Sir Vincent Arthur Henry McMahon (28 November 1862 – 29 December 1949) was a

British Indian Army The Indian Army was the force of British Raj, British India, until Indian Independence Act 1947, national independence in 1947. Formed in 1895 by uniting the three Presidency armies, it was responsible for the defence of both British India and ...

officer and diplomat who served as the Foreign Secretary in the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

from 1911 to 1915 and as the High Commissioner in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

from 1915 to 1917. As the Foreign Secretary McMahon conducted the tripartite negotiations between Tibet, China and Britain that led to the

Simla Convention The Simla Convention (Traditional Chinese characters, Traditional Chinese: 西姆拉條約; Simplified Chinese characters, Simplified Chinese: 西姆拉条约), officially the Convention Between Great Britain, China, and Tibet,McMahon-Hussein Correspondence with Hussein bin Ali,

Sharif of Mecca The Sharif of Mecca () was the title of the leader of the Sharifate of Mecca, traditional steward of the Holiest sites in Islam, Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The term ''sharif'' is Arabic for "noble", "highborn", and is used to desc ...

, and the

Declaration to the Seven The Declaration to the Seven was a document written by Sir Mark Sykes, approved by Charles Hardinge, the Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign Office and released on June 16, 1918, in response to a memorandum issued anonymously by seven Syrian n ...

in response to a memorandum written by seven notable Syrians. After the Sykes-Picot Agreement was published by the

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

Russian government in November 1917, McMahon resigned. He also features prominently in ''

Seven Pillars of Wisdom ''Seven Pillars of Wisdom'' is the autobiographical account of the experiences of British Army Colonel T. E. Lawrence ("Lawrence of Arabia") while serving as a military advisor to Bedouin forces during the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empi ...

'', T.E. Lawrence's account of the

Arab Revolt The Arab Revolt ( ), also known as the Great Arab Revolt ( ), was an armed uprising by the Hashemite-led Arabs of the Hejaz against the Ottoman Empire amidst the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. On the basis of the McMahon–Hussein Co ...

against the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

during

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 ...

Early life

McMahon was the son of

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

Charles Alexander McMahon Lieutenant-General Charles Alexander McMahon FRS FGS (23 March 1830 – 21 February 1904) was an Anglo-Irish soldier, geologist, and administrator in British India. In 1899 he was awarded the Lyell Medal by the Geological Society of London. McMa ...

, FRS, FGS (1830–1904), a

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

and Commissioner of both

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

and

Hisar Hissar () means fort or castle in Arabic, with variants adopted into Persian (hesar, hessar) and Turkish (hisar). Hissar, Hisar and Hesar may refer to: Places Asia (South and Central) India *Hisar (city), a city in Haryana **Hisar Airport in Hi ...

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

, India, and who, like his father,

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 ...

Alexander McMahon (born 1791,

Kilrea Kilrea ( , ) is a village, townland and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It gets its name from the ancient church that was located near where the current Church of Ireland is located on Church Str ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...

, Ireland), had been an officer with the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

. He was educated in England at

Haileybury College Haileybury is a co-educational public school (fee-charging boarding and day school for 11- to 18-year-olds) located in Hertford Heath, Hertfordshire. It is a member of the Rugby Group and enrols pupils at the 11+, 13+ and 16+ stages of edu ...

, the recently founded successor of the

East India Company College The East India Company College, or East India College, was an educational establishment situated at Hailey, Hertfordshire, nineteen miles north of London, founded in 1806 to train "writers" (administrators) for the East India Company. It provi ...

. When he joined the school, his father had an address in

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

. He then proceeded to the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC) was a United Kingdom, British military academy for training infantry and cavalry Officer (armed forces), officers of the British Army, British and British Indian Army, Indian Armies. It was founded in 1801 at Gre ...

