19 Facts About Caesar Hull

Caesar Hull boxed for South Africa at the 1934 Empire Games.

Caesar Hull reacted to the outbreak of war with enthusiasm and achieved No 43 Squadron's first victory of the conflict in late January 1940.

Caesar Hull was shot down the next day, and invalided back to England.

Caesar Hull was buried among fellow fighter pilots at Tangmere, and a monument to his memory was erected near his birthplace in Southern Rhodesia.

Caesar Barrand Hull was born on 26 February 1914 at Leachdale Farm, a property near Shangani in Southern Rhodesia.

Caesar Hull was educated at home until 1926, when he began to board at St John's College in Johannesburg.

Caesar Hull attempted to join the South African Air Force in 1935, but was turned down because he did not speak Afrikaans.

Caesar Hull joined the Royal Air Force instead, enlisting in England in September 1935.

Caesar Hull was promoted to flying officer on 16 April 1938.

Caesar Hull reacted to the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939 with great excitement; according to Hector Bolitho, No 43 Squadron's intelligence officer, the Rhodesian leapt from one foot to the other in the officer's mess, repeating the words "wizard, wizard".

When No 43 Squadron returned to its home base at Tangmere in May 1940, some of its leading pilots were reassigned to other units: among these were Townsend, who was assigned to No 85 Squadron RAF as its commanding officer, and Caesar Hull, who was posted to No 263 Squadron to command a flight of Gloster Gladiator biplanes during the unit's second committal to the Norwegian Campaign.

Caesar Hull led the first four aircraft through and landed safely at Bardufoss airfield, about 80 kilometres north-east of Narvik, at 04:20.

Caesar Hull's kills during the Norwegian Campaign made him the RAF's first Gloster Gladiator ace, as well as the most successful RAF fighter pilot of the campaign.

Caesar Hull led six of the aircraft towards the German bombers while Flight Lieutenant John "Killy" Kilmartin, from Ireland, headed a section of three tasked with countering the fighter escort.

Caesar Hull took his aircraft above the bombers, then dived towards them, telling his pilots to "smash them up".

Caesar Hull's remains were recovered and returned to Tangmere, where he was buried among fellow fighter pilots at St Andrew's Church.

Caesar Hull's final confirmed record for the war was four German aircraft destroyed, two damaged and four shared destroyed ; noted were one unconfirmed destroyed, two probably destroyed and one shared probable.

The Caesar Hull family resolved in 2003 to take the plaque down and donate it to the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum, an idea that the museum welcomed.

Caesar Hull was remembered by his comrades as an exceptional pilot and an affable, jovial personality.