Old Men Forget is a 1953 autobiography by Duff Cooper, Viscount Norwich, detailing his Victorian childhood, Edwardian youth, and work in literature and politics.
Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot But he'll remember with advantages What feats he did that day.[1]
Despite the title, Cooper was in his early sixties when he wrote the book, having retired from public life in 1947 at the age of fifty-seven.[2] The publisher Rupert Hart-Davis, who was Cooper's nephew,[3] published the first edition in November 1953.[4]
Cooper in 1941
The book covers Cooper's early years – his schooldays at Eton, studies and socialising at Oxford – followed by his army service in the First World War, in which he fought in the trenches and was one of the few members of his intimate circle to survive the war.[1] In peacetime he was an official in the Foreign Office until entering Parliament in 1924. The book includes an account of Field Marshal Allenby's struggles with David Lloyd George over Egypt, seen from Cooper's viewpoint as a public servant.[1] The bulk of the book deals with Cooper's political career in the Conservative Party, as an MP and minister. His accounts of the appeasement years before the Second World War include severe criticism of Neville Chamberlain and The Times. Under Winston Churchill, Cooper served as Minister of Information, Resident Minister at Singapore, Representative to the French Committee of Liberation, and Ambassador to France. He recounts the fractious relations between Churchill and General de Gaulle, in which the latter is depicted with what a reviewer calls "admiration and respect, and at times with affectionate exasperation".[1]
Old Men Forget was well received by reviewers. The Times said, "at times he can stir the reader deeply with his account of human sorrow or success. With all this he succeeds, not indeed in writing one of the greatest autobiographies, but at least in writing one where the many good things are a delight and which is always full of interest."[1] In The Manchester Guardian, Roger Fulford wrote, "The gifts of understanding and of style, which distinguish this book, lift it above the serried ranks of recollections and memoirs into the realm of literature.[5]Harold Nicolson in The Observer called the book "an autobiography which, in its perfect balance between the objective and the subjective … furnishes an example of the way in which this sort of thing should be done."[6]
^ abcde"Freshly Remembered: Lord Norwich's Memoirs", The Times, 4 November 1953, p. 10
^Ziegler, Philip. "Cooper, (Alfred) Duff, first Viscount Norwich (1890–1954), diplomatist and politician", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2011 Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)(Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
forget, 1953, autobiography, duff, cooper, viscount, norwich, detailing, victorian, childhood, edwardian, youth, work, literature, politics, first, edition, publ, rupert, hart, davis, contents, publishing, history, content, reception, references, sources, refe. Old Men Forget is a 1953 autobiography by Duff Cooper Viscount Norwich detailing his Victorian childhood Edwardian youth and work in literature and politics First edition publ Rupert Hart Davis Contents 1 Publishing history content and reception 2 References and sources 2 1 References 2 2 SourcesPublishing history content and reception editThe title is taken from the St Crispin s Day Speech by King Henry in Act IV Scene 3 of Shakespeare s Henry V Old men forget yet all shall be forgot But he ll remember with advantages What feats he did that day 1 Despite the title Cooper was in his early sixties when he wrote the book having retired from public life in 1947 at the age of fifty seven 2 The publisher Rupert Hart Davis who was Cooper s nephew 3 published the first edition in November 1953 4 nbsp Cooper in 1941The book covers Cooper s early years his schooldays at Eton studies and socialising at Oxford followed by his army service in the First World War in which he fought in the trenches and was one of the few members of his intimate circle to survive the war 1 In peacetime he was an official in the Foreign Office until entering Parliament in 1924 The book includes an account of Field Marshal Allenby s struggles with David Lloyd George over Egypt seen from Cooper s viewpoint as a public servant 1 The bulk of the book deals with Cooper s political career in the Conservative Party as an MP and minister His accounts of the appeasement years before the Second World War include severe criticism of Neville Chamberlain and The Times Under Winston Churchill Cooper served as Minister of Information Resident Minister at Singapore Representative to the French Committee of Liberation and Ambassador to France He recounts the fractious relations between Churchill and General de Gaulle in which the latter is depicted with what a reviewer calls admiration and respect and at times with affectionate exasperation 1 Old Men Forget was well received by reviewers The Times said at times he can stir the reader deeply with his account of human sorrow or success With all this he succeeds not indeed in writing one of the greatest autobiographies but at least in writing one where the many good things are a delight and which is always full of interest 1 In The Manchester Guardian Roger Fulford wrote The gifts of understanding and of style which distinguish this book lift it above the serried ranks of recollections and memoirs into the realm of literature 5 Harold Nicolson in The Observer called the book an autobiography which in its perfect balance between the objective and the subjective furnishes an example of the way in which this sort of thing should be done 6 The book was reissued by Faber amp Faber in 2011 7 References and sources editReferences edit a b c d e Freshly Remembered Lord Norwich s Memoirs The Times 4 November 1953 p 10 Ziegler Philip Cooper Alfred Duff first Viscount Norwich 1890 1954 diplomatist and politician Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Oxford University Press 2011 Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online ed Oxford University Press a href Template Cite encyclopedia html title Template Cite encyclopedia cite encyclopedia a Missing or empty title help Subscription or UK public library membership required Lyttelton and Hart Davis pp 16 18 Hart Davis The Times 30 October 1953 p 10 Fulford Roger The Moods of Munich Lord Norwich s Memoirs The Manchester Guardian 3 November 1953 p 6 Nicolson Harold Good Living The Observer 8 November 1953 p 9 WorldCat OCLC 1039507371 Sources edit Lyttelton George Hart Davis Rupert 1979 Lyttelton Hart Davis Letters Volume 2 London John Murray ISBN 978 0 7195 3673 1 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Old Men Forget amp oldid 1099664603, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
