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Gilbert Murray

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70-476: George Gilbert Aimé Murray OM FBA (2 January 1866 – 20 May 1957) was an Australian-born British classical scholar and public intellectual , with connections in many spheres. He was an outstanding scholar of the language and culture of Ancient Greece , perhaps the leading authority in the first half of the twentieth century. He is the basis for the character of Adolphus Cusins in his friend George Bernard Shaw 's play Major Barbara , and also appears as

140-444: A British audience, due to its depiction of incest . Murray was drawn into the public debate on censorship that came to a head in 1907 and was pushed by William Archer, whom he knew well from Glasgow, George Bernard Shaw , and others such as John Galsworthy , J. M. Barrie and Edward Garnett . A petition was taken to Herbert Gladstone , then Home Secretary, early in 1908. He was one of the scholars associated with Jane Harrison in

210-615: A League delegate for South Africa. He was an influential member of the International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation of the League from 1922 to 1939, being its president from 1928 to 1939. Later he was a major influence in the setting-up of Oxfam and of the Students' International Union (later the Institute of World Affairs ). For a brief period Murray became closely involved with

280-616: A President of the British Ethical Union (later known as the British Humanist Association). He joined the Rationalist Press Association , and in 1952 was a delegate to the inaugural World Humanist Congress which founded Humanists International . He wrote and broadcast extensively on religion (Greek, Stoic and Christian); and wrote several books dealing with his version of humanism, which he espoused as

350-664: A Roman Catholic". Stephen said that his sister 'would not dream of making a public claim that he would re-enter the Church.' Murray did not raise his own children to be religious. His great-granddaughter, Polly Toynbee , followed in his footsteps, becoming President of the British Humanist Association from 2009 to 2012. He refused a knighthood in 1912, though he was appointed to the Order of Merit in 1941. He received honorary degrees from Glasgow, Birmingham, and Oxford. He gave

420-522: A deep interest in psychical research . Between 1916 and 1924, he conducted 236 experiments into telepathy and reported 36% as successful, although it was suggested that the results could be explained by hyperaesthesia as he could hear what was being said by the sender. Murray was the President of the Society for Psychical Research in 1915–1916 and 1952. Murray identified as a humanist , and even served as

490-412: A gallery. Cecil and Clayton yielded management of the theatre to Mrs. John Wood and Arthur Chudleigh in 1887, although Cecil continued acting in their company (and others) until 1895. The first production in the new building was a play by Sydney Grundy titled Mamma , starring Mrs. John Wood and John Hare, with Arthur Cecil and Eric Lewis . By the end of the century, the theatre was again called

560-663: A girls' school in Sydney for a few years. Then, in 1877, Agnes emigrated with Gilbert to the UK, where she died in 1891. Murray was educated at Merchant Taylors' School and St John's College, Oxford , where he took his B.A. in 1886 in Greats with first-class honours with congratulations. He distinguished himself in writing both Greek and Latin, winning the Gaisford Prize for Greek Prose Composition, The Gaisford Prize for Greek Verse Composition, and

630-495: A modern blood libel drawing on old antisemitic myths. Michael Billington in The Guardian described the play as "a heartfelt lamentation for the future generations" and contended that the play, though controversial, is not antisemitic. Another Guardian writer viewed Seven Jewish Children as historically inaccurate and harshly critical of Jews. The Royal Court denied the accusations, saying: "In keeping with its philosophy,

700-540: A naturalistic philosophy, contrasted with Christianity and revealed religion in general. He was President of the British Ethical Union (now Humanists UK ) from 1929 to 1930. A phrase from his 1910 lectures Four Stages of Greek Religion enjoyed public prominence: the "failure of nerve" of the Hellenistic world , of which a turn to irrationalism was symptomatic. Murray was baptised as a Roman Catholic; his father

