Brigadier Arthur Stanley Cantrell (8 May 1883 – 22 May 1954) was an English first-class cricketer and

Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...

officer. Cantrell was commissioned into the

Royal Marine Artillery The history of the Royal Marines began on 28 October 1664 with the formation of the Duke of York and Albany's Maritime Regiment of Foot soon becoming known as the Admiral's Regiment. During the War of the Spanish Succession the most historic achi ...

and served during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. His military service with the Royal Marines lasted until his retirement in 1934, though he did later come out of retirement to serve in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Cantrell also played

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...

for the

Royal Navy Cricket Club The Royal Navy Cricket Club is a cricket team representing the British Royal Navy and based at the United Services Recreation Ground, Portsmouth, Hampshire. The club was formed in 1863, although cricket is recorded as having been played by seame ...

between 1913–1929, making fourteen appearances.

Early life, first-class debut and WWI

Cantrell was born in

British Ceylon British Ceylon (; ), officially British Settlements and Territories in the Island of Ceylon with its Dependencies from 1802 to 1833, then the Island of Ceylon and its Territories and Dependencies from 1833 to 1931 and finally the Island of Cey ...

and was educated in England at

Bedford School Bedford School is a 7–18 Single-sex education, boys Public school (United Kingdom), public school in the county town of Bedford in England. Founded in 1552, it is the oldest of four independent schools in Bedford run by the Harpur Trust. Bed ...

and

Bedford Modern School Bedford Modern School (often called BMS or simply Modern) is a Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference independent school in Bedford, England. The school has its origins in Bedford Charity, The Harpur Trust, born from the financial endowme ...

. He was commissioned into the

(RMA) as a second lieutenant in August 1900. He was promoted to the rank of

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in February 1903. He was made a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in September 1911. He made his debut in

for the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

against the

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket List of Test cricket grounds, venue in St John's Wood, Westminster. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex C ...

in 1913. Shortly before the outbreak of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Cantrell played a second first-class match for the Royal Navy in June 1914, in a repeat of the fixture of the previous year. At the beginning of 1914, he had been seconded to another battalion within the RMA. Cantrell completed his sixteen years of service during the First World War, at which point he was promoted to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

in June 1917. In May 1918, he was made a brevet lieutenant colonel. He was awarded the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

by France in June 1918.

Post-war service and later cricket

Cantrell resumed playing first-class cricket for the Royal Navy following the war, appearing for the Royal Navy against

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in June 1919. In August 1919, he made a first-class appearance for a combined Army and Navy cricket team against a team of Demobilised Officers at Lord's, during which he took his maiden

five wicket haul In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "five–for" or "fifer") occurs when a bowler takes five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded by critics as a notable achievement, equivalent to a century from a batter. Taking ...

when he took 5 for 52 in the Demobilised Officers first-innings. He continued to play first-class cricket for the Royal navy until 1929, by which point he had appeared in fourteen first-class matches for the Royal Navy. Playing as a right-arm

medium-fast bowler Fast bowling (also referred to as pace bowling) is a type of bowling in cricket, in which the ball is delivered at high speed. The fastest bowlers bowl the ball at over . Practitioners of fast bowling are known as fast bowlers or quicks. Also i ...

, Cantrell took 44 wickets for the Royal Navy at an

average In colloquial, ordinary language, an average is a single number or value that best represents a set of data. The type of average taken as most typically representative of a list of numbers is the arithmetic mean the sum of the numbers divided by ...

of 27.36, with two five wicket hauls and best figures of 6 for 58. He was promoted to the full rank of lieutenant colonel in July 1930. In October of the same year he was made the Director of Naval Recruiting. He was promoted to the rank of

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

in April 1934, with seniority antedated to June 1922. Three months later he retired from active service at his own request, and was placed on the Retired List. He came out of retirement during the

, during which he was promoted to the rank of temporary

brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

in October 1941. He died at the age of 71 in May 1954 at

Black Notley Black Notley is a village and civil parish in Essex, England. It is located approximately south of Braintree, Essex, Braintree and is north-northeast from the county town of Chelmsford. According to the 2011 census including Young's End it ha ...

, Essex.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cantrell, Arthur 1883 births 1954 deaths People educated at Bedford School People educated at Bedford Modern School English cricketers Royal Navy cricketers Army and Navy cricketers Royal Marines brigadiers Royal Marines personnel of World War I Knights of the Legion of Honour Royal Marines personnel of World War II Sri Lankan people of English descent 19th-century Royal Marines personnel 20th-century English sportsmen