York Military Tattoo Gallery

Arthur C Gaiger DCM: "The Man in the White Suit"

Arthur Caiger was born in 1890 in Malvern. After leaving school, he trained to be a school teacher. On the outbreak of war, he joined the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry; he was a Bombardier and rose to the rank of Sergeant.

Arthur’s main role was to replenish ammunition dumps. He was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal and Bar for acts of bravery, which included taking messages from behind enemy lines.

After the war he resumed his teaching career in London, and developed a reputation for conducting community singing. He became famous as “The Man in the White Suit”, leading community singing for the FA Cup finals. Arthur’s first FA Cup final was the 1927 match between Cardiff City and Arsenal, and his last the 1962 final between Tottenham Hotspur and Burnley.

Community singing became very popular and was supported by national newspapers like the Daily Express, who published song sheets.

Boy Coadley, on Fritz the pony

Fritz was captured by the 5th Inniskilling Dragoon Guards on 8th August 1918 at Harbonnieres, when she was pulling a German machine gun. In the charge, the trumpeter of B Squadron had his horse killed under him and so he rode Fritz for the remainder of the day.

Fritz became the regimental mascot and she accompanied the regiment in the advance into Germany and then went to Ireland, sailed with them to Egypt, served in Palestine and in India on the North West Frontier. In the film she can be seen at the front of the row of riders ridden by Boy Coadley.