John Gordon Harvey Corrigan

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

FRAS FRAS may refer to: * Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, post-nominal letters * Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland Fellows of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland are individuals who have bee ...

(born 1942) is a former

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

soldier and historical writer and broadcaster. Corrigan was educated at the

Royal School, Armagh The Royal School, Armagh is a co-educational voluntary grammar school, founded in the 17th century, in the city of Armagh in Northern Ireland. It has a boarding department with an international intake. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Hea ...

, and the

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial officer training centre. It is located in the town of ...

. He served in 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 ...

Royal Gurkha Rifles The Royal Gurkha Rifles (RGR) is a rifle regiment of the British Army, forming part of the Brigade of Gurkhas. Unlike other regiments in the British Army, RGR soldiers are recruited from Nepal, which is neither a dependent territory of the Unite ...

, mainly in the far east, and reached the rank of major. Between 1980 and 1987 he took a break from military service, joining the

Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club The Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) is one of the oldest institutions in Hong Kong, having been founded in 1884. In 1959, it was granted a Royal Charter and renamed The Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club (). The institution reverted to its original name ...

where he was

clerk of the course A clerk of the course is an official in various types of racing. Horse racing In horse racing, the clerk of the course is the person responsible for track management and raceday preparation at a racecourse. Important tasks of the role include: ...

at the

Happy Valley Racecourse The Happy Valley Racecourse is one of the two racecourses for horse racing and is a tourist attraction in Hong Kong. It is located in Happy Valley on Hong Kong Island, surrounded by Wong Nai Chung Road and Morrison Hill Road. The capacity ...

from 1980 to 1982, and Racing Secretary from 1982 to 1987. Corrigan was awarded the MBE in 1995 His last appointment was commanding the Gurkha Centre in Hampshire. Following his retirement from the army in 1998, Corrigan became a freelance writer on military history. He also presented television documentaries, made speaking appearances and conducted tours of

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 ...

battlefields. He is an honorary

research fellow A research fellow is an academic research position at a university or a similar research institution, usually for academic staff or faculty members. A research fellow may act either as an independent investigator or under the supervision of a pr ...

of the

University of Kent , motto_lang = , mottoeng = Literal translation: 'Whom to serve is to reign'(Book of Common Prayer translation: 'whose service is perfect freedom')Graham Martin, ''From Vision to Reality: the Making of the University of Kent at Canterbury'' ...

, and the

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

, and a

teaching fellow A teaching fellow (sometimes referred to as a TF) is an individual at a higher education institution, including universities, whose role involves teaching and potentially pedagogic research. The work done by teaching fellows can vary enormously fr ...

at the

Joint Services Command and Staff College Joint Services Command and Staff College (JSCSC) is a British military academic establishment providing training and education to experienced officers of the Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force, Ministry of Defence Civil Service, and serving offic ...

. He is also a fellow of the

Royal Asiatic Society The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society (RAS), was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the en ...

, a member of the British Commission for Military History and a liveryman of the

Worshipful Company of Farriers The Worshipful Company of Farriers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The Farriers, or horseshoe makers, organised in 1356. It received a Royal Charter of incorporation in 1674. Over the years, the Company has evolved from ...

. Corrigan authored '' Mud, Blood and Poppycock'', one of the more recent histories of 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 ...

which challenges a number of popular cultural beliefs about that conflict. Among the targets for his book are the beliefs that British generalship was incompetent, blinkered and reactionary and that the military justice system was unfair. The book received a positive review from historian

Gary Sheffield Gary Antonian Sheffield (born November 18, 1968) is an American former professional baseball outfielder who played in Major League Baseball for eight teams from 1988 to 2009. He is a sports agent. For most of his career, Sheffield played right ...

. Corrigan later wrote ''Blood, Sweat and Arrogance: The Myths of Churchill's War'' in which he set out to demolish the "myths of Churchill's War". This book was criticised in a review by historian

Piers Brendon Piers Brendon (born 21 December 1940) is a British historian and writer, known for historical and biographical works. He was educated at Shrewsbury School and Magdalene College, Cambridge, where he read history. He received a Ph.D. degree for h ...

, who wrote:The Independent - Books - Piers Brendon ''A debunker debriefed'' Friday, 12 May 2006
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"his tone, occasionally sneering, often patronising and always cocksure, is particularly tiresome in someone so prone to error. He makes the elementary mistake of asserting, for example, that a Russian declaration of war against Japan "never came".

His 2010 ''The Second World War: A Military History'' received critical acclaim. " highly readable new look at the titanic struggle between nations" - The Independent. "An invaluable source of reference

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

should be savoured" - Daily Express. "Bold, incisive, and insightful....A first class read" - Michael Jones, author of 'The Retreat: Hitler's First Defeat' His newest work is about the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French Crown, ...

Published works

*''A Great and Glorious Adventure: A History of the Hundred Years War and the Birth of Renaissance England'', 2014 () *''The Second World War: A Military History'', 2010 () *''Mud, Blood and Poppycock'', 2003 () *''Blood, Sweat and Arrogance: The Myths of Churchill's War'', 2006 () *''Loos 1915: The Unwanted Battle'' () *''Sepoys in the Trenches – The Indian Corps on the Western Front 1914–15'' (article) () *''Wellington – a Military Life'' () *''Waterloo – A new history of the battle and its armies''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Corrigan, Gordon 1942 births Living people People educated at The Royal School, Armagh Historians of World War I Royal Gurkha Rifles officers Members of the Order of the British Empire British military writers British military historians Graduates of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst Fellows of the Royal Asiatic Society British Army officers