770-723: A neck ribbon (as a necklet ), while women wear theirs on a ribbon bow pinned to the left shoulder, and aides-de-camp may wear the insignia on their aiguillettes . Since 1991, the insignia must be returned upon the recipient's death. number appointment There have been no honorary members of the Order of Merit since the death of the last such member, Nelson Mandela , in December 2013. Secretary and Registrar : Robin Janvrin, Baron Janvrin GCB , GCVO , QSO , PC As

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840-565: A number of moves that might have taken him into parliamentary politics, initially by tentative thoughts about standing in elections during the 1890s. In 1901-2 he was in close contact with the Independent Labour Party . But the overall effect of the Second Boer War was to drive him back into the academic career he had put on hold in 1898, resigning his Glasgow chair (effective from April 1899). He stood five times unsuccessfully for

910-564: A pacifist line himself, broke an old friendship with Bertrand Russell early in the war, and supported British intervention in the Suez Crisis . He was also involved as an internationalist in the League of Nations . He was a vice-president of the League of Nations Society from 1916, and in 1917 wrote influential articles in The Daily News . At the invitation of Jan Smuts he acted in 1921/2 as

980-399: A platform to promote his views, which were many-sided but Whig -liberal. In 1912 he wrote an introduction to The Great Analysis: A Plea for a Rational World-Order , by his friend William Archer. During World War I he became a pamphleteer, putting a reasoned war case. He also defended C. K. Ogden against criticism, and took a public interest in conscientious objection . Murray never took

1050-482: A play the actor effectively commissioned from the playwright. The artistic board of the ESC initially rejected the play, although they soon reversed that decision. Two members of the board opposed The Entertainer : Duncan disliked Osborne's work, according to the biographer John Heilpern , while Lewenstein, a former Communist , did not want one of the theatre's new plays to be overwhelmed by its star and did not think much of

1120-551: A silver nine-pointed breast star with the image of Minerva at its centre, along with a "straw-coloured" sash worn across the chest from the right shoulder. The motto of the Order would be "Omnia posthabita scientiae" (in Latin , 'Everything comes after science'). Once the King's proposal was made public, however, arguments within intellectual circles over who would be most deserving of the new order grew so heated that George ultimately dropped

1190-499: A word, studies the art of tragedy in the light of ritual forms, and thus, throws a really new light onto Aristotle's Poetics . Murray's openly expressed pro- Home Rule and anti-imperialist views, combined with his failure to support the cause of retaining compulsory Greek, antagonised his colleagues at Oxford University , who were mostly Conservative and Unionist . In 1910, he recalled, only New College , Balliol College and Jesus College continued to send pupils to his lectures;

1260-575: Is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms , recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII , admission into the order remains the personal gift of its Sovereign—currently Edward VII's great-great-grandson Charles III —and is restricted to a maximum of 24 living recipients from the Commonwealth realms, plus honorary members. While all members are awarded

1330-564: The Dominions of the British Empire became independent countries within the empire, equal in status to the UK, the Order of Merit continued as an honour open to all these realms and, in many, became a part of their newly developing national honours systems. The order's statutes were amended in 1935 to include members of the Royal Air Force and, in 1969, the definition of honorary recipients

1400-749: The Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia , stated that the Order of Merit was the highest civilian award for merit a Canadian could receive. Some orders of precedence are as follows: Order of wear Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre , at different times known as the Court Theatre , the New Chelsea Theatre , and the Belgravia Theatre , is a non-commercial West End theatre in Sloane Square , London, England. In 1956 it

1470-666: The Medea , Trojan Women , and Electra (1905–1907); Iphigenia in Tauris (1910); The Rhesus (1913) were presented at the Court Theatre , in London. In the United States Granville Barker and his wife Lillah McCarthy gave outdoor performances of The Trojan Women and Iphigenia in Tauris at various colleges (1915). The translation of Œdipus Rex was a commission from W. B. Yeats . Until 1912 this could not have been staged for

