Charles William Wilson
Sir Charles William Wilson (born March 14, 1836 in Liverpool , † October 25, 1905 in Royal Tunbridge Wells ) was a British officer (most recently major-general of the Royal Engineers ), geographer, surveyor and explorer.
Life
Wilson attended school in Liverpool and Cheltenham College , went to the Royal Military Academy Woolwich and received his patent as an officer in the Royal Engineers in 1855. From 1858 he was in North America for four years to measure the border between Canada and the USA at the 49th parallel. He kept a diary while traveling.
In 1864 he was engaged in surveying work in Palestine and Jerusalem , which should primarily serve to improve the water supply. A topographical map was created and, in further measurements in Palestine in 1865, the difference in altitude between the Mediterranean Sea and the Dead Sea was precisely determined for the first time. In the meantime the Palestine Exploration Fund was founded, and from 1865 he continued surveying work on its behalf in Palestine and the surrounding area, this time with a focus on archeology. In 1866 he became head of the Ordnance Survey for Scotland and in 1867 Assistant Commissioner in the English Borough Boundary Commission. In 1868 he explored the Sinai Peninsula with Captain HS Palmer. The aim was, among other things, to follow the path of the Israelites out of Egypt and to explore Byzantine archaeological sites. Upon his return he became head of the map department in the War Office and Assistant Quartermaster-General in the Intelligence Department. Soon after, he was heading the Ordnance Survey for Ireland and serving on the Royal Debt and Insurance Registration Commission in Ireland. In 1878 he was the British representative in the Serbian Border Commission and from 1879 to 1882 Consul General in Anatolia , which he used to explore remote areas of the Ottoman Empire.
In 1882 he assisted General Wolseley in suppressing the Ahmed Urabi Pasha uprising in Egypt and in 1884 he was Wolseley's reconnaissance officer in the Gordon Relief Expedition to relieve General Charles George Gordon in Khartoum . As Brigadier-General he was part of the advance detachment of about 1400 men that was supposed to advance to Khartoum on two Nile steamers and was in command after Major General Herbert Stewart was wounded. However, they were two days late. The Mahdi supporters had already stormed Khartoum and caused a massacre among the residents, which Gordon was also a victim.
On his return he became Director of the Ordnance Survey of Ireland and was Director General of the Ordnance Survey from 1886 to 1894. From 1895 until his retirement in 1898 he was Director General for Military Education.
In 1871 he published with Charles Warren , who was also there for the Palestine Exploration Fund in 1867, a book about his geographic and archaeological explorations in Jerusalem. From 1901 to 1906 he was the Palestine Exploration Fund. At times he was also the Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society, a historical association that published medieval pilgrimage texts to Palestine. In 1872 he was elected to the Council of the Society of British Archeology. In 1874 he became a Fellow of the Royal Society . In 1876 he became a Knight of the Order of the Bath (KCB), and he was also a Knight of the Order of St. Michael and St. George (KCMG). In 1878 he became a member of the German Association for the Exploration of Palestine .
Fonts
- with Charles Warren: The Recovery of Jerusalem. A Narrative of Exploration and Discovery in the City and the Holy Land . D. Appleton & Company, New York 1871 ( digitized )
- Ordnance Survey of Jerusalem . Ordnance Survey Office, Southampton 1876
- Picturesque Palestine, Sinai and Egypt . 2 volumes. D. Appleton & Company, New York 1881-1883.
literature
- Charles M. Watson: The Life of Major-General Sir Charles William Wilson, Royal Engineers . Murray, London 1909 ( digitized version )
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Journal of the German Palestine Association Volume 1, 1878, p. X ( digitized version ).
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Wilson, Charles William |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British officer, geographer, surveyor and explorer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 14, 1836 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Liverpool |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 25, 1905 |
| Place of death | Royal Tunbridge Wells |