Sir Philip Montefiore Magnus-Allcroft, 2nd Baronet,

CBE 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 ...

JP (8 February 1906 – 21 December 1988), was a British

biographer Biographers are authors who write an account of another person's life, while autobiographers are authors who write their own biography. Biographers Countries of working life: Ab=Arabia, AG=Ancient Greece, Al=Australia, Am=Armenian, AR=Ancient Rome ...

. He wrote under the name Philip Magnus. Magnus-Allcroft was born in

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 ...

, the son of

Laurie Magnus Laurie Magnus (5 August 1872 – 28 April 1933) was an English author, journalist, and publisher. Biography Magnus was born in London to Jewish parents Katie and Sir Philip Magnus. He was educated at St Paul's School, and graduated with a Mas ...

and Dora Marian Spielmann, the grandson of the educationalist and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

politician

Sir Philip Magnus, 1st Baronet Sir Philip Magnus, 1st Baronet (7 October 1842 – 29 August 1933) was a British educational reformer and politician, who represented the London University constituency as a Unionist Member of Parliament from 1906 to 1922. He had previously ...

. He was a member of a notable Jewish family; his paternal grandmother was the historian Katie Emmanuel and his maternal grandmother was Emily Sebag-

Montefiore Montefiore, Montifiore, and Montefiori is a surname associated with the Montefiore family, Sephardi Jews who were diplomats and bankers all over Europe and who originated from the Iberian Peninsula, namely Spain and Portugal, and also France, Morocc ...

. Educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

and

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...

, Magnus succeeded to the title of 2nd Baronet Magnus in 1933. During the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

he was a captain in the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

and the Intelligence Corps, rising to the rank of major. He married Jewell Allcroft in 1943, and in 1951 added the name of Allcroft to his own by deed poll. In later years, as well as writing, he served as a justice of the peace,

Shropshire County Council Shropshire County Council was the county council of the non-metropolitan county of Shropshire in England. History The Council came into its powers under the Local Government Act 1888 on 1 April 1889 and was known as Salop County Council from for ...

lor, chairman of its

planning committee A planning committee in the United Kingdom is a committee of local authority councillors that sit as the local planning authority to determine planning applications. Advice is usually given to the committee by planning officers who provide a reco ...

and the records committee, chairman of the governors of Attingham College and governor of

Ludlow Grammar School Ludlow () is a market town in Shropshire, England. The town is significant in the history of the Welsh Marches and in relation to Wales. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road which bypasses the town. The ...

. Between 1970 and 1977 he was a trustee of the National Portrait Gallery. He lived in

Stokesay Court Stokesay Court is a country house and estate in the parish of Onibury (but named after Stokesay) in Shropshire, England. Described by John Newman, in the ''Shropshire'' volume of Pevsner's Buildings of England, as "the most grandiloquent Vi ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. He died on 21 December 1988, aged 82. As he and his wife left no children, the title passed to his nephew, Laurence Henry Philip Magnus.

Publications

Magnus-Allcroft (under pen-name Philip Magnus) was author of several biographies: *''Edmund Burke: A Prophet of the Eighteenth Century'', 1939 *''Sir Walter Raleigh'', 1952 *''Gladstone – a biography'', 1954 *''Kitchener – portrait of an Imperialist'', 1958 *''King Edward the Seventh'', 1964

Arms

References

* *

Encyclopaedia Judaica The ''Encyclopaedia Judaica'' is a 22-volume English-language encyclopedia of the Jewish people, Judaism, and Israel. It covers diverse areas of the Jewish world and civilization, including Jewish history of all eras, culture, holidays, langu ...

, art. "Magnus" *Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990. * 1906 births 1988 deaths British Jews People educated at Westminster School, London Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford Jewish historians Magnus, Sir Philip, 2nd Baronet 20th-century English historians Royal Artillery officers Intelligence Corps officers British Army personnel of World War II English justices of the peace Councillors in Shropshire {{UK-writer-stub