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1540-527: The Royal Academy of Arts , advised against the new order, primarily because of its selection process. It was Victoria's son Edward VII who eventually founded the Order of Merit on 26 June 1902 (the date for which his coronation had been originally scheduled ) as a means to acknowledge "exceptionally meritorious service in Our Navy and Our Army, or who may have rendered exceptionally meritorious service towards

1610-573: The University of Oxford constituency between 1919 and 1929. He continued support for the Asquith faction of Liberals, after the party was split again by Lloyd George . During the 1930s the Liberals as a party were crushed electorally, but Liberal thinkers continued to write; Murray was one of the signatory Next Five Years Group formed around Clifford Allen . As Regius Professor and literary figure, he had

1680-578: The modernist poets of the rising generation. The staging of Athenian drama in English did have its own cultural impact. He had earlier experimented with his own prose dramas, without much success. Over time he worked through almost the entire canon of Athenian dramas ( Aeschylus , Sophocles , Euripides in tragedy; Aristophanes in comedy). From Euripides , the Hippolytus and The Bacchae (together with The Frogs of Aristophanes ; first edition, 1902);

1750-451: The myth-ritual school of mythography . They met first in 1900. He wrote an appendix on the Orphic tablets for her 1903 book Prolegomena ; he later contributed to her Themis (1912). Francis Fergusson wrote In general the ritual had its agon, or sacred combat, between the old King, or god or hero, and the new, corresponding to the agons in the tragedies, and the clear "purpose" moment of

1820-474: The "Royal Court Theatre". Harley Granville-Barker managed the theatre for the first few years of the 20th century, and George Bernard Shaw 's plays were produced at the New Court for a period. It ceased to be used as a theatre in 1932, but was used as a cinema from 1935 to 1940, until World War II bomb damage closed it. After the war, the interior was reconstructed as a stage theatre by Robert Cromie, and

1890-622: The 1914 Shakespeare Lecture of the British Academy. He gave the 1941 Andrew Lang Lecture . Minor planet 941 Murray is named after him, for his support of Austria after World War I . Murray's father was Sir Terence Aubrey Murray and his brother Sir Hubert Murray . Murray's mother, Agnes Ann Murray (née Edwards), was a cousin of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert . Murray married Lady Mary Henrietta Howard (1865–1956), daughter of George Howard, 9th Earl of Carlisle . When her mother Rosalind Howard, Countess of Carlisle died in 1921, Castle Howard

1960-773: The 1990s the Royal Court has placed an emphasis on the development and production of international plays. By 1993, the British Council had begun its support of the International Residency programme (which started in 1989 as the Royal Court International Summer School), and more recently the Genesis Foundation has also supported the production of international plays. The theatre received a 1999 International Theatre Institute award. In May 2008,

2030-523: The 20th century the stalls and understage often flooded. By the early 1990s the building had deteriorated dangerously, and the theatre was threatened with closure in 1995. The Royal Court received a grant of £16.2 million from the National Lottery and the Arts Council for redevelopment, and beginning in 1996, under the artistic directorship of Stephen Daldry , it was completely rebuilt, except for

2100-457: The 400-seat proscenium arch Theatre Downstairs, the much smaller studio Theatre Upstairs was opened in 1969, at the time a 63-seat facility. The Rocky Horror Show premiered there in 1973. The theatre was Grade II listed in June 1972. Though the main auditorium and the façade were attractive, the remainder of the building provided poor facilities for both audience and performers, and throughout

2170-547: The Chancellor’s Prize for Latin Composition. From 1889 to 1899, Murray was Professor of Greek at the University of Glasgow . There was a break in his academic career from 1899 to 1905, when he returned to Oxford; he interested himself in dramatic and political writing. After 1908 he was Regius Professor of Greek at the University of Oxford . In the same year he invited Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorff to Oxford, where

