#aircraftman ross

[themarvellousmichaelbryant]

In 1960, Michael Bryant took over the lead role of Lawrence of Arabia from Alec Guinness in the play 'Ross' at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in London. The programme contained an extensive biography.

[desertrevolt]

Who's Who of Seven Pillars of Wisdom and the Arab Revolt

TE Lawrence - British archaeologist, later spy, soldier, and diplomat. Lawrence was the illegitimate son of an Anglo-Irish lord and a governess in his household. Lawrence completed a 1,000 mile walking tour of crusade castles in Syria for his Oxford history thesis and later did field work under the famous archaeologist David Hogarth. His fluency in Arabic, as well as knowledge of local history, customs, and geography, suited him to assignment to advise the Arab Revolt.

Lawrence argued vehemently for Britain and France to uphold their promise of a united, self-ruling, pan-Arabic state after the war, and against the Sykes-Picot Agreement that divided the region into European mandate states. How much Lawrence knew of the planned betrayal of the Arab allies during the Revolt is open to debate, but he continued to advocate for Arab voices and self-rule. At the Paris Peace Conference, Lawrence made a point to dress in Arab clothing, associate primarily with the Arab delegation, and demonstrate his support.

After the war, Lawrence suffered mentally and emotionally. In addition to the general horrors of war, he had possibly been captured, tortured, and sexually assaulted. (Historicity of this is debated.) His personal guarantees had been broken by his government.

He re-enlisted in the Royal Air Force as an aircraftman (the lowest rank), after having retired from the army as a colonel (a high ranking officer), under a fake name - John Hume Ross. When his true identity was discovered, he left, despite an offer to allow him to remain. He changed his name more officially to TE Shaw (from his friendship with playwright George Bernard Shaw), and enlisted in the Royal Tank Corps, again as a private, the lowest rank. Unhappy, he returned to the RAF again, under the name Shaw and fully above-board, where he remained for five years.

Lawrence finally left the RAF in 1935 and died in a motorcycle accident about two months later, swerving to avoid some bicyclists.

5'5" (166 cm) tall and wiry. Tiny!

Spoke Arabic, French, Greek, and Latin. Published his own translation of The Odyssey, his dissertation study of crusader castles, several memoirs, and many poems. Lots of poems.

Carried a copy of Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur in his pocket everywhere during the war.

Likely homoromantic asexual. Did not like being touched by anyone. Showed no sexual or romantic desire toward women, but strong admiration for male bodies and intimacy. This is all further complicated by the possible sexual assault, his possible kinkiness, and the post-war whippings that he paid an army buddy to regularly administer. (Don't worry, we'll get into all this eventually.)

Really loved motorcycles and bicycles.

A real wells-for-boys kind of guy.

Sherif Hussein bin Ali al-Hashimi - Sherif and Emir of Mecca, 37th generation direct descendent of Mohammed, credited with officially forming and declaring the Arab Revolt, later King of Hejaz (western Arabian Peninsula). His communication with Henry McMahon (below), the McMahon-Hussein Correspondence, established the alliance between Britain and the Revolt. Sherif Ali attempted to establish a pan-Arabic state after the war. His three sons led the efforts of the revolt and the diplomatic endeavors. His descendants, the Hashemite family, rule Jordan to this day.

Prince Faisal (Feisal) bin Hussein- A guy to watch! Our man! Third son of Sherif Hussein, head of the main northern force of the Revolt, and later king of Syria and Iraq. Became a friend of Lawrence's and requested his permanent assignment with the Revolt. Critics of Lawrence say that some actions and ideas Lawrence took credit for may have been Faisal's instead. Leader of the Arab delegation to the Paris Peace Conference.

(Mod Whit note: A biography of Faisal recently came out by Ali Allawi, Iraq's current Deputy Prime Minister. Very excited to read and include points here!)

Prince Ali bin Hussein - First son of Sherif Hussein. Later King of Hejaz after his father.

