GeneralSir James Handyside Marshall-CornwallKCBCBEDSOMCFRSGS (27 May 1887 – 25 December 1985) was a 20th Century British Army soldier and military historian.
Cornwall went to Rugby School and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. Commissioned into the Royal Field Artillery in 1907, during his first spell of annual leave he travelled to Germany to study German. He later passed the Civil Service Commission examination as a first-class German interpreter, the first of the eleven interpreterships he was to gain. He passed as first-class interpreter in French, Norwegian, Swedish, Hollander Dutch, and Italian.
Military career
On the outbreak of World War I Cornwall joined the Intelligence Corps at Le Havre. In 1915 he was appointed to the rank of Captain at 2nd Corps Headquarters in the Second Army. In 1916 he was promoted to temporary Major at the General Headquarters of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), under Sir Douglas Haig. In 1918, Cornwall was posted to the War Office as head of the MI3 section of the military intelligence directorate, where he remained until the armistice.
In 1919, after attending the first postwar course at the Staff College, Camberley,[5] Cornwall was sent to the peace conference in Paris, where he worked with Reginald Leeper and Harold Nicolson on the new boundaries of Europe. Several jobs in the Middle East in the 1920s gave him the opportunity to study the Turkish and modern Greek languages.
From 1928 to 1932 he held the post of military attaché in Berlin.[6] In 1934, after two years as commander of the 51st Highland division,[6] Royal Artillery, based at Perth, Scotland, Marshall-Cornwall was promoted the rank of Major-General. He spent the next four years travelling in Europe, India, and the United States, then two years in Cairo as head of the British military mission to Egypt.[6] Here he qualified as an interpreter in colloquial Arabic.
In 1938, he was promoted to Lieutenant-General, in charge of the air defences of Great Britain.[6] In May 1940 he went to France to help evacuate British troops from Cherbourg, boarding the last ship to leave the port. He took over command of III Corps in England in June 1940 holding the post until November 1940.[6]
Marshall-Cornwall took over Western Command in November 1941,[6] but was dismissed in the Autumn 1942 for going outside the proper channels to secure the safety of the Liverpool docks. He spent the rest of the war with the Special Operations Executive and MI6, attempting to promote better relations between them.[7] He retired from the army in 1943.[6]
Post military life
Between 1948 and 1951, he was editor-in-chief of the German archives at the Foreign Office captured by the British Army in 1945, and wrote military history. He was president of the Royal Geographical Society (1954–8).[8]
Death
Marshall-Cornwall died, aged 98, on Christmas Day 1985.[citation needed]
Cornwall met Marjorie Coralie Scott Owen, who was driving an ambulance for a Red Cross mission to White Russian refugees, while encamped in the Izmit peninsula. They were married in Wales in April 1921. In 1927 he inherited a small estate in Scotland from his uncle William Marshall, on condition that he should assume the surname of Marshall. As Marshall was one of his forenames, this was achieved by the insertion of a hyphen. The Marshall-Cornwalls had a son and two daughters. Their elder daughter died aged fourteen in 1938 after an operation for appendicitis in Switzerland. Their son was killed in France in 1944. He is buried on the spot where he fell, in an orchard near Cahaignes, Normandy. After the war, the landowner presented the site of the grave to the casualty's father, who in turn, requested that the grave remain undisturbed. His other daughter, Janet, married Michael Willoughby, 12th Baron Middleton on 14 October 1947.
Publications
Geographic Disarmament: A Study of Regional Demilitarisation (1935).
Marshal Massena (1965).
Napoleon (1967).
Grant as a Military Commander (1970).
Foch as a Military Commander (1972).
Haig as a Military Commander (1973).
History of the Geographical Club (1976).
A Memoir: Wars & Rumours of Wars (1984) (autobiography).
References
^The Edinburgh Gazette (23 February 1915), p. 307.
^The Edinburgh Gazette (4 June 1917), p. 1061 and (5 June 1917), p. 1093.
^"General Sir James Marshall-Cornwall". The Times. 31 December 1985.
^Leo Cooper and T. R. Hartman (2004). "Cornwall, Sir James Handyside Marshall- (1887–1985)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 2 August 2009.
Bibliography
Mead, Richard (2007). Churchill's Lions: A Biographical Guide to the Key British Generals of World War II. Stroud: Spellmount. ISBN978-1-86227-431-0.
Smart, Nick (2005). Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War. Barnesley: Pen & Sword. ISBN1844150496.