."McMahon, Arthur Henry, b. Nov. 28, 1862, son of Lieut.-Col. McMahon, 6, Regent's Park, Heavilree, Exeter" in Lionel Sumner Milford, ''Haileybury Register, 1862–1891'' (Haileybury College, 1891), p. 149

Family background

The Oriel McMahons are the

Gaelic Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to: Languages * Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...

clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, a clan may claim descent from a founding member or apical ancestor who serves as a symbol of the clan's unity. Many societie ...

of ''Mac Mathghamhna'' who had come originally from the medieval Irish kingdom of Oriel in South

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

, where they reigned from around 1250 until about 1600. Henry McMahon's own family had settled in the

Downpatrick Downpatrick () is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the Lecale peninsula, about south of Belfast. In the Middle Ages, it was the capital of the Dál Fiatach, the main ruling dynasty of Ulaid. Down Cathedral, Its cathedral is sai ...

area of

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 552,261. It borders County Antrim to the ...

before his great-grandfather, Arthur McMahon, moved to Kilrea, where he was minister of the local

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

congregation between 1789 and 1794: a prominent

Irish Republican Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed various tactics and identities, simultaneously elective and militant and has been both w ...

, Arthur McMahon was a member of the National Directory of the

Society of United Irishmen The Society of United Irishmen was a sworn association, formed in the wake of the French Revolution, to secure Representative democracy, representative government in Ireland. Despairing of constitutional reform, and in defiance both of British ...

and one of their

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 ...

s in

during the

Irish Rebellion of 1798 The Irish Rebellion of 1798 (; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ''The Turn out'', ''The Hurries'', 1798 Rebellion) was a popular insurrection against the British Crown in what was then the separate, but subordinate, Kingdom of Ireland. The m ...

. He apparently fought at the battles of

Saintfield Saintfield () is a village and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is about halfway between Belfast and Downpatrick on the A7 road (Northern Ireland), A7 road. It had a population of 3,588 in the 2021 Unite ...

and Ballynahinch. Following the rebels' overall defeat, he was able to flee to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, where he served with

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

’s

Irish Legion The Irish Legion () was a light infantry regiment in service of the French Imperial Army established in 1803 for an anticipated invasion of Ireland. It was later expanded to a four battalions and a depot, the legion won distinction in the Walc ...

. It has been reported that he was captured by the British during the

Walcheren Campaign The Walcheren Campaign () was an unsuccessful United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, British expedition to the Kingdom of Holland in 1809 intended to open another front in the Austrian Empire's struggle with First French Empire, France ...

of 1809 and sent to England, but was later able to return to France where, in June 1815, he eventually died fighting at either

Ligny Ligny (; ) is a village of Wallonia and a district of the municipality of Sombreffe, located in the province of Namur, Belgium. Previously its own municipality, a 1977 fusion of the Belgian municipalities made it an '' ancienne commune'' of So ...

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, 1815 battle where Napoleon's French army was defeated by Anglo-allied and Prussian forces * Waterloo, Belgium Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Australia * Waterloo, New South Wale ...

Career

British India

McMahon was commissioned as a

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 ...

into the

King's (Liverpool) Regiment The King's Regiment (Liverpool) was one of the oldest line infantry regiments of the British Army, having been formed in 1685 when a single battalion was raised as The Anne, Queen of Great Britain, Princess Anne of Denmark's Regiment of Foot. ...

on 10 March 1883.Hart′s Army list, 1903 He transferred to the

Indian Staff Corps The Indian Staff Corps was a branch of the Indian Army during the British Raj. Separate Staff Corps were formed in 1861 for the Bengal, Madras and Bombay Armies, which were later combined into the Indian Army. They were meant to provide officers f ...

in 1885, joining the 1st Sikh Infantry in the Punjab Frontier Force. In 1887, McMahon joined the Punjab Commission (civil service). He transferred to the

Indian Political Department The Indian Political Department, formerly part of the Foreign and Political Department of the Government of India, was a government department in British India. The department looked after the diplomatic and "political" relations with the subs ...

in 1890, serving in it till 1915. His various positions included North-West Frontier, Zhob and Thal-Chotiali agencies in

Balochistan Balochistan ( ; , ), also spelled as Baluchistan or Baluchestan, is a historical region in West and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. This arid region o ...

Gilgit Gilgit (; Shina language, Shina: ; ) is a city in Pakistani-administered Gilgit-Baltistan, Gilgit–Baltistan in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kas ...

, Dir–

Swat A SWAT (''Special Weapons and Tactics'') team is a generic term for a police tactical unit within the United States, though the term has also been used by other nations. SWAT units are generally trained, equipped, and deployed to res ...

