Harold Dillon, 17th Viscount Dillon

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Harold Arthur Lee-Dillon, 17th Viscount Dillon (born January 24, 1844 in London , † December 18, 1932 in Charlbury , Oxfordshire ) was a British weapons historian and curator of the Royal Armories .

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Dillon was the elder son of Arthur Dillon, 16th Viscount Dillon (1812-1892) and Ellen Adderly (1809-1896). He received his education at a private school in Eltham . He studied at the University of Oxford and the University of Bonn . In 1862 he joined the British Army in the Prince Consort's Own Rifle Brigade . In 1866 he was promoted to lieutenant . He served in India and Canada during the Fenian Uprising in 1868–1871. He left the regular army in 1874 and became a reserve officer in the Oxfordshire Light Infantry . He resigned as a major in 1891 . In 1892, when his father died, he inherited the Irish title of Viscount Dillon .

After leaving the regular army, he became increasingly interested in historical weapons and armor as well as medieval clothing. He drew hundreds of detailed sketches on these subjects from books and paintings. Also shortly after leaving the regular army, his first publication appeared on stone tools found near his home town of Ditchley in Oxfordshire . This is followed by many articles on weapons and military history in scientific journals such as The Archaeological Journal , Archaeologia , The Antiquary, and The United Service Journal And Naval And Military Magazine . His first major undertaking was the revised edition of Frederick William Fairholt Costume in England , published in 1885 . He sometimes published under the pseudonym Armadillo (German: Armadillo ).

From 1892 Dillon served as a scientific advisor to the Royal Armories and was appointed its curator in 1895 . Before that, responsibility lay with the administration of the War Office , which only had a limited interest in the historical inventory. As a curator, he was able to correct incorrect descriptions of the exhibits and incorrectly assembled armor. During his investigations he discovered valuable details about the manufacture and use of weapons and armor. In 1910, Dillon's museum guide "Illustrated Guide to the Armories" was published in connection with the reorganization of the exhibition.

Dillon saw his main task in maintaining and researching a closed collection. He added few new pieces to the collection. He felt that if he was in charge of a government collection then he shouldn't be a collector. As early as 1909, Dillon was considering retiring , he finally did not do so until 1912 and handed the Royal Armories over to Charles ffoulkes .

Dillon received an honorary doctorate from the University of Oxford ; In 1921 he was accepted into the Order of the Companions of Honor .

Dillon held various secondary offices . He was trustee of the British Museum , member of the Royal Commission at Westminster Abbey , President of the Royal Archaeological Institute , Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the National Portrait Gallery , Fellow of the British Academy and a member of the Royal Academy of Arts .

In 1870 he had married Julia Stanton in Ottawa for the first time, from which a son, Henry Lee Stanton Lee-Dillon (1874-1923) emerged. In 1926 he married Margaret Louisa Everard ffolkes for the second time. Harold Dillon won 10th place in the discipline showing riding horses ( Mixed Hacks And Hunter Combined ) at the 1900 Olympic Games .

Since he survived his only son Henry and this left no male descendants, his title of nobility fell in 1932 to his nephew Major Arthur Henry Dillon (1875-1934), High Sheriff of Oxfordshire.

Works (selection)

literature

Web links

Commons : Harold Dillon, 17th Viscount Dillon  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Harold Arthur Lee-Dillon ( Memento November 7, 2017 in the Internet Archive ), Royal Armories
  2. ^ Dillon, Viscount Dillon in: Sports reference / Olympic Sports . Retrieved November 7, 2017.
predecessor title successor
Arthur Dillon Viscount Dillon
1892-1932 		Arthur Dillon
personal data
SURNAME Dillon, Harold, 17th Viscount Dillon
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Lee-Dillon, Harold Arthur, 17th Viscount Dillon; Armadillo (pseudonym)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British arms historian and curator of the Royal Armories
DATE OF BIRTH January 24, 1844
PLACE OF BIRTH London
DATE OF DEATH December 18, 1932
Place of death Charlbury , Oxfordshire