james, marshall, cornwall, general, james, handyside, marshall, cornwall, frsgs, 1887, december, 1985, 20th, century, british, army, soldier, military, historian, born27, 1887died25, december, 1985, aged, allegiance, united, kingdomservice, branch, british, ar. General Sir James Handyside Marshall Cornwall KCB CBE DSO MC FRSGS 27 May 1887 25 December 1985 was a 20th Century British Army soldier and military historian Sir James Marshall CornwallBorn27 May 1887Died25 December 1985 aged 98 Allegiance United KingdomService wbr branch British ArmyYears of service1907 1943RankGeneralService number1094UnitRoyal ArtilleryCommands heldIII CorpsBritish Troops in EgyptWestern CommandBattles warsWorld War IWorld War IIAwardsKnight Commander of the Order of the BathCommander of the Order of the British EmpireDistinguished Service OrderMilitary Cross Contents 1 Education 2 Military career 3 Post military life 4 Death 5 Personal life 6 Publications 7 References 8 Bibliography 9 External linksEducation EditCornwall went to Rugby School and the Royal Military Academy Woolwich Commissioned into the Royal Field Artillery in 1907 during his first spell of annual leave he travelled to Germany to study German He later passed the Civil Service Commission examination as a first class German interpreter the first of the eleven interpreterships he was to gain He passed as first class interpreter in French Norwegian Swedish Hollander Dutch and Italian Military career EditOn the outbreak of World War I Cornwall joined the Intelligence Corps at Le Havre In 1915 he was appointed to the rank of Captain at 2nd Corps Headquarters in the Second Army In 1916 he was promoted to temporary Major at the General Headquarters of the British Expeditionary Force BEF under Sir Douglas Haig In 1918 Cornwall was posted to the War Office as head of the MI3 section of the military intelligence directorate where he remained until the armistice He was decorated with the Military Cross in 1915 1 the Distinguished Service Order and the French Legion d Honneur both in 1917 2 the Belgian Ordre de la Couronne and Croix de Guerre in 1918 3 and the American Distinguished Service Medal in 1919 4 In 1919 after attending the first postwar course at the Staff College Camberley 5 Cornwall was sent to the peace conference in Paris where he worked with Reginald Leeper and Harold Nicolson on the new boundaries of Europe Several jobs in the Middle East in the 1920s gave him the opportunity to study the Turkish and modern Greek languages In 1927 he was sent to China with the Royal Artillery Shanghai Defence Force to protect British life and property in the Shanghai International Settlement This enabled him to acquire Mandarin and to travel extensively in the Far East with his wife From 1928 to 1932 he held the post of military attache in Berlin 6 In 1934 after two years as commander of the 51st Highland division 6 Royal Artillery based at Perth Scotland Marshall Cornwall was promoted the rank of Major General He spent the next four years travelling in Europe India and the United States then two years in Cairo as head of the British military mission to Egypt 6 Here he qualified as an interpreter in colloquial Arabic In 1938 he was promoted to Lieutenant General in charge of the air defences of Great Britain 6 In May 1940 he went to France to help evacuate British troops from Cherbourg boarding the last ship to leave the port He took over command of III Corps in England in June 1940 holding the post until November 1940 6 In April 1941 he became General Officer Commanding the British Troops in Egypt 6 Later that year he was sent by Winston Churchill to Turkey in an attempt to persuade the Turks to enter the war on the Allied side a mission which failed 6 Marshall Cornwall took over Western Command in November 1941 6 but was dismissed in the Autumn 1942 for going outside the proper channels to secure the safety of the Liverpool docks He spent the rest of the war with the Special Operations Executive and MI6 attempting to promote better relations between them 7 He retired from the army in 1943 6 Post military life EditBetween 1948 and 1951 he was editor in chief of the German archives at the Foreign Office captured by the British Army in 1945 and wrote military history He was president of the Royal Geographical Society 1954 8 8 Death EditMarshall Cornwall died aged 98 on Christmas Day 1985 citation needed Personal life EditThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources James Marshall Cornwall news newspapers books scholar JSTOR December 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Cornwall met Marjorie Coralie Scott Owen who was driving an ambulance for a Red Cross mission to White Russian refugees while encamped in the Izmit peninsula They were married in Wales in April 1921 In 1927 he inherited a small estate in Scotland from his uncle William Marshall on condition that he should assume the surname of Marshall As Marshall was one of his forenames this was achieved by the insertion of a hyphen The Marshall Cornwalls had a son and two daughters Their elder daughter died aged fourteen in 1938 after an operation for appendicitis in Switzerland Their son was killed in France in 1944 He is buried on the spot where he fell in an orchard near Cahaignes Normandy After the war the landowner presented the site of the grave to the casualty s father who in turn requested that the grave remain undisturbed His other daughter Janet married Michael Willoughby 12th Baron Middleton on 14 October 1947 Publications EditGeographic Disarmament A Study of Regional Demilitarisation 1935 Marshal Massena 1965 Napoleon 1967 Grant as a Military Commander 1970 Foch as a Military Commander 1972 Haig as a Military Commander 1973 History of the Geographical Club 1976 A Memoir Wars amp Rumours of Wars 1984 autobiography References Edit The Edinburgh Gazette 23 February 1915 p 307 The Edinburgh Gazette 4 June 1917 p 1061 and 5 June 1917 p 1093 The Edinburgh Gazette 15 March 1918 p 1022 The Edinburgh Gazette 18 July 1919 p 2427 Smart p 210 a b c d e f g h i Generals dk General Sir James Marshall Cornwall The Times 31 December 1985 Leo Cooper and T R Hartman 2004 Cornwall Sir James Handyside Marshall 1887 1985 Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Oxford University Press Retrieved 2 August 2009 Bibliography EditMead Richard 2007 Churchill s Lions A Biographical Guide to the Key British Generals of World War II Stroud Spellmount ISBN 978 1 86227 431 0 Smart Nick 2005 Biographical Dictionary of British Generals of the Second World War Barnesley Pen amp Sword ISBN 1844150496 External links EditBritish Military History Biographies M Generals of World War IIMilitary officesPreceded byRonald Adam GOC III CorpsJune November 1940 Succeeded byDesmond AndersonPreceded bySir Richard O Connor GOC British Troops in EgyptApril November 1941 Succeeded byWilliam HolmesPreceded bySir Robert Gordon Finlayson GOC in C Western Command1941 1942 Succeeded bySir Edmond Schreiber Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title James Marshall Cornwall amp oldid 1127668381, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
