Major Ernest Gambier-Parry (25 October 1853 – 15 April 1936) was a British military officer who participated in an expedition to the Sudan to avenge the grisly death of a renowned general in 1885. However, the wounds he sustained in that campaign ended his military career. Gambier-Parry was also known for his work as an author, musician, and artist. He succeeded to the manor at

Highnam Court Highnam Court is a Grade I listed country house in Highnam, Gloucestershire, England, constructed in the 17th century. The estate passed from the Cooke family to the Guise family and, in the mid-19th century, was purchased by a member of the Gamb ...

following the death of his half-brother

Sir Hubert Parry Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, 1st Baronet (27 February 18487 October 1918) was an English composer, teacher and historian of music. Born in Richmond Hill in Bournemouth, Parry's first major works appeared in 1880. As a composer he is b ...

. In addition, he preserved and archived the art collection that had been amassed by his father

Thomas Gambier Parry Thomas Gambier Parry, J.P., D.L., (22 February 1816 – 28 September 1888) was a British artist and art collector. He is best remembered for his development of the Gambier Parry process of fresco painting, and for forming the significant col ...

; the masterpieces were eventually bequeathed to the

Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. It is among the most prestigious specialist coll ...

Background

Ernest Gambier-Parry, son of Thomas Gambier-Parry and his second wife Ethelinda Lear, was born on 25 October 1853 at Highnam Court,

Highnam Highnam is a village and civil parish on the outskirts of the city of Gloucester. It is three miles northwest of the city on the A40, on the way to Ross, west of Alney Island and Over Bridge. It is connected by Segregated Bicycle Paths via Over ...

, Gloucestershire. His father was an artist, philanthropist, and art collector. His half-brother was the composer

, Thomas Gambier-Parry's son by his first wife Anna Maria Isabella Clinton. Another brother was the architect

Sidney Gambier-Parry Sidney Gambier-Parry (9 January 1859 – 17 November 1948) was a British architect. A native of Highnam, Gloucestershire, he came from a prominent family with a focus on military service and the arts. His career spanned more than five decades, ...

. His nephew Brigadier Sir

Richard Gambier-Parry Brigadier Sir Richard Gambier-Parry, (20 January 1894 – 19 June 1965) was a British military officer who served in both the army and the air force during World War I. He remained in military service post-war, but then entered into civilian lif ...

modernised communications at the

Secret Intelligence Service The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...

(MI6) and was the communications consultant for Operation Tracer in Gibraltar during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Ernest Gambier-Parry was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

, where he studied under William Evans, the drawing master at Eton, from 1866 to 1871.

Career

Gambier-Parry served in the Volunteers. By 1871, he had joined the Royal North Gloucestershire Regiment of Militia as a

supernumerary Supernumerary means "exceeding the usual number". Supernumerary may also refer to: * Supernumerary actor, a performer in a film, television show, or stage production who has no role or purpose other than to appear in the background, more commonl ...

lieutenant. He was promoted to lieutenant and, on 2 December 1874, he joined the

Royal Welch Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers ( cy, Ffiwsilwyr Brenhinol Cymreig) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales' Division, that was founded in 1689; shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated ...

(23rd Regiment of Foot) in that rank. Gambier-Parry became an instructor of musketry to the 2nd Battalion in 1880 and was at the

Royal Citadel, Plymouth The Royal Citadel in Plymouth, Devon, England, was built in the late 1660s to the design of Sir Bernard de Gomme. It is at the eastern end of Plymouth Hoe overlooking Plymouth Sound, and encompasses the site of the earlier fort that had been buil ...

, in 1881. He resigned as instructor of musketry on 22 August 1881. On 14 February 1883, he left the Royal Welch Fusiliers as a lieutenant, and joined the Devon Yeomanry, the Royal 1st Devon. On 12 February 1885, he was given the rank of captain in the army. Gambier-Parry participated as a special service officer in the

Suakin Expedition The Suakin Expedition was either of two British military expeditions, led by Major-General Sir Gerald Graham V.C., to Suakin in Sudan, with the intention of destroying the power of the Sudanese military commander Osman Digna and his troops during ...

of March 1885 commanded by Major-General Sir

Gerald Graham Lieutenant-general (United Kingdom), Lieutenant General Sir Gerald Graham, (27 June 1831 – 17 December 1899) was a senior British Army commander in the late 19th century and an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for ga ...