–

Chitral Chitral () is a city situated on the Kunar River, Chitral River in northern area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It serves as the capital of the Lower Chitral District, and was previously the capital of Chitral District, and before ...

and finally as the Agent to the Governor-General for Balochistan (a position that combined the Chief Commissioner for British Baluchistan and Political Resident for the

Baluchistan Agency The Baluchistan Agency (also spelt Balochistan Agency) was one of the agencies of British India during the colonial era. It was located in the present-day Balochistan province of Pakistan.Administration report of the Balochistan Agency for 1888� ...

). During these years he was promoted to

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 ...

on 10 March 1894, and

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 ...

on 10 July 1901. He received the temporary rank of

while employed on special duty on the

Sistan Sistān (), also known as Sakastān (, , current name: Zabol) and Sijistan (), is a historical region in south-eastern Iran and extending across the borders of present-day south-western Afghanistan, and south-western Pakistan. Mostly correspond ...

frontier in 1903. McMahon spoke

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

Pashto Pashto ( , ; , ) is an eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family, natively spoken in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan. It has official status in Afghanistan and the Pakistani province of Khyb ...

, and

Hindustani Hindustani may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Hindustan (another name of India) * Hindustani language, an Indo-Aryan language, with Hindi and Urdu being its two standard registers * Hindustani Muslims are the Urdu-speaking, Hindust ...

, and his aptitude for languages led him also to learn

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

. In 1911, the Viceroy Lord Hardinge appointed McMahon as the Foreign Secretary to the Government of India. He held this position till 1915. During 1913–1914, McMahon was responsible for holding the tripartite conference to negotiate the

Middle East

In 1915, McMahon was sent to replace Sir

Milne Cheetham Sir Joshua Milne Crompton Cheetham (9 July 1869 – 6 January 1938) was a British diplomat. Biography Born in Preston, the son of Joshua Milne Cheetham, MP, he was educated at Rossall School, from which he won a scholarship to Christ Churc ...

, briefly acting for Lord Kitchener, who had become

War Secretary The secretary of state for war, commonly called the war secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, which existed from 1794 to 1801 and from 1854 to 1964. The secretary of state for war headed the War Offic ...

in London, in the post of High Commissioner in the

Sultanate of Egypt The Sultanate of Egypt () was a British protectorate in Egypt which existed from 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, to 1922, when it ceased to exist as a result of the Unilateral Declaration of Egyptian Independence. History Soon afte ...

. When he arrived by train,

Ronald Storrs Sir Ronald Henry Amherst Storrs (19 November 1881 – 1 November 1955) was an official in the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Foreign Office. He served as Oriental Secretary in Cairo, Military Governor of Jerusalem, Governor of Britis ...

, a member of the

Arab Bureau The Arab Bureau was a section of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Cairo Intelligence Department established in 1916 during the World War I, First World War, and closed in 1920, whose purpose was the collection and dissemination ...

, described him as "quiet, friendly, agreeable, considerate and cautious", although later in his career Storrs and others were not so charitable. McMahon was made a Knight of Grace of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (KStJ). Although a temporary appointment, it became a permanent post, for an experienced political administrator. With the approval of Kitchener and Foreign Secretary

Sir Edward Grey Edward Grey, 1st Viscount Grey of Fallodon (25 April 1862 – 7 September 1933), better known as Sir Edward Grey, was a British statesman and Liberal Party politician who was the main force behind British foreign policy in the era of the Fir ...

, McMahon began a long correspondence with

Husayn bin Ali Husayn ibn Ali (; 11 January 626 – 10 October 680 CE) was a social, political and religious leader in early medieval Arabia. The grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and an Alid (the son of Ali ibn Abi Talib and Muhammad's daughter ...

, the Ottoman-appointed ruler of the Hijaz, to use the Bedouin tribes under his control to support the

Egyptian Expeditionary Force The Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) was a military formation of the British Empire, formed on 10 March 1916 under the command of General Archibald Murray from the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force and the Force in Egypt (1914–1915), at the ...

in overthrowing the Ottomans. He promised Husayn an independent area under Arab governance that was to include what was then the

Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem The Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem (, ; , , ), also known as the Sanjak of Jerusalem, was a district in Ottoman Syria with special administrative status established in 1872.Büssow (2011), p5Abu-Manneh (1999), p39Jankowski & Gershoni (1997), p174 T ...