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2240-566: The ESC, while Poke was its Honorary Secretary. The ESC purchased the Royal Court in 1956 and began to produce adventurous new and foreign works, together with some classical revivals. The new company's third production in 1956, John Osborne 's Look Back in Anger , was a play by one of the Angry Young Men . The director was Tony Richardson . Osborne followed Look Back in Anger with The Entertainer , starring Laurence Olivier as Archie Rice,

2310-653: The English Stage Company presented The Ugly One by Marius von Mayenburg at the "Contact International Theatre Festival" in Poland . Artistic Directors have included George Devine (1956–1965), William Gaskill (1965–1972), Lindsay Anderson and Anthony Page (1969–1972), Oscar Lewenstein (1972–1975), Nicholas Wright and Robert Kidd (1975–1977), Stuart Burge (1977–1979), Max Stafford-Clark (1979–1992), Stephen Daldry (1992–1998), Ian Rickson (1998–2006) and Dominic Cooke (2007 to 2012). Vicky Featherstone

2380-494: The LFNA was set up around Welsh Liberal MP David Davies , and then shortly the LFNA and LNS merged as the League of Nations Union . Two years later, Wells called on Murray, and Murray's New College colleague Ernest Barker , to lend their names as advisers on his The Outline of History . Their names duly appeared on the title page. Murray had to give evidence in the plagiarism case Deeks v. Wells that arose in 1925. Murray held

2450-530: The Order of Merit is open to the citizens of 15 countries, each with their own system of orders, decorations, and medals, the order's place of precedence varies from country to country. While, in the United Kingdom, the order's postnominal letters follow those of Knights and Dames Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath , membership in the Order of Merit itself gives members no place in any of the orders of precedence in

2520-425: The Order of Merit, members are entitled to use the post-nominal letters OM and are entrusted with the badge of the order. The insignia consists of a badge, which consists of a golden crown from which is suspended a red enamelled cross pattée , itself centred by a disk of blue enamel, surrounded by a laurel wreath . The obverse of the badge's central disk bears the words FOR MERIT in gold lettering, while

2590-510: The Order, having been admitted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1968, when he was 47 years old. Robin Eames , Baron Eames represented the order at the coronation of Charles III and Camilla on 6 May 2023. All citizens of the Commonwealth realms are eligible for appointment to the Order of Merit. There may be, however, only 24 living individuals in the order at any given time, not including honorary appointees, and new members are personally selected by

2660-620: The Prussian philologist delivered two lectures: Greek Historical Writing and Apollo (later, he would replicate them in Cambridge). From 1925 to 1926, he was the Charles Eliot Norton Lecturer at Harvard University . Murray is perhaps now best known for his verse translations of Greek drama , which were popular and prominent in their time. As a poet he was generally taken to be a follower of Swinburne and had little sympathy from

2730-615: The Royal Court Theatre presents a multiplicity of viewpoints." In November 2021, the theatre renamed the lead character of the play Rare Earth Mettle by Al Smith from "Hershel Fink" to "Henry Finn" following criticism of perpetuating anti-Semitic stereotypes. The Royal Court Theatre also made an apology. In 1999, the theatre was awarded the " Europe Prize Theatrical Realities ". The prize organization stated: [T]he Royal Court Theatre ... has done more than any other institution to promote new writing. Since 1956 it has premiered

2800-575: The Second World War from London to the Sands House Hotel, Brampton, Cumberland, which was converted to temperance status by Lady Rosalind, and run by Mr and Mrs James Warwick, formerly in her service, with their daughter Charlotte Elizabeth. She became an enduring friend of the boys and an unfinished letter to her was found on Gilbert's body after the accident. Member of the Order of Merit The Order of Merit (French: Ordre du Mérite )

2870-506: The United Kingdom . However, Stanley Martin says in his book The Order of Merit 1902–2002: One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour , that the Order of Merit is the pinnacle of the British honours system. Similarly, though it was not listed in the Canadian order of precedence for honours, decorations, and medals until December 2010, Christopher McCreery, an expert on Canadian honours and secretary to

