James Michael Christopher Fitzmaurice
DFC (6 January 1898 – 26 September 1965) was an Irish aviation pioneer. He was a member of the crew of the
''Bremen'', which made the first successful trans-Atlantic aircraft flight from East to West on 12–13 April 1928.
Early life
Fitzmaurice was born in
Dublin, Ireland on 6 January 1898. His parents were Michael FitzMaurice and Mary Agnes O'Riordan. The family resided at 35 Mountjoy Cottages on Dublin's North Circular Road.
On 23 May 1902, at the age of four, Fitzmaurice moved with his parents to a house on Dublin Road,
Portlaoise
Portlaoise ( ), or Port Laoise (), is the county town of County Laois, Ireland. It is located in the Midland Region, Ireland, South Midlands in the province of Leinster. The 2016 census shows that the town's population increased by 9.5% to 22,050 ...
, Ireland. Fitzmaurice attended St. Mary's, a
Christian Brothers School in Maryborough (Portlaoise) until shortly before his 16th birthday.
In 1914 he joined the
National Volunteers. Later that year, he enlisted in the
Cadet Company of the 7th
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...
of the Leinsters. He was then 16 years of age although the required minimum age was 19. Fitzmaurice was taken out by his father for being underage.
World War I
In 1915, Fitzmaurice enlisted in the British Army,
17th Lancers
The 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1759 and notable for its participation in the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War. The regiment was amalgamated with the 21st Lanc ...
(a cavalry unit). He was sent to
France, was wounded, and was twice recommended for a
commission. He arrived in France circa May 1916. He was then posted to another English unit, the 7th Battalion of the
Queen's Royal (West Surrey) Regiment of Foot as an acting
sergeant. It was part of the 55th Brigade in the British
55th (West Lancashire) Division
The 55th (West Lancashire) Division was an infantry division of the British Army's Territorial Force (TF) that saw extensive combat during the First World War. It was raised initially in 1908 as the West Lancashire Division. Following the out ...
. In July 1916, he fought in the
Battle of the Somme.
On his 19th birthday in January 1917, Fitzmaurice held the rank of
Corporal
Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non- ...
, was an acting Sergeant, and commanded
Platoon
A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two or more squads, sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but a platoon can be composed of 50 people, although specific platoons may range ...
No. 13 of D
Company
A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...
, 7th Queen's. He was approved for a commission in May. On 8 June, Fitzmaurice left for England "to take up commission". He was sent for training to Cadet College and graduated to the
8th (Irish) Battalion,
King's (Liverpool Regiment)
The King's Regiment (Liverpool) was one of the oldest line infantry regiments of the British Army, having been formed in 1685 and numbered as the 8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot in 1751. Unlike most British Army infantry regiments, which were ...
as a
Second Lieutenant on 28 November 1917. Fitzmaurice was then posted to the
School of Military Aeronautics at
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling) ...
. 1 June 1918 Fitzmaurice began his "practical flying training" at Eastbourne Aerodrome. On 28 October 1918, having completed his elementary training at
Eastbourne, Fitzmaurice was posted to the No. 1 School of Fighting and Aerial Gunnery at
Marske-by-the-Sea, near
Middlesbrough. He completed his training as a fighter pilot and was posted to sail to France on 11 November 1918, the day that the
Armistice with Germany
The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, sea, and air in World War I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany. Previous armistices ...
became effective. His sailing was cancelled when the Armistice was announced.
After the war
Fitzmaurice married Violet "Bill" Clarke on his 21st birthday. He continued to serve in the
Royal Air Force, flying the mails with
110 Squadron. He served in the "Army of Occupation" until 1919. In May 1919, he was selected to undertake the first night mail flight (
Folkestone to
Boulogne
Boulogne-sur-Mer (; pcd, Boulonne-su-Mér; nl, Bonen; la, Gesoriacum or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department of Pas-de-Calais. Boulogne lies on the ...
). In 1919, he was selected for a Cape to Cairo flight (which did not materialize). From September to November 1919, Fitzmaurice commanded the 6th Wing Working Party of the RAF. He was assigned the task of removing useful material from six aerodromes which had been deactivated. In December he was demobilized and spent most of the following 18 months selling insurance for the
North British and Mercantile Insurance Company.
