Richard Armstrong (18 June 1903 – 30 May 1986) was an English writer who wrote for both adults and children. Most of his books were novels set at sea, or sea stories. For one of those, '' Sea Change'', he won the 1948 Carnegie Medal from the

Library Association The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals, since 2017 branded CILIP: The library and information association (pronounced ), is a professional body for librarians, information specialists and knowledge managers in the U ...

, recognising the year's best children's book by a

British subject The term "British subject" has several different meanings depending on the time period. Before 1949, it referred to almost all subjects of the British Empire (including the United Kingdom, Dominions, and colonies, but excluding protectorates ...

. He is also known for a biography of

Grace Darling Grace Horsley Darling (24 November 1815 – 20 October 1842) was an English lighthouse keeper's daughter. Her participation in the rescue of survivors from the shipwrecked ''Forfarshire'' in 1838 brought her national fame. The paddlesteamer ...

in which he challenges the conventional story: ''Grace Darling: Maid and Myth'' (1965). He is often described on the cover of his books as "author and mariner".

Biography

Ralph Richard Armstrong was born in Walbottle,

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 ...

, Northumberland on 18 June 1903. He was a blacksmith's son who left school at thirteen to work in a

Tyneside Tyneside is a built-up area across the banks of the River Tyne in northern England. Residents of the area are commonly referred to as Geordies. The whole area is surrounded by the North East Green Belt. The population of Tyneside as publishe ...

steelworks A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel. It may be an integrated steel works carrying out all steps of steelmaking from smelting iron ore to rolled product, but may also be a plant where steel semi-finis ...

. He spent three years there, starting as an errand boy and progressing to greaser, labourer and crane driver. His book ''Sabotage at the Forge'' (1946), set in a steelworks, is highly regarded for its accurate and effective description of a boy's experience in such an environment. Similarly, ''The Whinstone Drift'' (1951) is convincingly set against a Northumberland coal-mining background. After the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

he went to sea in the Merchant Service and for seventeen years sailed in many types of vessel, gaining the experience which he later put to use in his books about seafaring. In 1937 he left the Merchant Service and pursued various occupations before concentrating on writing. His first published book was ''The Mystery of Obadiah'' (1943), an adventure novel set in Tynedale and featuring Thias Stringer, a 13-year-old boy. ''Sabotage at the Forge'' was its sequel, featuring Stringer at the steelworks. Later he drew on his wide-ranging experiences at sea, writing about, for example, cargo steamers (''Passage Home''), oil tankers (''No Time for Tankers''), and whalers (''The Secret Sea''). Armstrong had a son, John, to whom he dedicated his book ''Sailor's Luck''. He died in 1986.

Selected works

;Adult novels * ''The Northern Maid'' (1947) *''Passage Home'' (1952) - Film 1955 *''Sailor's Luck'' (1959) ;Children's novels * ''The Mystery of Obadiah'' (1943) * ''Sabotage at the Forge'' (1946) * '' Sea Change'' (1948) * ''The Whinstone Drift'' (1951) *''Danger Rock'' (1955); U.S. title, ''Cold Hazard'' * ''The Lost Ship'' (1956) *''No Time for Tankers'' (1959) *''The Lame Duck'' (1961) * ''Island Odyssey'' (1963) *''The Secret Sea'' (1966) *''The Mutineers'' (1968) * ''The Albatross'' (1970) ;Nonfiction *''Grace Darling: Maid and Myth'' (1965) * ''A History of Seafaring'' (London: Benn, 1967–69) — three 128-page volumes with maps and diagrams : Volume 1: ''The Early Mariners'' : Volume 2: ''The Discoverers'' : Volume 3: ''The Merchantmen'' *''Themselves Alone: The story of men in empty places'' (1972) *''Powered Ships'' (1975)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, Richard 1903 births 1986 deaths English children's writers Carnegie Medal in Literature winners Maritime writers Writers from Newcastle upon Tyne Crane operators 20th-century English novelists British Merchant Navy personnel

Biography

Selected works

See also

References