Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

Lionel Hugh Branson (8 April 1879 – April 1946) was a British

magician Magician or The Magician may refer to: Performers * A practitioner of magic (supernatural) * A practitioner of magic (illusion) * Magician (fantasy), a character in a fictional fantasy context Entertainment Books * ''The Magician'', an 18th-ce ...

and officer of the

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...

Biography

Educated at

Bedford School :''Bedford School is not to be confused with Bedford Girls' School, Bedford High School, Bedford Modern School, Old Bedford School in Bedford, Texas or Bedford Academy in Bedford, Nova Scotia.'' Bedford School is a public school (English indep ...

, between 1890 and 1895, Lionel Branson was commissioned a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

from the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, into the Royal Munster Fusiliers on 11 February 1899 and was promoted lieutenant 15 September 1900. He transferred from the 2nd battalion the Royal Munster Fusiliers to the

on 17 February 1901, joining the

9th Bombay Infantry The 109th Infantry was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment traces its origins to 1768, when it was raised as the 5th Battalion, Bombay Sepoys. The regiment's first action was during the Mysore Campaign in the Third A ...

. He served with the 9th Bombay Infantry during the Waziristan operations of 1901-02 on the North West Frontier and was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

(London Gazette 8 August 1902). He transferred to the 10th Bombay Infantry (later

110th Mahratta Light Infantry The 110th Mahratta Light Infantry were an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. The regiment traces their origins to 1797, when they were raised as the 2nd Battalion, 5th (Travancore) Regiment of Bombay Native Infantry. The regiments ...

) on 30 May 1902. He was promoted

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on 11 February 1908 and made a company commander on 1 October 1910. He landed in Mesopotamia with his regiment in 1914 and was wounded in action on the 3 December 1914. He was appointed Assistant Censor (graded as a General Staff Officer, 3rd grade) from 20 December 1914 to 31 March 1915 and Assistant Censor (graded as a General Staff Officer, 2nd grade) from 1 April 1915 to 31 March 1917. He was then given a Special Appointment (graded as a General Staff Officer, 2nd grade) from 1 April 1917 to 23 October 1917. In late 1914 he founded and was the editor of The Basrah Times, a newspaper. Branson was promoted temporary

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

in July 1916 and was confirmed as major in April 1917, with seniority from 1 September 1915. He was mentioned in despatches in the London Gazette 5 April 1916, 10 May 1916 and 12 March 1918. He retired from the Indian Army on account of ill-health 22 June 1923. Branson had incorporated his magic skills into his military service. His stage magician name was Lionel Cardac. He was a member of

The Magic Circle A magic circle is a ritually defined space in a number of magical traditions. Magic circle or Magic Circle may also refer to: * Magic circle (mathematics), an arrangement of natural numbers on circles such that the sum of the numbers on each circl ...

, and devoted a whole chapter to debunking the Indian rope trick in his book ''Indian Conjuring'' (1922). He offered a large sum of money to anyone who could perform the Indian rope trick, nobody ever won the money. Branson was a debunker of spiritualism. He wrote that

mediumship Mediumship is the practice of purportedly mediating communication between familiar spirits or ghost, spirits of the dead and living human beings. Practitioners are known as "mediums" or "spirit mediums". There are different types of mediumship o ...

was the result of conjurer tricks and fraudulent phenomena.Branson, Lionel Hugh. (1953). ''A Lifetime of Deception: Reminiscences of a Magician''. Hale. p. 85 He was an author of magic books under the pen name Elbiquet. He wrote a biography of himself ''A Lifetime of Deception: Reminiscences of a Magician'' (1953).

Publications

*''A Text Book of Magic'' as Elbiquet (1913) *''Supplementary Magic'' as Elbiquet (1917)
''Indian Conjuring''
(1922) *''A Lifetime of Deception: Reminiscences of a Magician'' (1953)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Branson, L H 1879 births 1946 deaths People educated at Bedford School British magicians British sceptics British Indian Army officers Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst