wrote jointly with Geoffrey Martin. His own research focus was on later medieval
of Institutes of Navigation and has been formally submitted to the International Civil Aviation Organisation for their approval.
of the Royal Institute of Navigation in 2000 and then became a Fellow in 2010. Paul married Anthea aged 22, and within four years, they had produced all of their three children: Catherine, Giles and Virginia. In addition to all his work with the aviation industry, he also flew planes at the weekend using his private pilot’s licence. He was a good cook, and none of his family will ever be able to cook specialities of his like Boeuf Bourguignon, Chicken Chasseur or King Prawn Jambalaya without thinking of him. When he initially retired, he was worried about having too much time to fill and considered placing an ad in the local supermarket saying Sad old Granddad looking for other granddads to play jazz. Then he discovered the University of the Third Age (U3A) and had great fun with both granddads and grandmas playing guitar in a jazz band. He also enjoyed much overseas travel with Anthea, and they celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary on holiday in Spain will all of their family in 2016. He became involved with the local Probus, serving as President for a time, and with his continued committee work, lectures, and liquid lunches at the Royal Institute of Navigation, he was never busier. His legacy will outlive him on so many levels. He was persuaded to write the official history of the RAF’s Sixty Squadron, spending many months engrossed in research, and then writing the book Holding to the Heavens: the History of Sixty Squadron , RAF 1916-2016, which was published in time for 2016’s centenary. He also wrote a paper advocating the use of true bearings instead of magnetic references for all civil aircraft. This was adopted by the International Association
Paul died unexpectedly in Cheltenham General Hospital from complications which arose during routine bowel surgery, and is survived by Anthea, all their three children and by five grandchildren. This obituary is based on notes provided by the Hickley family, as well as an obituary published by the Royal Institute of Navigation.
Dr John Roger Loxdale Highfield [1935-40] 14.02.1922 – 13.04.2017
Roger Highfield was born at his parents’ home near Victoria in London as one of four children. His father William
was a consulting engineer and his mother Margaret was a primary school teacher. He followed his elder brother Martyn from Dulwich Prep to the College. Roger won a scholarship to Dulwich and was in Grenville. He loathed having to play rugby, but was a Company Sergeant Major in the OTC, was also a school prefect, edited the Alleynian magazine, and played tennis for the school in 1940. His childhood was disrupted by the death of his mother from a brain tumour in 1934. A school trip to Spain just before it plunged into civil war, may have been a welcome distraction, as he returned wanting to learn the country’s history and started learning the Spanish language. The family was dealt another blow in 1938 when his father succumbed to cancer. A maiden aunt became head of the household and Roger was always grateful for her love of literature and the French language. His self- containment for most of his life can
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