Martin Donisthorpe Armstrong (2 October 1882 – 24 February 1974) was an English writer and poet, known for his stories. Armstrong was born in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

, and educated at

Charterhouse Charterhouse may refer to: * Charterhouse (monastery), of the Carthusian religious order Charterhouse may also refer to: Places * The Charterhouse, Coventry, a former monastery * Charterhouse School, an English public school in Surrey London ...

and

Pembroke College, Cambridge Pembroke College (officially "The Master, Fellows and Scholars of the College or Hall of Valence-Mary") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college is the third-oldest college of the university and has over 700 ...

. During

World War I 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 volunteered with the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

and served in France as a

Private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

in the

Artists' Rifles The 21 Special Air Service Regiment (Artists) (Reserve), historically known as The Artists Rifles is a regiment of the Army Reserve. Its name is abbreviated to 21 SAS(R). Raised in London in 1859 as a volunteer light infantry unit, the regimen ...

. He was commissioned into the 8th Battalion

Middlesex Regiment The Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1966. The regiment was formed, as the Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment), in 1881 as part of the Childers Re ...

, T.F. in 1915 and promoted to the rank of

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

in 1916.Catalogue of the

Imperial War Museum Imperial War Museums (IWM) is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military ...

, entry for 'Thirty New Poems' detailing Armstrong's military career. He was included in the final ''

Georgian Poetry Georgian Poetry refers to a series of anthologies showcasing the work of a school of English poetry that established itself during the early years of the reign of King George V of the United Kingdom. The Georgian poets were, by the strictest ...

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

. He married in 1929 Canadian writer Jessie McDonald after she had divorced

Conrad Aiken Conrad Potter Aiken (August 5, 1889 – August 17, 1973) was an American writer and poet, honored with a Pulitzer Prize and a National Book Award, and was United States Poet Laureate from 1950 to 1952. His published works include poetry, short st ...

, making Armstrong the stepfather of the young

Joan Aiken Joan Delano Aiken (4 September 1924 – 4 January 2004) was an English writer specialising in supernatural fiction and children's alternative history novels. In 1999 she was awarded an MBE for her services to children's literature. For ''The ...

. He appears in disguised form as a character in Conrad Aiken's ''Ushant''.

Works

*''Exodus'' (1912) poems *''Thirty New Poems'' (1918) *''Lady Hester Stanhope'' (1920) biography *''The Buzzards and Other Poem''s (1921) *''The Puppet Show'' (1922) stories *''Jeremy Taylor, A selection from his works'' (1923) editor *''The Foster-Mother'' (n.d.) *''The Bazaar and Other Stories'' (1924) *''The Goat and Compasses'' (1925) novel *''Desert, a Legend'' (1926) novel *''The Stepson'' (1927) novel ublished in the U.S. as ''The Water is Wide''*''Sir Pompey and Madame Juno'' (1927) stories *''Saint Hercules and Other Stories'' (1927), Paul Nash illustrator *''St. Christopher's Day'' (1928) novel *''Portrait of the Misses Harlowe'' (1928) story *''The Three-Cornered Hat'' (1928) translation *''Laughing'' (1928) essay *''The Sleeping Fury'' (1929) novel *''The Bird-catcher and other poems'' (1929) *''The Fiery Dive and Other Stories'' (1929) *''Adrian Glynde, A Novel'' (1930) *''Collected Poems'' (1931) *''Blind Man's Mark'' (1931) *''The Paintbox'', "How and Why" Series (1931) *''The Romantic Adventures of Mr. Darby and of Sarah his Wife'' (1931) novel *''The Fothergill Omnibus'' (1931) anthology *''Lover's Leap'' (1932) *''Fifty-four Conceits: A Collection of Epigrams and Epitaphs Serious and Comic'' (1933) *''General Buntop's Miracle and Other Stories'' (1934) *''The Major Pleasures of Life'' (1934) an Anthology selected and arranged by Armstrong *''Venus Over Lannery'' (1936) novel *''A Case of Conscience and Other Tale''s (1937) *''Spanish Circus: Charles IV of Spain'' (1937) *''The Snake in the Grass'' (1938) novel *''Victorian Peepshow'' (1938) autobiography *''Simplicity Jones and Other Stories'' (1940) *''Chichester Concert'' (1944) ode *''George Borrow'' (1950) *''Selected Stories'' (1951) *''The Crumb for the Bird'' (1970)

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, Martin 1882 births 1974 deaths People educated at Charterhouse School Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge Artists' Rifles soldiers Middlesex Regiment officers British Army personnel of World War I English male short story writers English short story writers English male poets 20th-century English poets 20th-century British short story writers 20th-century English male writers