Prince Abdullah bin Hussein - Second son of Sherif Hussein. Later King of Transjordan. Commanded the next-largest, eastern portion of the Arab army.

Prince Zeid bin Hussein - Fourth son of Sherif Hussein. Led the forces that cut off Ottoman reinforcements from Medina to Rabigh. Later, served in the government under his brother Faisal's rule in Iraq, until the overthrow of the royal family.

Henry McMahon - British High Commissioner in Egypt when the Arab Revolt started. His initial promise lie to Sherif Hussein of supporting an Arab state led to the cooperation.

SF Newcombe - The British officer originally assigned to be liaison with the Revolt. He was late arriving and Lawrence was sent to fill in. When Newcombe finally arrived, Faisal had become close to Lawrence and asked for Lawrence to remain in his position. Newcombe remained involved and a friend of Lawrence's for life.

Lord Kitchener - British High Commander during World War I. Famous for the 'stache. A full-on war criminal of the lowest order. Put Boer civilians in concentration camps during the Second Boer War in Africa years earlier, among other atrocities.

Mark Sykes - Co-authored the Sykes-Picot Agreement, a semi-secret arrangement between Britain and France to divide up the Middle East into colonial mandate states after the war. Lawrence thinks he's an ass-hat and takes the opportunity to call him incompetent and bad. (Very hard to overstate how bad this was. This agreement is a factor in virtually all of the conflicts and difficulties in the Middle East for the next 100 years and counting.)

Sherif Abd el Kerim - Lawrence's assigned guide for an early portion of his assignment.

Sherif Sharraf bin Rajeh - Emir of Taif, early Arab fighter against the Ottomans, commander under Faisal.

General Fakhri Pashi (Pasha) - Ottoman commander of the forces in Medina.

Colonel Bremond - Chief of the French Military Mission in Arabia.

Sheikh Auda Abu Tayi - Close companion of Lawrence's throughout the campaign, one of the main leaders of the Battle of Aqaba.

Auda ibn Zaal - Abu Tayi's cousin. A formidable fighter and raider in the Revolt.

Prince Sherif Jamil bin Nasir - Nephew of Sherif Hussein and another close companion of Lawrence's.

Emir Nuri Shaalan - Emir of the Ruwalla tribe of the Beduins. Lawrence calls him the fourth most import leader of peoples in the desert.

(FYI, Lawrence's name spellings are often his transliteration from Arabic, not the agreed English spelling. I will probably bounce back and forth, sorry. This post to be updated, added to, and reblogged as the book progresses. Subscribe here to follow along on the substack!)

[takeapicphotos-blog]

In 1971, the Flyers were inducted into the Canadian Armed Forces Sports Hall of Fame and in 2008 they were inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame. The RCAF Flyers team members • Squadron Leader Dr. Sandy Watson – Manager • Sergeant Frank Boucher – Coach • Corporal George McFaul – Trainer and equipment manager • Flying Officer Hubert Brooks • Leading Aircraftman Murray Dowey • Flying Officer Frank Dunster • Leading Aircraftman Roy Forbes • Sergeant Andy Gilpin • Aircraftman First Class Orval “Red” Gravelle • Corporal Patsy Guzzo • Mr. Wally Halder – highest scorer during the Olympic Games • Aircraftman First Class Ted Hibberd • Corporal Ross King • Aircraftman Second Class André Laperrière • Flight Sergeant Louis Lecompte • Aircraftman First Class Pete Leichnitz • Mr. George Mara – Team captain • Leading Aircraftman Ab Renaud • Flying Officer Reg Schroeter • Corporal Irving Taylor #ohhof #ygk #hockey #puck #kingstonmuseums #historic #kingston #hhof #olympics #therealmiracleonice #rcaf #flyers #airforce #ygkphotography #visitkingston #kingston_on #beautifuldestinations #getaway #discoveron #discover #explore #bestofontario #museum #military #Canadian #canada #greatwaterways #games (at Original Hockey Hall Of Fame) https://www.instagram.com/p/BrkbUY4g0DG/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=2c69sdhgqhe3