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2940-575: The absence of undergraduates from Christ Church , to which his Chair was attached, was particularly noticeable. He was a lifelong supporter of the Liberal Party , lining up on the Irish Home Rule and non-imperialist sides of the splits in the party of the late nineteenth century. He supported temperance , and married into a prominent Liberal, aristocratic and temperance family, the Carlisles. He made

3010-552: The advancement of Art, Literature and Science". All modern aspects of the order were established under his direction, including the division for military figures. From the outset, prime ministers attempted to propose candidates or lobbied to influence the monarch's decision on appointments. But, the Royal Household adamantly guarded information about potential names. After 1931, when the Statute of Westminster came into effect and

3080-495: The by then long-widowed Queen a draft constitution for an Order of Merit in Science and Art, consisting of one grade split into two branches of knighthood: the Order of Scientific Merit, for Knights of Merit in Science, with the post-nominal letters KMS , and the Order of Artistic Merit, for Knights of Merit in Art, with the post-nominal letters KMA . However, Frederic Leighton , President of

3150-761: The chorus figure in Tony Harrison 's play Fram . He served as President of the Ethical Union (now Humanists UK ) from 1929 to 1930 and was a delegate at the inaugural World Humanist Congress in 1952 which established Humanists International . He was a leader of the League of Nations Society and the League of Nations Union , which promoted the League of Nations in Britain . Murray died in Oxford in 1957, aged 91. His ashes were interred in Poets' Corner , Westminster Abbey. Murray

3220-531: The façade and the intimate auditorium. The architects for this were Haworth Tompkins . The theatre reopened in February 2000, with the 380-seat Jerwood Theatre Downstairs, and the 85-seat studio theatre, now the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs. Since 1994, a new generation of playwrights debuting at the theatre has included Joe Penhall , Sarah Kane , Mark Ravenhill , and Roy Williams , among others. Since

3290-614: The idea, though he briefly reconsidered it in 1789; on 6 February of that year, he revised the design of the order, with the breast star to have sixteen points, the motto to be the Latin for "Learning improves character" and with membership to include distinguished scientists. Following the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, First Lord of the Admiralty Charles Middleton, 1st Baron Barham and William Pitt exchanged correspondence concerning

3360-748: The interior, and it was renamed the Court Theatre . Several of W. S. Gilbert 's early plays were staged here, including Randall's Thumb , Creatures of Impulse (with music by Alberto Randegger ), Great Expectations (adapted from the Dickens novel), and On Guard (all in 1871); The Happy Land (1873, with Gilbert Abbott à Beckett ; Gilbert's most controversial play); The Wedding March , translated from Un Chapeau de Paille d'Italie by Eugène Marin Labiche (1873); The Blue-Legged Lady , translated from La Dame aux Jambes d'Azur by Labiche and Marc-Michel (1874); and Broken Hearts (1875). By 1878, management of

3430-414: The last person so honoured. Honorary members form another group, to which there is no numerical limit, though such appointments are rare; individuals from countries in the Commonwealth of Nations that are not headed by King Charles are therefore considered foreigners, and thus are granted only honorary admissions, such as Nelson Mandela (South Africa) and Mother Teresa (India). Upon admission into

3500-423: The matter; it was recorded in his diary that he met Sir Robert Peel on 16 January 1844 to discuss the "idea of institution of a civil Order of Merit" and, three days later, he conferred with the Queen on the subject. Though nothing came of the idea at the time, the concept did not wither and, more than 40 years later, on 5 January 1888, Prime Minister Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury submitted to

3570-476: The novelist H. G. Wells . Initially this was in 1917 and connection with groups supporting a future League: Wells promoted a League of Free Nations Association (LFNA), an idea not in fact exclusive to him, since it had been 'up in the air' since Woodrow Wilson had started considering post-war settlements. Wells applied through the British propaganda office with which Murray had been connected since 1914. The two men corresponded from 1917 about League matters. Wells

