Aubrey de Selincourt
Encyclopedia
Aubrey de Sélincourt was an English writer, classical scholar and translator. Educated at the Dragon School
and Rugby School
, he won an open classical scholarship to University College, Oxford
. He is best known for his translations (all for Penguin Classics) of Livy
's The Early History of Rome (Books I to V) and The War with Hannibal (Books XXI to XXX), Herodotus
's Histories
, and Arrian
's The Campaigns of Alexander.
De Sélincourt served with the North Staffordshire Regiment
at Gallipoli
and later as a pilot in 25 Squadron
RFC
. On 28 May 1917, he was shot down, while flying an FE2d, by Werner Voss
, becoming the latter's 31st victory and a prisoner of war for the remainder of the First World War (Diggens 2003:57).
Aubrey de Sélincourt taught as a master at the Dragon School
, Oxford
, then as Headmaster at Clayesmore School
, Dorset
, He also wrote for the Manchester Guardian and the English Review.
After retiring in 1947, de Sélincourt settled in the Isle of Wight
, and devoted himself to writing. He died there in 1962.
store in London. de Sélincourt was brother-in-law to A. A. Milne
, who married his sister Dorothy. In 1919, de Sélincourt married the English poet Irene Rutherford McLeod from Croydon, Surrey. Their daughter Lesley married Christopher Robin Milne
. He had another daughter, Anne.
His uncle, Henry Fieness Speed
, was the author of 'Cruises in Small Yachts and Big Canoes', first printed in 1883. At Clayesmore, his brother Guy was Bursar. Both had sailing among their recreations and were keen historians.
Dragon School
The Dragon School is a British coeducational, preparatory school in the city of Oxford, founded in 1877 as the Oxford Preparatory School, or OPS. It is primarily known as a boarding school, although it also takes day pupils...
and Rugby School
Rugby School
Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...
, he won an open classical scholarship to University College, Oxford
University College, Oxford
.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
. He is best known for his translations (all for Penguin Classics) of Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
's The Early History of Rome (Books I to V) and The War with Hannibal (Books XXI to XXX), Herodotus
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
's Histories
Histories (Herodotus)
The Histories of Herodotus is considered one of the seminal works of history in Western literature. Written from the 450s to the 420s BC in the Ionic dialect of classical Greek, The Histories serves as a record of the ancient traditions, politics, geography, and clashes of various cultures that...
, and Arrian
Arrian
Lucius Flavius Arrianus 'Xenophon , known in English as Arrian , and Arrian of Nicomedia, was a Roman historian, public servant, a military commander and a philosopher of the 2nd-century Roman period...
's The Campaigns of Alexander.
De Sélincourt served with the North Staffordshire Regiment
North Staffordshire Regiment
The North Staffordshire Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army, which was in existence between 1881 and 1959. It can date its lineage back to 1756 with the formation of a second battalion by the 11th Regiment of Foot, which shortly after became the 64th Regiment of Foot...
at Gallipoli
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
and later as a pilot in 25 Squadron
No. XXV Squadron RAF
No. 25 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. Until April 2008 the squadron operated the Panavia Tornado F3, from RAF Leeming.-The first years:...
RFC
Royal Flying Corps
The Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...
. On 28 May 1917, he was shot down, while flying an FE2d, by Werner Voss
Werner Voss
Werner Voss was a World War I German flying ace, a friend and rival of the famous Red Baron, Manfred von Richthofen....
, becoming the latter's 31st victory and a prisoner of war for the remainder of the First World War (Diggens 2003:57).
Aubrey de Sélincourt taught as a master at the Dragon School
Dragon School
The Dragon School is a British coeducational, preparatory school in the city of Oxford, founded in 1877 as the Oxford Preparatory School, or OPS. It is primarily known as a boarding school, although it also takes day pupils...
, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, then as Headmaster at Clayesmore School
Clayesmore School
Clayesmore School is an independent school for boys and girls of the English public school tradition in the village of Iwerne Minster, Dorset, England. It is a member of The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference ....
, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, He also wrote for the Manchester Guardian and the English Review.
After retiring in 1947, de Sélincourt settled in the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
, and devoted himself to writing. He died there in 1962.
Family
De Sélincourt's father Martin was a successful businessman, owning the Swan & EdgarSwan & Edgar
Swan & Edgar Ltd was a department store, located at Piccadilly Circus, London. It was established in the early 19th century. The premises were rebuilt and integrated in 1910-20 to a design by Sir Reginald Blomfield and became a popular place of assignation for Londoners for many generations...
store in London. de Sélincourt was brother-in-law to A. A. Milne
A. A. Milne
Alan Alexander Milne was an English author, best known for his books about the teddy bear Winnie-the-Pooh and for various children's poems. Milne was a noted writer, primarily as a playwright, before the huge success of Pooh overshadowed all his previous work.-Biography:A. A...
, who married his sister Dorothy. In 1919, de Sélincourt married the English poet Irene Rutherford McLeod from Croydon, Surrey. Their daughter Lesley married Christopher Robin Milne
Christopher Robin Milne
Christopher Robin Milne was the son of author A. A. Milne. As a child, he was the basis of the character Christopher Robin in his father's Winnie-the-Pooh stories and in two books of poems.-Early life:...
. He had another daughter, Anne.
His uncle, Henry Fieness Speed
Luke & co
Luke & co was a boatbuilding firm, established in 1829 in Limehouse near London. They moved to Oakbank at Itchen Ferry in 1868 and in the late 1880s settled at Hamble...
, was the author of 'Cruises in Small Yachts and Big Canoes', first printed in 1883. At Clayesmore, his brother Guy was Bursar. Both had sailing among their recreations and were keen historians.
Works
- Streams of Ocean (1923) essays
- Isle of Wight (1933)
- Family Afloat (1944)
- Six O'clock and After and Other Rhymes for Children (1945) with Irene de Sélincourt
- One More Summer (1946)
- Calicut Lends a Hand (1946)
- Dorset (1947) Vision of England series
- Micky (1947)
- Three Green Bottles (1941)
- A Capful of Wind (1948)
- One Good Tern (1943)
- The Young Schoolmaster (1948)
- Kestrel (1949)
- Sailing: A Guide For Everyman (1949)
- The Raven's Nest (1949)
- Mr Oram's Story. The adventures of Capt. James Cook (1949)
- The Schoolmaster (1951)
- On Reading Poetry (1952)
- The Channel Shore (1953)
- Herodotus, The Histories (1954) translator
- Cat's Cradle (1955)
- Odysseus the Wanderer (1956)
- Six Great Poets: Chaucer, Pope, Wordsworth, Shelley, Tennyson, The Brownings (1956)
- Nansen (1957)
- Six Great Englishmen: Drake, Dr. Johnson, Nelson, Marlborough, Keats, Churchill (1957)
- Six Great Thinkers: Socrates, St. Augustine, Lord Bacon, Rousseau, Coleridge, John Stuart Mill (1958)
- The Early History of Rome: Books I-V of the History of Rome from Its Foundation, by Titus Livy (1960) translator
- The Book of the Sea (1961) editor
- Arrian's Life of Alexander the Great (1962) translator
- The World of Herodotus (1962)
- The War with Hannibal : Books XXI-XXX of the History of Rome from its Foundation, by Livy (1965) translator
- Six Great Playwrights (1974)