Correspondence from Colonel Washington - by John Buxton
In Remembrance of Lieutenant General The Viscount Kitchen of Eutaw Springs, DSM
It is with a heavy heart that news of Steve's passing has been received. Lieutenant General The Viscount Kitchen of Eutaw Springs, DSM was a member of 17 year, having joined the CCC and His Majesty's Service in March 2004. He was assigned to the 15th Regiment of Foot, 1st Brigade, Left Wing. In February 2005 Steve would go on to become the Commanding Officer of the First Brigade, Left Wing and in February 2008 as the Commanding Officer of the Left Wing. Following the command consolidations in February 2011 he was initially assigned command of the Grenadier Company in the Brigade of Guards. Then in April 2013 he became the General Officer Commanding the Brigade of Guards which he has held for the last 8 years until his recent passing.
In his first 7 months in the club. Steve would be promoted 5 times from Corporal to Captain. In July 2005 he would rise to the rank of Major and in November attain the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He would become Colonel in January 2007 and Brigadier in May 2008. He would be promoted to Major General in July 2011. He would be awarded the nobility title of Lord Kitchen of Eutaw Springs in March 2011 and in July 2014 elevated to Viscount Kitchen of Eutaw Springs.
Multiple awards and honors have been given to Steve for his years of service & gaming in the club. Most notably, in January 2007, the Distinguished Service Medal would be awarded to him for his reliable service and outstanding battlefield exploits over time. In February 2007 he was awarded the Battlefield Completion Medal for 50 complete games. He participated in the Summer Tourney 2013/2014. He was also retroactively awarded the French & Indian War Campaign Medal and the War of 1812 Campaign Medal. Finally he was awarded 8 individual Battlefield Medals for various victories in the French & Indian War, Campaign 1776 & War of 1812 games.
On the 15th of this month, Steve was posthumously promoted to Lieutenant General.
Steve was a great guy, friend to many in the Club. I had the privilege of knowing Steve for 18 years, having met him in 2003 when we were starting off in the former iNWC. Together for almost 10 years, we worked as webmasters & administrators there. He managed the game forms and the scoring of them for almost all of those years, doing everything "long handed", in the old days before automated systems. He was always precise & consistent and often caught my own mistakes in the admin work we did together. At a time when I was just starting out as a webmaster, he already had very good webmastering skills and taught me a lot. I'd never be able to work with PHP forms if it wasn't for him. The joining forms and the bounty submissions forms we used here for years were based on Steve's designs. Efficient & quick with scoring, updates & awards the iNWC's founder Tom Lachenmaier gave Steve the nickname "Lightning" a befitting term that would hold true for many years to come. He also helped build many wonderful graphics & images for that club. He would also provide the same great site service & graphical works here to the British Army's Left Wing during his commandership of it.
Steve was a member of four clubs, ours, the former iNWC, the ACWGC & NWC. He joined all of them in either 2003 or 2004 and was an active member in the three around today right up until his passing. He played 297 games and had 15,065 points in all four clubs combined. In the former iNWC he would rise to the rank of Major General and serve as the Commander of the Anglo-Allied Army & the Allied Coalition Commander-in-Chief, serving on the Club Consul, which was a panel of 5 primary club administrators similar to our Staff here. In the AWCGC he attained the rank of Lieutenant General and served his whole 17 years in that club in the Army of Northern Virginia (ANV), giving his talents to the most important command he held there as the ANV's Chief of Staff. At the NWC, Field Marshal Steve Kitchen, 1st Earl of Halifax G.C.B. commanded the 3rd (King's Own) Regiment of Dragoons, 1st (Heavy) British Cavalry Brigade, Cavalry Corps in the Anglo-Allied Army (AAA) and held the honorary command of the 2nd Squadron, Royal Regiment of Horse Guards, Household Cavalry Brigade within the Guards.
Steve hailed from the UK, was born in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire. He was a Yorkshireman through & through. Went to school in the nearby city of Halifax, which is how he chose his nobility title at the NWC. Like a true Yorkshireman, he let me know that no Lancastrian title would do!
He was a lifelong fan of the Bradford City Football Club (soccer for us Americans). He also liked photography & was a big fan of trains. For a while the ANV had an address that started with lner2868. He pointed me to this page http://www.railalbum.co.uk/steam-locomo ... -b17-1.htm which Liner 2868 is for Bradford City. Earlier this month Steve passed peacefully at home. He was 55 years old. Notice in his local newspaper is viewable at: https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/ ... __Kitchen/Steve was very personable & well liked by all those who played games or interacted with him in the different clubs. He had two primary opponents over the years Dave Miller and Lucas Kling. Together Steve played 120 games with them both.
Official Records for Steve with His Majesty's Service can be viewed here: http://www.wargame.ch/1776/British/Serv ... itchen.htm
You'll Be Missed Steve, but we know you're at peace now!
Your Friends at the Colonial Campaigns Club (CCC)
- A gift In Memory of Steve has been made to Old Fort Niagara.
Remembrance Posts for Steve have also been made in the other two clubs:
NWC - http://wargame.ch/board/nwc/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=16585
ACWGC - http://www.wargame.ch/board/acwgc/viewt ... =4&t=22331