Anthony Crommelin Crossley (13 August 1903 – 15 August 1939) was a British writer, publisher and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

politician.

Early life

Crossley was born on 13 August 1903, the only son of Sir Kenneth Irwin Crossley, 2nd Baronet. His father was chairman of Crossley Brothers Limited and Crossley Motors Limited. He eventually became a director of the company. In 1916 Crossley enrolled at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

, completing his education at

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by Bishop of Winchester William of Waynflete. It is one of the wealthiest Oxford colleges, as of 2022, and ...

. His flair for writing both poetry and prose led to his becoming a partner in the publishing house of Christopher's from 1928 to 1935. In 1927 he married Clare Thomson, a painter, daughter of Brigadier A F Thomson, and had two daughters and one son.

Political career

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

Crossley was elected one of two Conservative Members of Parliament (MPs) for the two-seat Oldham borough constituency. At the next election in 1935 he was elected as MP for

Stretford Stretford is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, sited on flat ground between the River Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal; the Bridgewater Canal bisects the town. The town is located south of Manchester, south of Salfo ...

in south east Lancashire. He remained MP for the area until his death in 1939.

Sports

Crossley was noted as an enthusiast for fishing and had written a book on the subject. As a tennis player, he had competed in

The Championships, Wimbledon ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

in 1931. and 1932.

Death

On 15 August 1939, Crossley was one of four passengers on-board

Lockheed Model 10 Electra The Lockheed Model 10 Electra is an American twin-engined, all-metal monoplane airliner developed by the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation, which was produced primarily in the 1930s to compete with the Boeing 247 and Douglas DC-2. The type gained ...

, ''G-AESY''. The aircraft was operated by

British Airways Ltd British Airways Ltd. was a British airline company operating in Europe in the period 1935–1939. It was formed in 1935 by the merger of Spartan Air Lines Ltd, United Airways Ltd (no relation to the US carrier United Airlines), and Hillman' ...

and flying from

Hendon Aerodrome Hendon Aerodrome was an aerodrome in London, England, that was an important centre for aviation from 1908 to 1968. It was situated in Colindale, north west of Charing Cross. It nearly became a central hub of civil aviation ("the Charing Cros ...

Copenhagen Airport Copenhagen Airport, Kastrup (, ) is an international airport serving Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, as well as the wider Øresund Region, including Zealand and the southern Sweden, Swedish province of Scania. In 2023 it was the largest ai ...

. At around 13.20, the aircraft was around from its destination. The pilot radioed a report of a fire on board and soon after made an emergency water-landing in the

Storstrømmen Storstrømmen (; lit. ''The Great Stream'') is a strait in Denmark separating the island Falster from the island Zealand. Geography Its maximum depth is approximately and the length is around . Smålandsfarvandet sound is situated to the ...

, not far from the

Storstrøm Bridge The Storstrøm Bridge (, ) is a road and railway arch bridge that crosses Storstrømmen between the islands of Falster and Masnedø in Denmark. Together with Masnedsund Bridge it connects Falster and Zealand (''Sjælland''). It was the main r ...

. The aircraft quickly sank. The co-pilot was the only one of the six on board who managed to escape and was rescued by a bridge worker. The next day, the aircraft was raised and it was established that all the victims had likely succumbed to smoke inhalation; two had died because of the fire, three had drowned after the aircraft ditched. The fire was later attributed to leaking fuel caused by the fuel tanks being over-filled; the cause of ignition was not established. As a Member of Parliament, Crossley's death resulted in the

1939 Stretford by-election The 1939 Stretford by-election was held on 8 December 1939. The by-election was held due to the death of the incumbent Conservative MP, Anthony Crossley Anthony Crommelin Crossley (13 August 1903 – 15 August 1939) was a British writer, ...

, which was won by Conservative

Ralph Etherton Ralph Humphrey Etherton (11 February 1904 – 10 December 1987) was a British barrister and Conservative politician. He was the son of Captain Louis Etherton.''Marriages'', The Times, 16 December 1944 He was educated at Charterhouse School and Tr ...

Publications

Crossley published three books of poetry: ''

Aucassin and Nicolette ''Aucassin et Nicolette'' (12th or 13th century) is an anonymous medieval French fictional story. It is the unique example of a ''chantefable'', literally, a "sung story", a combination of prose and verse (similar to a ''prosimetrum''). Histor ...

and Other Poems'', ''Prophets, Gods and Witches'' and ''Tragedy under Lucifer''. His prose works showed his other interests: ''The History of Eton College Hunt'' (1922), ''Chin Wag: The War Records of the Eton Manor Club'' and ''The Floating Line for Salmon and Sea Trout'' (1939, with illustrations by

Roy Beddington Roy Beddington (16 June 1910 – 31 May 1995) was a British painter, illustrator, fisherman, poet, writer on fishing, and journalist. As an artist he was known for his watercolours, with his first one-man shows being at Grafton and Walker's gall ...

) .

References

External links

''The Eton College Hunt : A Short History of Beagling at Eton''
by A.C. Crossley. The Internet Archive *
Article on Anthony Crossley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crossley, Anthony 1903 births 1939 deaths Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1931–1935 UK MPs 1935–1945 People educated at Eton College Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford Politics of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Denmark British male tennis players Place of birth missing Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1939 English male tennis players 20th-century English politicians 20th-century English sportsmen