Brian Lunn (1893–1956) was a British writer and translator. He was born in Bloomsbury,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, youngest of three sons (there being also a daughter) of

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

parents Sir Henry Simpson Lunn (1859-1939) and Mary Ethel, née Moore, daughter of a canon. He had a somewhat Puritanical upbringing, his father, founder of Lunn's Travel agency that would become

Lunn Poly Lunn Poly was, at one time, the largest chain of travel agents in the United Kingdom. History The company originated from two successful travel agencies established in the 1890s, the Polytechnic Touring Association and Sir Henry Lunn Travel. B ...

, having strong religious beliefs which were in conflict with his talent as a businessman.

Arnold Lunn Sir Arnold Henry Moore Lunn (18 April 1888 – 2 June 1974) was a skier, mountaineer and writer. He was knighted for "services to British Skiing and Anglo-Swiss relations" in 1952. His father was a lay Methodist minister, but Lunn was an agn ...

and

Hugh Kingsmill Hugh Kingsmill Lunn (21 November 1889 – 15 May 1949), who dropped his surname for professional purposes, was a versatile British writer and journalist. The writers Arnold Lunn and Brian Lunn were his brothers. Life Hugh Kingsmill Lunn was born ...

were his brothers. In the mid-1920s Lunn was living at 50 Manchester St, London, W1. His most important work as a writer was 'Switchback', his autobiography published in 1948. Its highlight is Brian's description of a mental breakdown he had while serving in

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

in the 11th

Black Watch The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regime ...

. The onset of his breakdown was described as follows: His other books include a biography of

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...

, an "autobiography" of Satan which he "collated" in collaboration with

William Gerhardie William Alexander Gerhardie OBE FRSL (21 November 1895 – 15 July 1977) was an Anglo-Russian novelist and playwright. His first novel, ''Futility'' (1922), drew on his experiences of fighting the Bolsheviks in pre-revolutionary Russia. Life a ...

, a travel guide to

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, and a history of the

Rothschild Rothschild () is a name derived from the German ''zum rothen Schild'' (with the old spelling "th"), meaning "with the red sign", in reference to the houses where these family members lived or had lived. At the time, houses were designated by sign ...

family. "Salvation Dynasty" was Brian Lunn's account of the Salvation Army's founders.

Books

* ''Silbermann'' by Jacques De Lacretelle, translator Brian Lunn (1923) * ''Austria in Dissolution'' by Stephan Burian Von Rajecz, translator Brian Lunn (1925) * ''Letters to Young Winter Sportsmen - Skiing, Skating and Curling'' (1927) * ''From Serfdom to Bolshevism. The Memoirs of Baron N. Wrangel, 1847-1920'', translators Brian and Beatrix Lunn (1927) * ''The Reign of the House of Rothschild'' by Count Egon Caesar Corti, translators Brian and Beatrix Lunn (1928) * ''The Life of Alfred Nobel'' by H. Schuck and R. Sohlman, translator Brian Lunn (1929) * ''The Cabaret Up the Line'' by

Roland Dorgelès Roland Dorgelès (; 15 June 1885 – 18 March 1973) was a French novelist and a member of the Académie Goncourt. Born in Amiens, Somme, under the name Roland Lecavelé (he adopted the pen name Dorgelès to commemorate visits to the spa town of ...

, translators Brian Lunn and Alan Duncan (1930) * ''The Woman with a Thousand Children'' by

Clara Viebig Clara Emma Amalia Viebig (17 July 1860 – 31 July 1952) was a German author. Life Viebig was born in the German city of Trier, the daughter of a Prussian civil servant. She was related to Hermann Göring. At the age of eight, her father was t ...

, translator Brian Lunn (1930) * ''Religious Essays: A Supplement to 'The Idea of the Holy by Rudolf Otto, translator Brian Lunn (1931) * ''The Memoirs Of Satan'', William Gerhardi and Brian Lunn (1932) * ''Martin Luther: the man and his God'' (1934) * ''Salvation Dynasty: On William Booth and his family'' (1935). Lunn contributed the chapter on

John Fisher John Fisher (c. 19 October 1469 – 22 June 1535) was an English Catholic bishop, cardinal, and theologian. Fisher was also an academic and Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He was canonized by Pope Pius XI. Fisher was executed by o ...

and

Hugh Latimer Hugh Latimer ( – 16 October 1555) was a Fellow of Clare College, Cambridge, and Bishop of Worcester during the Reformation, and later Church of England chaplain to King Edward VI. In 1555 under the Catholic Queen Mary I he was burned at the ...

. * ''The Great Tudors'', ed. Katharine Garvin (1936) * ''The Charm of Belgium'' (1939)'Traveller in Belgium', in ''The Times Literary Supplement'' Issue 1944, 6 May, 1939, p. 6 * ''Switchback: an autobiography'' (1948)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lunn, Brian 1893 births 1956 deaths British travel writers English autobiographers English biographers