Advertisement

Terence Hanbury “T.H.” White

Advertisement

Terence Hanbury “T.H.” White Famous memorial

Birth
Mumbai (Bombay), Maharashtra, India
Death
17 Jan 1964 (aged 57)
Piraeus, Regional unit of Piraeus, Attica, Greece
Burial
Athens, Regional unit of Athens, Attica, Greece Add to Map
Memorial ID
View Source
Author. Born in Bombay, India, his father was a District Superintendent of Police and his mother the daughter of a judge. After the birth of their only child, she refused her husband any further relations, and the marriage was to end in divorce. In later years, T.H. White was to blame his mother for his own alcoholism and homosexuality. Known usually as "Tim" because Timothy White's was a well-known chain of chemist's shops, he was taken to England in 1911. He was educated at Cheltenham and at Queens' College, Cambridge, where he took a First-Class Honours degree in English. After graduation, he became the head of the department of English at Stowe School in Buckinghamshire; but, after four years, he resigned to live in a cottage on the school estate, where he devoted himself to writing and falconry. Here he wrote most of the tetralogy for which he is best remembered - "The Once and Future King", based on the legend of King Arthur. In February 1939, he moved to Doolistown in County Meath, and he remained in Ireland throughout the War. He attempted to join the Royal Air Force, but was refused. In 1945, he moved to Alderney in the Channel Islands (3 Connaught Square in the only town, St. Anne's.) His Arthurian books were made into a cartoon film, "The Sword in the Stone", by Disney, and into a musical, "Camelot", by Lerner and Loewe. The latter was itself filmed, with Richard Harris and Vanessa Redgrave. In 1961, T.H. White made his first visit to the United States, to see the musical with Richard Burton and Julie Andrews. Three years later, he returned for a lecture tour. He sailed back to Europe on the "S.S. Exeter", on which he visited Barcelona, Naples, Egypt and the Lebanon. However, on the morning on which the ship docked at Piraeus, he was discovered dead in Room 109. The ship's surgeon wrote : "It is my opinion that the likely cause of death was acute coronary heart disease." The inscription on his grave reads "Author who, from a troubled heart, delighted others, loving and praising this life."
Author. Born in Bombay, India, his father was a District Superintendent of Police and his mother the daughter of a judge. After the birth of their only child, she refused her husband any further relations, and the marriage was to end in divorce. In later years, T.H. White was to blame his mother for his own alcoholism and homosexuality. Known usually as "Tim" because Timothy White's was a well-known chain of chemist's shops, he was taken to England in 1911. He was educated at Cheltenham and at Queens' College, Cambridge, where he took a First-Class Honours degree in English. After graduation, he became the head of the department of English at Stowe School in Buckinghamshire; but, after four years, he resigned to live in a cottage on the school estate, where he devoted himself to writing and falconry. Here he wrote most of the tetralogy for which he is best remembered - "The Once and Future King", based on the legend of King Arthur. In February 1939, he moved to Doolistown in County Meath, and he remained in Ireland throughout the War. He attempted to join the Royal Air Force, but was refused. In 1945, he moved to Alderney in the Channel Islands (3 Connaught Square in the only town, St. Anne's.) His Arthurian books were made into a cartoon film, "The Sword in the Stone", by Disney, and into a musical, "Camelot", by Lerner and Loewe. The latter was itself filmed, with Richard Harris and Vanessa Redgrave. In 1961, T.H. White made his first visit to the United States, to see the musical with Richard Burton and Julie Andrews. Three years later, he returned for a lecture tour. He sailed back to Europe on the "S.S. Exeter", on which he visited Barcelona, Naples, Egypt and the Lebanon. However, on the morning on which the ship docked at Piraeus, he was discovered dead in Room 109. The ship's surgeon wrote : "It is my opinion that the likely cause of death was acute coronary heart disease." The inscription on his grave reads "Author who, from a troubled heart, delighted others, loving and praising this life."

Bio by: Iain MacFarlaine


Advertisement

Advertisement

How famous was Terence Hanbury “T.H.” White ?

Current rating: 3.86842 out of 5 stars

38 votes

Sign-in to cast your vote.

  • Maintained by: Find a Grave
  • Originally Created by: Iain MacFarlaine
  • Added: May 20, 2003
  • Find a Grave Memorial ID:
  • Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7471221/terence_hanbury-white: accessed ), memorial page for Terence Hanbury “T.H.” White (29 May 1906–17 Jan 1964), Find a Grave Memorial ID 7471221, citing Athens First Cemetery, Athens, Regional unit of Athens, Attica, Greece; Maintained by Find a Grave.