In about May 1921, Patricia Fitzmaurice was born. She was the only child of Violet and James Fitzmaurice. Fitzmaurice was recalled in May 1921 after 18 months and was attached to
25 Squadron. He accepted a Short Service Commission for four to six years. In August 1921 Fitzmaurice resigned his RAF commission.
Sometime during his service in the RAF, Fitzmaurice adopted the
accent used by English officers. He apparently retained this distinctively non-Irish accent for the remainder of his life. His new accent may have helped his career in the RAF.
In February 1922, Fitzmaurice joined the
Irish National Army's Air Service following the formation of the
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between the ...
. Early in 1923 he was promoted to Captain. On 25 October 1925 he was promoted Acting Commandant and was appointed second-in-command of the
Irish Air Corps
"Watchful and Loyal"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries =
, equipment =
, equipment_label =
, battles = ''see list of wars''
, decorations =
, battle_honours =
, battle_honours_label =
, fl ...
, with headquarters in
Baldonnel. He was later promoted Commandant on 1 September 1927.
Fitzmaurice made his first attempt to fly the Atlantic in 1927,
when in the ''
Princess Xenia (aircraft)'' (a
Fokker F.VII
The Fokker F.VII, also known as the Fokker Trimotor, was an airliner produced in the 1920s by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker, Fokker's American subsidiary Atlantic Aircraft Corporation, and other companies under licence.
Design and d ...
a aircraft) piloted by Captain
Robert Henry McIntosh,
who got financial backing from an American millionaire William Bateman Leeds and his co-financier Captain Anthony (Wilfred Heyman) Joynson-Wreford. Captain Joynson-Wreford was to have been the navigator on the flight but unfortunately had to stand down due to the recurrence of an old war injury. Having received the
meteorological forecast indicating, that even though the first 200 miles off the Irish coast were poor, the rest of the route to America was clear, so they decided to proceed with the attempt. A large crowd watched their take off from Baldonnel at 1:30 p.m., however, the weather off the coast of
Galway
Galway ( ; ga, Gaillimh, ) is a City status in Ireland, city in the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, which is the county town of County Galway. It lies on the River Corrib between Lo ...
was turbulent and got worse until visibility was virtually nil. It seemed suicidal to continue so they turned back and landed at Beale Strand near
Ballybunion
Ballybunion or Ballybunnion () is a coastal town and seaside resort in County Kerry, Ireland, on the Wild Atlantic Way, from the town of Listowel.
Tourism
Ballybunion has two main beaches, divided by the Castle Green. The Ladies Beach is to t ...
in
County Kerry
County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...
. Fitzmaurice was
co-pilot
In aviation, the first officer (FO), also called co-pilot, is the pilot who is second-in-command of the aircraft to the captain, who is the legal commander. In the event of incapacitation of the captain, the first officer will assume command of ...
of the ''Xenia'' with Maurice W. Piercey for the five and a half-hour flight that only took them 300 miles off the Irish coast.
''Bremen'' flight
On 12–13 April 1928, Fitzmaurice flew in the crew of the ''Bremen'' on the first transatlantic aircraft flight from East to West. The crew consisted of:
*Captain
Hermann Köhl
Hermann Köhl (15 April 1888 – 7 October 1938) was a German aviation pioneer and pilot of the first transatlantic flight by a fixed-wing aircraft from east to west.
Biography
Köhl was born in Neu-Ulm, Bavaria, as one of eight children. At th ...
(1888–1938), pilot
*Captain James Fitzmaurice, (1898–1965) co-pilot
*Baron
Ehrenfried Günther Freiherr von Hünefeld
Ehrenfried Günther Freiherr von Hünefeld (1 May 1892 – 5 February 1929) was a German aviation pioneer and initiator of the first transatlantic aeroplane flight from East to West.
Early life
Hünefeld was born in Königsberg, East Prussia, th ...
(1892–1929), owner
Köhl made a "perfect three-point landing" on a shallow, ice-covered, water reservoir (which James called a "lagoon") for the lighthouse at
Greenly Island, Canada
Greenly Island ( French, ''Île Greenly'') is an island in Blanc-Sablon, Quebec, Canada, near the border of Newfoundland and Labrador, in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence at the southwestern end of Strait of Belle Isle. The rocky surface of Greenly Isl ...
. Just as the ''Bremen'' came to a stop, it broke through the ice. The tail then projected about 20 feet (6 m) into the air. Everybody got wet but everybody was safe.
After the flight
On 2 May 1928, the
70th United States Congress
The 70th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 192 ...
authorized the President,
Calvin Coolidge, to confer the
United States Distinguished Flying Cross on the fliers.
In recognition of their trans-Atlantic flight achievement, Fitzmaurice and his two companions were bestowed the
Freedom of the City of Dublin
The Freedom of the City of Dublin is awarded by Dublin City Council after approving a person nominated by the Lord Mayor. Eighty-two people have been honoured under the current process introduced in 1876. Most honourees have made a contribution ...
on 30 June 1928.
After the successful flight Fitzmaurice was promoted from Major to Colonel, but he resigned from the Service on 2 February 1929. He was divorced in January 1931. Fitzmaurice met
Hitler in 1933, following an invitation extended shortly after the
Reichstag elected Hitler as
Chancellor
Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
, Fitzmaurice was reportedly present to witness the
Reichstag fire
The Reichstag fire (german: Reichstagsbrand, ) was an arson attack on the Reichstag building, home of the German parliament in Berlin, on Monday 27 February 1933, precisely four weeks after Nazi leader Adolf Hitler was sworn in as Chancellor of ...
During much the 1930s Fitzmaurice lived in New York. He spent
World War II in
London, where he ran a club for veteran pilots. After the war he returned to Ireland.
On June 1, 1955, Fitzmaurice was guest of honor when
Lufthansa inaugurated airline service between
Shannon and New York.
Fitzmaurice died in Dublin on 26 September 1965.
Legacy
There are streets named for Fitzmaurice in four German cities:
Bremen
Bremen ( Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state con ...
(at the airport),
Cologne,
Ulm
Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no ...
and
Pfaffenhofen an der Roth
Pfaffenhofen an der Roth is a municipality in the district of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria in Germany. Its most famous son is Hermann Köhl, an aviation pioneer of the 1920s.
Geography
Pfaffenhofen lies along the river Roth. The village of Pfaffenhofen ...
. In addition, streets have been named for him in cities in a number of English-speaking countries, including in
Wagga Wagga
Wagga Wagga (; informally called Wagga) is a major regional city in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, with an urban population of more than 56,000 as of June 2018, Wagga Wagga is the state's ...
, Australia.
The Fitzmaurice Flying School was opened in Baldonnel in February 1996 and in April the restaurant in the Kingswood County House Hotel was named after the aviator.
In 1998, for the 70th anniversary of the famous flight, a short film was made profiling the life of Fitzmaurice with dramatic reconstruction of the flight.
An Post
(; literally 'The Post') is the state-owned provider of postal services in Ireland. An Post provides a "universal postal service" to all parts of the country as a member of the Universal Postal Union. Services provided include letter post, p ...
issued a postage stamp commemorating Fitzmaurice as part of a series of four stamps of Irish aviation pioneers in the same year
when his daughter, Patricia, unveiled a bronze bust of Fitzmaurice in the foyer of
Portlaoise
Portlaoise ( ), or Port Laoise (), is the county town of County Laois, Ireland. It is located in the Midland Region, Ireland, South Midlands in the province of Leinster. The 2016 census shows that the town's population increased by 9.5% to 22,050 ...
County Hall. Also in 1998,
Dublin County Council
Dublin County Council ( ga, Comhairle Contae Bhaile Átha Cliath) was a local authority for the administrative county of County Dublin in Ireland.
History
The county council was established by the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898. Its headquart ...
named the new
link road between
Saggart and
Rathcoole, two villages that are close to the Irish Air Corps headquarters at Baldonnel, as Fitzmaurice Road.
See also
*
List of people on stamps of Ireland
This is a list of people on stamps of Ireland, including the years when they appeared on a stamp.
Because no Irish stamps were designed prior to 1929, the first Irish stamps issued by the Provisional Government of Ireland were the then-current B ...
*
P. A. Ó Síocháin
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fitzmaurice, James
1898 births
1965 deaths
Aviators from Dublin (city)
Aviation pioneers
17th Lancers soldiers
Queen's Royal Regiment soldiers
Royal Air Force officers
People from Portlaoise
Burials at Glasnevin Cemetery
British Army personnel of World War I
King's Regiment (Liverpool) officers
Irish Air Corps personnel
Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)
Royal Air Force personnel of World War I
Military personnel from Dublin (city)