Description
Book SynopsisGerald Howard-Smith's life is intriguing both in its own right and as a vehicle for exploring the world in which he lived. Tall, boisterous and sometimes rather irascible, he was one of the so-called Lost Generation' whose lives were cut short by the First World War. Brought up in London, and educated at Eton and Cambridge, he excelled both at cricket and athletics. After qualifying as a solicitor he moved to Wolverhampton and threw himself into the local sporting scene, making a considerable name for himself in the years before the First World War. Volunteering for military service in 1914, he was decorated for bravery before being killed in action two years later. Reporting his death, the War History of the South Staffordshire Regiment claimed that, In his men's eyes he lived as a loose-limbed hero, and in him they lost a very humorous and a very gallant gentleman.'
As well as telling the fascinating story of Gerald Howard-Smith for the first time, this important new biograp
Trade Review
'In this engaging and well-written book, Benson offers a new approach to historical biography – the idea of a life written from the outside. How should we study individuals who left no personal papers, who didn’t pen memoirs or diaries? Benson has the answer – with his ‘biography from the outside’ he offers a brand new approach that will serve as a model for professional historians and students alike. Taking the example of sportsman and solicitor Gerald Howard-Smith, this excellent book explores just how far it is possible to reconstruct a life based on external sources.'
Dr Jane Hamlett, Royal Holloway University of London, UK
Table of ContentsCONTENTS
List of Figures
Acknowledgements
1. Introduction
PRIVILEGE
2. ‘A Thoroly Sound Healthy Minded Good Fellow’: Home, School and Socialisation
3. ‘An Unassailable Distinction through Life’: University, Sport and Status
CAREER
4. ‘Gentlemanly Manners and Refined Habits’: London, the Home Counties and Teaching
5. ‘A Gentleman of Experience’: Wolverhampton, Sport and the Law
SACRIFICE
6. ‘The Thing to Do’: Class, Patriotism and Preparation
7. ‘Large, Gallant and Loose-Limbed’: Class, Patriotism and Sacrifice
COMMEMORATION
8. ‘In Loving Memory’: Class and Commemoration, Representation and Misrepresentation
Select Bibliography
Index