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3640-419: The number of seats was reduced to under 500. The theatre re-opened in 1952, with Oscar Lewenstein as the general manager. In 1954, Lewenstein, together with George Devine , Ronald Duncan and Greville Poke , founded the English Stage Company (ESC) with a mission to present plays by young and experimental dramatists and "the best contemporary plays from abroad". Devine served as the first artistic director of

3710-411: The play's author, Jim Allen , denied the accusations and accused the " Zionist lobby " and "the Zionist machine" of stirring up controversy unfairly. Caryl Churchill 's play Seven Jewish Children played at the theatre in 2009. Many Jewish leaders and journalists criticised the play as antisemitic. One called it "a libellous and despicable demonisation of Israeli parents and grandparents" and

3780-402: The play. In the mid-1960s, the ESC became involved in issues of censorship . Their premiere productions of Osborne's A Patriot for Me and Saved by Edward Bond (both 1965) necessitated the theatre turning itself into a "private members club" to circumvent the Lord Chamberlain , formally responsible for the licensing of plays until the Theatres Act 1968 . The succès de scandale of

3850-482: The possible creation of an order of merit, though nothing came of the idea. Later, Queen Victoria , her courtiers , and politicians alike, thought that a new order, based on the Prussian order Pour le Mérite , would make up for the insufficient recognition offered by the established honours system to achievement outside public service, in fields such as art, music, literature, industry and science. Victoria's husband, Albert, Prince Consort , took an interest in

3920-447: The reigning monarch of the realms, currently Charles III , with the assistance of his private secretaries; the order has thus been described as "quite possibly, the most prestigious honour one can receive on planet Earth." Within the limited membership is a designated military division, with its own unique insignia; though it has not been abolished, it is currently unpopulated, Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma having been

3990-414: The reverse bears the royal cypher of the reigning monarch in gold. The insignia for the military grouping is distinguished by a pair of crossed swords behind the central disk. The ribbon of the Order of Merit is divided into two stripes of red and blue. The neck ribbon is 50mm in width, while the ribbon bar width is the standard British 32mm size for military or civilian wear. Men wear their badges on

4060-425: The right to use the post-nominal letters OM and wear the badge of the order, the Order of Merit's precedence among other honours differs between countries. In around 1773, George III considered establishing an order of knighthood to be called the "Order of Minerva " with membership restricted to 24 distinguished artists and authors. Knights would be entitled to the post-nominal letters KM , and would wear

4130-596: The theatre was shared by John Hare and W. H. Kendal . Further alterations were made in 1882 by Alexander Peebles, after which its capacity was 728 (including stalls and boxes, dress circle and balcony, amphitheatre, and gallery). After that, Arthur Cecil (who had joined the theatre's company in 1881) was co-manager of the theatre with John Clayton . Among other works, they produced a series of Arthur Wing Pinero 's farces, including The Rector , The Magistrate (1885), The Schoolmistress (1886), and Dandy Dick (1887), among others. The theatre closed on 22 July 1887 and

4200-411: The tragic rhythm. It had its Sparagmos , in which the royal victim was literally or symbolically torn asunder, followed by the lamentation and/or rejoicing of the chorus: elements which correspond to the moments of "passion". The ritual had its messenger, its recognition scene and its epiphany; various plot devices for representing the moment of "perception" which follows the "pathos". Professor Murray, in

4270-787: The two plays helped to bring about the abolition of theatre censorship in the UK. During the period of Devine's directorship, besides Osborne and Bond, the Royal Court premiered works by Arnold Wesker , John Arden , Ann Jellicoe and N.F. Simpson . Subsequent Artistic Directors of the Royal Court premiered work by Christopher Hampton , Athol Fugard , Howard Brenton , Caryl Churchill , Hanif Kureishi , Sarah Daniels , Errol John , Timberlake Wertenbaker , Martin Crimp , Sarah Kane , Sylvia Wynter , Mark Ravenhill , Martin McDonagh , Simon Stephens , Leo Butler , Polly Stenham and Nick Payne . Early seasons included new international plays by Bertolt Brecht , Eugène Ionesco , Samuel Beckett , Jean-Paul Sartre , and Marguerite Duras . In addition to

