Desmond Chapman-Huston

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Wellesley William Desmond Mountjoy Chapman-Huston , pseudonym Desmond Mountjoy (born August 8, 1884 in Annaghmaconway near Cloone in County Leitrim , † September 15, 1952 ) was an Irish author and publicist .

Life

Chapman-Huston was born into the family of Richard Huston and Katherine Mountjoy Chapman. Through his mother he was related to a family of the Irish aristocracy who could trace their roots back to Sir Walter Raleigh . Chapman-Huston initially wanted to study theology, but then joined the acting troupe around Francis Robert Benson in 1902. First he worked as his secretary, then later as an actor. During this time he also started his first publications. In 1903 The Ashes of the Past appeared , a tragedy in one act, followed a year later with Driftwood, a first volume of poems. The early publications were still under his pseudonym.

After the First World War, he volunteered as secretary for the Country Host Institution , which set itself the goal of organizing recreational stays for soldiers in the country. In 1924 he was active as a writer with a biography of Sir John Cowans (1862-1921) again, the quartermaster general of the British Army in the First World War .

At the beginning of the 1930s he moved to Bavaria , where he lived first in Munich and later in Herrsching am Ammersee . One of his first works from his new home was the book Bavaria the Incomparable , published in 1934 , on which he worked with María del Pilar Princess of Bavaria (1891–1987), the daughter of Ludwig Ferdinand of Bavaria . The book is largely a travel guide that is devoted to the tourist attractions of Bavaria, but thanks to the cooperation of the Wittelsbach company, it was also able to describe sights that are not open to the public. According to one of the reviewers, characteristic of the work is the perceptible enthusiasm for Bavaria.

Some historical biographies followed. His book about the Bavarian King Ludwig II ( Bavarian Fantasy. The Story of Ludwig II . John Murray, London 1955), which has been translated into several languages ​​and is still published today, was particularly important .

Chapman was the editor of several memoirs of the high nobility such as B. the diaries of Louise Sophie Princess of Prussia , Daisy Princess of Pless , Gebhard Fürst von Blücher , Maria de la Paz de Borbon Princess of Bavaria and her daughter, the painter María del Pilar Princess of Bavaria.

As a historian, Chapman-Huston seems, at least as W. John Koch writes with regard to the publication of Daisy von Pless' diaries, quite controversial.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b See WBIS . The associated WBIS entry was taken from Who's who on the stage , 1907.
  2. ↑ His mother was a great niece of Sir Benjamin Chapman, 4th Baronet and Lord Lieutenant of County Westmeath .
  3. ↑ See his letter to the editor in The Times , May 7, 1919, p. 8.
  4. ↑ See his letter to the editor in the Times, January 25, 1934, which was sent from Munich.
  5. ↑ See The Geographical Journal , Volume 85, Issue 1, January 1935, p. 79.
  6. ^ Ludwig II. The Mad King of Bavaria , Dorsett Press, New York 1990, ISBN 0-88029-493-0 ; also: Barnes & Noble, New York 1993, ISBN 0-88029-493-0 .
  7. ^ W. John Koch: Daisy Von Pless: A discovery . W. John Koch Publishing, Edmonton 2006, ISBN 0-9731579-3-3 , pp. 66 (364 p., Limited preview in Google Book Search - or with the title Daisy Princess of Pless ).
personal data
SURNAME Chapman-Huston, Desmond
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Mountjoy, Desmond (pseudonym); Chapman-Huston, Wellesley William Desmond Mountjoy (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English-Irish author and publicist
DATE OF BIRTH August 8, 1884
PLACE OF BIRTH Annaghmaconway at Cloone , County Leitrim
DATE OF DEATH September 15, 1952