Charles Close
Encyclopedia
Colonel Sir Charles Frederick Arden-Close, KBE
CB
CMG
FRS (10 August 1865 – 19 December 1952) was a British geographer
and surveyor
, he was Director General
of the Ordnance Survey
from 1911 to 1922. His insistence on attention to detail saw the improvement of many attitudes and methods at the Ordnance Survey, his planning saw the production of many of maps now viewed as pinnacles in the classic period of map making. He was born Charles Frederick Close and changed his surname to Arden-Close in 1938 so as to comply with a bequest.
He was born in Jersey
, the eldest of the eleven children of Major-General Frederick Close (1830–1899) and his second wife Lydia Ann Stevens. He attended, and excelled at mathematics
at, the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich
where military engineer
ing and artillery
were taught. After receiving his commission in the Royal Engineers
in 1884 he saw service in the School of Military Engineering
at Chatham
, Gibraltar
and India
.
In 1889 Close was posted to the survey of India
where he carried out topographic work in Burma and triangulation
in Mandalay
. A further posting to eastern Nigeria
where he was to survey the border with the German Cameroons
. After appointment to the Ordnance Survey he carried out much work in central, eastern and southern Africa. After leading a small surveying unit in the Second Boer War
he returned in 1902 to become chief instructor of surveying at the Chatham military academy. His Text Book of Topographical and Geographical Surveying published in 1905 became the standard textbook on the subject.
In 1911 Close was appointed Director General of the Ordnance Survey, a post he held until 1922. He introduced more rigorous scientific methods at the Ordnance Survey and proceeded with a second geodetic
levelling of the United Kingdom. He was intent on producing one-inch maps (Scale
= 1:63,360 or 1 inch = 1 mile) of revolutionary appearance, the first of these for Killarney
district (Ireland was then part of the UK) used colour printing and precise printing methods and was a was admired by all. Because of the high cost of production Close had to compromise his aims and a simpler style was adopted, this design set the standard for subsequent one-inch series.
Charles Close married late in 1913 and had two sons and a daughter. He was knighted
in 1918, in recognition of the Ordnance Survey's efforts during World War I during which over 30 million maps were produced. He was elected FRS in 1919. Upon retirement in 1922 he became secretary of the International Geographical Congress.
Close changed his surname to Arden-Close by deed pole in August 1938. He died in Winchester
registration district of Hampshire on 19 December 1952
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
CB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
CMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
FRS (10 August 1865 – 19 December 1952) was a British geographer
Geographer
A geographer is a scholar whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society.Although geographers are historically known as people who make maps, map making is actually the field of study of cartography, a subset of geography...
and surveyor
Surveying
See Also: Public Land Survey SystemSurveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional position of points and the distances and angles between them...
, he was Director General
Director-general
The term director-general is a title given the highest executive officer within a governmental, statutory, NGO, third sector or not-for-profit institution.-European Union:...
of the Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey
Ordnance Survey , an executive agency and non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom, is the national mapping agency for Great Britain, producing maps of Great Britain , and one of the world's largest producers of maps.The name reflects its creation together with...
from 1911 to 1922. His insistence on attention to detail saw the improvement of many attitudes and methods at the Ordnance Survey, his planning saw the production of many of maps now viewed as pinnacles in the classic period of map making. He was born Charles Frederick Close and changed his surname to Arden-Close in 1938 so as to comply with a bequest.
He was born in Jersey
Jersey
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and...
, the eldest of the eleven children of Major-General Frederick Close (1830–1899) and his second wife Lydia Ann Stevens. He attended, and excelled at mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
at, the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich
Woolwich
Woolwich is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.Woolwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created...
where military engineer
Military engineer
In military science, engineering refers to the practice of designing, building, maintaining and dismantling military works, including offensive, defensive and logistical structures, to shape the physical operating environment in war...
ing and artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
were taught. After receiving his commission in the Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
in 1884 he saw service in the School of Military Engineering
Royal School of Military Engineering
The Royal School of Military Engineering is the main training establishment for the British Army's Royal Engineers. After they have successfully completed their Phase 1 - Basic Soldier Training, members of the Corps of Royal Engineers attend 3 RSME, at Minley for Phase 2a - Combat Engineering...
at Chatham
Chatham, Medway
Chatham is one of the Medway towns located within the Medway unitary authority, in North Kent, in South East England.Although the dockyard has long been closed and is now being redeveloped into a business and residential community as well as a museum featuring the famous submarine, HMS Ocelot,...
, Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
and India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
In 1889 Close was posted to the survey of India
Survey of India
The Survey of India is India's central engineering agency in charge of mapping and surveying. Set up in 1767 to help consolidate the territories of the British East India Company, it is one of the oldest Engineering Departments of the Government of India...
where he carried out topographic work in Burma and triangulation
Triangulation
In trigonometry and geometry, triangulation is the process of determining the location of a point by measuring angles to it from known points at either end of a fixed baseline, rather than measuring distances to the point directly...
in Mandalay
Mandalay
Mandalay is the second-largest city and the last royal capital of Burma. Located north of Yangon on the east bank of the Irrawaddy River, the city has a population of one million, and is the capital of Mandalay Region ....
. A further posting to eastern Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
where he was to survey the border with the German Cameroons
Cameroons
British Cameroons was a British Mandate territory in West Africa, now divided between Nigeria and Cameroon.The area of present-day Cameroon was claimed by Germany as a protectorate during the "Scramble for Africa" at the end of the 19th century...
. After appointment to the Ordnance Survey he carried out much work in central, eastern and southern Africa. After leading a small surveying unit in the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
he returned in 1902 to become chief instructor of surveying at the Chatham military academy. His Text Book of Topographical and Geographical Surveying published in 1905 became the standard textbook on the subject.
In 1911 Close was appointed Director General of the Ordnance Survey, a post he held until 1922. He introduced more rigorous scientific methods at the Ordnance Survey and proceeded with a second geodetic
Geodesy
Geodesy , also named geodetics, a branch of earth sciences, is the scientific discipline that deals with the measurement and representation of the Earth, including its gravitational field, in a three-dimensional time-varying space. Geodesists also study geodynamical phenomena such as crustal...
levelling of the United Kingdom. He was intent on producing one-inch maps (Scale
Scale (map)
The scale of a map is defined as the ratio of a distance on the map to the corresponding distance on the ground.If the region of the map is small enough for the curvature of the Earth to be neglected, then the scale may be taken as a constant ratio over the whole map....
= 1:63,360 or 1 inch = 1 mile) of revolutionary appearance, the first of these for Killarney
Killarney
Killarney is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is located north of the MacGillicuddy Reeks, on the northeastern shore of the Lough Lein/Leane which are part of Killarney National Park. The town and its surrounding region are home to St...
district (Ireland was then part of the UK) used colour printing and precise printing methods and was a was admired by all. Because of the high cost of production Close had to compromise his aims and a simpler style was adopted, this design set the standard for subsequent one-inch series.
Charles Close married late in 1913 and had two sons and a daughter. He was knighted
British honours system
The British honours system is a means of rewarding individuals' personal bravery, achievement, or service to the United Kingdom and the British Overseas Territories...
in 1918, in recognition of the Ordnance Survey's efforts during World War I during which over 30 million maps were produced. He was elected FRS in 1919. Upon retirement in 1922 he became secretary of the International Geographical Congress.
Close changed his surname to Arden-Close by deed pole in August 1938. He died in Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
registration district of Hampshire on 19 December 1952
Further reading
- Close, Charles, 1905, Text Book of Topographical and Geographical Surveying, London: HMSO.
- Close, Charles, 1926, The early years of the Ordnance Survey, Chatham: Institute of Royal Engineers.
- Seymour W.A., (ed), 1980, A History of the Ordnance Survey, Folkeston: Dawson, ISBN 0-7129-0979-6.
- Owen, Tim, and Pilbeam, Elaine, 1992, Ordnance Survey, map makers to Britain since 1791, Southampton: Ordnance Survey (HMSO), ISBN 0-11-701507-5 (HMSO).
External links
- Ordnance Survey - the mapping agency for Great Britain.
- The Charles Close Society for the study of Ordnance Survey maps.