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4340-582: The work of many of the best-known British dramatists: Osborne , Wesker , Pinter , Bond , Barker , Brenton , Hare and Churchill . But this Award is given not so much for the Court's distinguished history as for its championship ... of [a] new generation of challenging, often profoundly disturbing, writers ... like Sarah Kane ( Blasted and Cleansed ), Mark Ravenhill ( Shopping and Fucking ) and Jez Butterworth ( Mojo ) ... [and] presented outstanding plays by young Irish writers such as Conor McPherson and Martin McDonagh . It ... has given voice to

4410-484: Was a Catholic, his mother a Protestant. His daughter Rosalind (later Rosalind Toynbee), a Catholic convert, attacked his atheism in her book of apologetics, The Good Pagan's Failure (1939). About a month before he died, when he was bedridden, his daughter Rosalind called the local Catholic priest to see him. In an article in The Times following his death, however, his son Stephen made clear that Rosalind and Catholic friends did "not want it thought that they claim he died

4480-444: Was acquired by and remains the home of the English Stage Company, which is known for its contributions to contemporary theatre and won the Europe Prize Theatrical Realities in 1999. The first theatre on Lower George Street, off Sloane Square, was the converted Nonconformist Ranelagh Chapel , opened as a theatre in 1870 under the name The New Chelsea Theatre . Marie Litton became its manager in 1871, hiring Walter Emden to remodel

4550-441: Was born in Sydney, Australia. He came from an Irish Catholic family and his ancestors fought at the Battle of the Boyne and in the 1798 Rebellion . His family all supported Irish Home Rule and were critical of the British government's actions elsewhere in the Empire . His father, Sir Terence Aubrey Murray , who died in 1873, had been a Member of the New South Wales Parliament; Gilbert's mother, Agnes Ann Murray (née Edwards), ran

4620-411: Was bullish about pushing ahead with a British LFNA, Murray was involved already in the League of Nations Society (LNS), though not active. The political position was delicate, as Murray understood and Wells may not have: the LNS overlapped with the Union of Democratic Control , which was too far towards the pacifist end of the spectrum of opinion to be effective in that time and context. Eventually in 1918

4690-410: Was demolished. The present building was built on the east side of Sloane Square, replacing the earlier building, and opened on 24 September 1888 as the New Court Theatre . Designed by Walter Emden and Bertie Crewe , it is constructed of fine red brick, moulded brick, and a stone facade in free Italianate style. Originally the theatre had a capacity of 841 in the stalls, dress circle, amphitheatre, and

4760-429: Was expanded to include members of the Commonwealth of Nations that are not realms. The order has always been open to women, Florence Nightingale being the first woman to receive the honour, in 1907. Several individuals have refused admission into the Order of Merit, including Rudyard Kipling , A. E. Housman , and George Bernard Shaw . Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh , remains the youngest person ever inducted into

4830-464: Was left to Lady Mary. However, she passed it on to her surviving brother Geoffrey, (his son was George Howard , chairman of the British Broadcasting Corporation from 1981 until 1983) retaining an estate in Cumberland with an income of c. £5,000 per annum. Gilbert and Lady Mary had five children, two daughters (Rosalind, 1890–1967 and Agnes Elizabeth 1894–1922) and three sons (Denis, Basil, and Stephen) including: The four children were evacuated during

4900-409: Was the first female artistic director (2013–2024). David Byrne took over the role in early 2024. In 1987, Ken Loach 's production of Perdition at the Royal Court Theatre was abandoned after protests and commissioned reviews from two historians, Martin Gilbert and David Cesarani . Oxford historian Gilbert said the play was "a travesty of the facts" and "deeply antisemitic ". Loach and

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