VC, following the

Siege of Khartoum The Siege of Khartoum (also known as the Battle of Khartoum or Fall of Khartoum) occurred from 13 March 1884 to 26 January 1885. Sudanese Mahdist forces captured the city of Khartoum from its Egyptian garrison, thereby gaining control over the ...

, to avenge the murder of General

Charles George Gordon Major-general (United Kingdom), Major-General Charles George Gordon Companion of the Order of the Bath, CB (28 January 1833 – 26 January 1885), also known as Chinese Gordon, Gordon Pasha, and Gordon of Khartoum, was a British Army officer and ...

in January 1885. The moments before Gordon's death and beheading were portrayed in the painting ''General Gordon's Last Stand'' ''(pictured)'' by

George William Joy George William Joy (7 July 1844 in Dublin, Ireland – 28 October 1925 in Purbrook, Hampshire) was an Irish painter in London. Life and career Joy was the son of William Bruce Joy, MD, and the brother of sculptor Albert Bruce-Joy, descendants ...

. The Suakin Expedition was also an attempt to change the course of the

Mahdist War The Mahdist War ( ar, الثورة المهدية, ath-Thawra al-Mahdiyya; 1881–1899) was a war between the Mahdist Sudanese of the religious leader Muhammad Ahmad bin Abd Allah, who had proclaimed himself the "Mahdi" of Islam (the "Guided On ...

. During the Eastern

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

campaign of March 1885, Captain Gambier-Parry was seriously wounded. That military campaign in the Sudan was the subject of his published work ''Suakin, 1885'', which he penned during his convalescence. In the preface to that book, he requested "the indulgence of critics . . . on behalf of one who has carried a sword more often than a pen." He was appointed as a captain in the reserve of officers on 28 October 1885, and was subsequently promoted to the honorary rank of major on 7 May 1886 for his gallant conduct. He was invalided from the army and resigned his commission. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he was commandant of No. 6 Red Cross Hospital in

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

, the Goring Auxiliary Hospital. Gambier-Parry was appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in 1918. He was the president of the Gloucester Children's Hospital that had been established by his father. He was also a Gloucestershire magistrate. Gambier-Parry had a strong interest in the arts. Not only was he an author; he was also a musician and artist. In addition to ''Suakin, 1885'', Gambier-Parry was the author of ''Annals of an Eton House with some Notes on the Evans Family'', ''Sketches of a Yachting Cruise'', ''Day-dreams'', ''The Pageant of my Day'', ''Murphy: A Message to Dog-lovers'', ''Allegories of the Land'', ''The Spirit of the Old Folk'', ''Life of Reynell Taylor'', and ''Ainslie Gore: A Sketch from Life''. He was a member of the Gloucester Committee of the

Three Choirs Festival 200px, Worcester cathedral 200px, Gloucester cathedral The Three Choirs Festival is a music festival held annually at the end of July, rotating among the cathedrals of the Three Counties (Hereford, Gloucester and Worcester) and originally featu ...

. He often exhibited his paintings at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

and other venues. Gambier-Parry assumed the role of family archivist. He was reluctant to sell the collection of paintings and other art objects that his father had collected over his lifetime. (His younger son Mark similarly attempted to avoid the attention of dealers and instead bequeathed the Gambier-Parry collection intact to the Courtauld Institute of Art.) The Gambier-Parry archive included an 1897 inventory of the estate that Ernest Gambier-Parry compiled and was used in the research of the collection for the Courtauld Institute. His inventory documented prominent members of the art world who were friends of his father and viewed the collection. They included two presidents of the Royal Academy: Sir

Frederic Leighton Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton, (3 December 1830 – 25 January 1896), known as Sir Frederic Leighton between 1878 and 1896, was a British painter, draughtsman, and sculptor. His works depicted historical, biblical, and classical subjec ...

and Sir

Edward John Poynter Sir Edward John Poynter, 1st Baronet (20 March 183626 July 1919) was an English painter, designer, and draughtsman, who served as President of the Royal Academy. Life Poynter was the son of architect Ambrose Poynter. He was born in Paris, ...

. The former selected works from the collection in 1888 to show in the Royal Academy's Winter Exhibition. After his father's death, Gambier-Parry extended invitations to art experts to view the collection at Highnam. The visits occurred primarily in the 1910s and 1920s. Gambier-Parry documented the visits and the impressions or detailed appraisals offered by the experts. The visitors included Professor Charles John Holmes, director of the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director o ...

; Sir

Claude Phillips Sir Claude Phillips (29 January 1846 – 9 August 1924) was a British writer, art historian and critic for ''The Daily Telegraph'', ''Manchester Guardian'' and other publications during the late 19th century. He was the first keeper of the Wa ...

, curator of the

Wallace Collection The Wallace Collection is a museum in London occupying Hertford House in Manchester Square, the former townhouse of the Seymour family, Marquesses of Hertford. It is named after Sir Richard Wallace, who built the extensive collection, along w ...

; Roger Eliot Fry;

Bernard Berenson Bernard Berenson (June 26, 1865 – October 6, 1959) was an American art historian specializing in the Renaissance. His book ''The Drawings of the Florentine Painters'' was an international success. His wife Mary is thought to have had a large h ...

; Dr. Raymond van Marle, author of ''The Development of the Italian Schools of Painting'',

William George Constable William George Constable (born Derby, England, 27 October 1887, died Cambridge, Massachusetts, 3 February 1976, was an art historian and gallery director. He was the father of Medieval Historian Giles Constable. Education Distantly related t ...

of the National Gallery, and historian Welbore St. Clair Baddeley.

Family and later life

Gambier-Parry married Evelyn Elizabeth Palk, daughter of

Lawrence Palk, 1st Baron Haldon Lawrence Palk, 1st Baron Haldon (5 January 1818 – 23 March 1883), known as Sir Lawrence Palk, 4th Baronet from 1860 to 1880, was a British Conservative Party politician. Biography Born in London, he was the son of Sir Lawrence Palk, 3rd Bar ...

, in 1882. He resided with his wife and children in

Goring-on-Thames Goring-on-Thames (or Goring) is a village and civil parish on the River Thames in South Oxfordshire, England, about south of Wallingford and northwest of Reading. It had a population of 3,187 in the 2011 census, put at 3,335 in 2019. Goring ...

in 1891, but had moved into

''(pictured)'' by 1894. Following the death of his mother Ethelinda Lear in 1896, his half-brother Hubert Parry inherited the Highnam Court estate. The two brothers disagreed over the management of Highnam Court, which was in grave financial difficulty. Ernest Gambier-Parry moved out and his brother moved into Highnam Court. The two brothers remained estranged for the rest of their lives. Gambier-Parry lived in Goring prior to Hubert Parry's death in 1918, at which time he succeeded him to the estate at Highnam Court. Ernest Gambier-Parry and his wife had two children, although neither of their sons ever married. His elder son Thomas Robert Gambier-Parry was a botanist. He also became curator of the Department of Oriental Collections at the

Bodleian Library The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford, and is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. It derives its name from its founder, Sir Thomas Bodley. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second- ...

at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

. His son Robert died in February 1935; his wife Evelyn died that same year. Major Gambier-Parry died on 15 April 1936 at Highnam Court. His younger son, Thomas Mark Gambier-Parry, succeeded to the estate at Highnam Court; Mark resided there until his death on 9 August 1966.

References

External links

* *
Suakin, 1885: Being a Sketch of the Campaign of this Year
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gambier-Parry, Ernest People educated at Eton College 1853 births 1936 deaths Officers of the Order of the British Empire Royal Welch Fusiliers officers English writers 19th-century English painters English male painters 20th-century English painters English classical musicians English archivists English art collectors Musicians from Gloucestershire People from Highnam 20th-century English male artists 19th-century English male artists Military personnel from Gloucestershire British Army personnel of World War I British Army personnel of the Mahdist War