(later

Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine was a British Empire, British geopolitical entity that existed between 1920 and 1948 in the Palestine (region), region of Palestine, and after 1922, under the terms of the League of Nations's Mandate for Palestine. After ...

), in exchange for Arab support in Britain's conflict against the

Ottoman Turks The Ottoman Turks () were a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group in Anatolia. Originally from Central Asia, they migrated to Anatolia in the 13th century and founded the Ottoman Empire, in which they remained socio-politically dominant for the e ...

in what came to be known as the

Great Arab Revolt The Arab Revolt ( ), also known as the Great Arab Revolt ( ), was an armed uprising by the Hashemite-led Arabs of the Hejaz against the Ottoman Empire amidst the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. On the basis of the McMahon–Hussein Corr ...

against the Ottomans. Their correspondence is known to historians from the

McMahon–Hussein Correspondence The McMahon–Hussein correspondence is a series of letters that were exchanged during World War I, in which the government of the United Kingdom agreed to recognize Arab independence in a large region after the war Quid pro quo, in exchange ...

. Sir Gilbert Clayton,

Aubrey Herbert Colonel The Honourable Aubrey Nigel Henry Molyneux Herbert (3 April 1880 – 26 September 1923), of Pixton Park in Somerset and of Teversal, in Nottinghamshire, was a British soldier, diplomat, traveller, and intelligence officer associat ...

, Storrs and others of the intelligence community approved of McMahon's pro-Arabist policy from 1916 onwards. McMahon sat on the plan to use the Sharif to support British for six months. But it was

Sir Reginald Wingate General Sir Francis Reginald Wingate, 1st Baronet (25 June 1861 – 29 January 1953) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator in Egypt and the Sudan. He served as Governor-General of the Sudan (1899–1916) and High Commissioner in ...

who persuaded McMahon that the Arabs were ready, able and willing for Cairo to support Husayn in an effort to overthrow the Ottomans and establish a pan-Arab state made up of Ottoman Arab lands in the Middle East. Storrs thought the diplomacy was "in every way exaggerated." He was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George (GCMG) in 1916 upon his retirement from the

. By May 1916, Turkish troops had arrived in Mecca, and McMahon received a telegram from Abdullah ibn Husayn, Sharif Husayn's son, that the Movement was ready. McMahon despatched the oriental secretary, Storrs, to London with a team of intelligence experts. The British decision to land an invasion force in the Dardanelles, instead of Alexandretta, and to promise the French Syria under the Sykes-Picot Agreement, irritated McMahon. On 23 November 1917, following the

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

, the

Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

released copies the Sykes–Picot Agreement and other secret treaties, publishing full texts in ''

Izvestia ''Izvestia'' ( rus, Известия, r=Izvestiya, p=ɪzˈvʲesʲtʲɪjə, "The News") is a daily broadsheet newspaper in Russia. Founded in February 1917, ''Izvestia'', which covered foreign relations, was the organ of the Supreme Soviet of th ...

'' and ''

Pravda ''Pravda'' ( rus, Правда, p=ˈpravdə, a=Ru-правда.ogg, 'Truth') is a Russian broadsheet newspaper, and was the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, when it was one of the most in ...

''. ''

The Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' then printed the texts on 26 November 1917. This caused great embarrassment to the Allies and growing distrust between them and the Arabs, and McMahon resigned his post in protest.

Honours in retirement

In 1920, McMahon was awarded the Order of El Nahda, 1st Class, by Husayn, the new King of the Hejaz. In 1925, he was promoted to a

Knight of Justice of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (), commonly known as the Order of St John, and also known as St John International, is an order of chivalry constituted in 1888 by royal charter from Queen Victoria and dedica ...

(KStJ). McMahon was one of the founders of the

Imperial College Imperial College London, also known as Imperial, is a public research university in London, England. Its history began with Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who envisioned a cultural district in South Kensington that included museums ...

Masonic Lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

in 1923, at which time he was also a member of the governing body of Imperial College.

Personal life

On 19 October 1886, in

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

, McMahon married Mary E. Bland, a daughter of F. C. Bland of Derriquin Castle,

County Kerry County Kerry () is a Counties of Ireland, county on the southwest coast of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. It is bordered by two other countie ...

. Their daughter Jessica was born in 1887. In 1909, at the church of

St George's, Hanover Square St George's, Hanover Square, is an Church of England, Anglican church, the parish church of Mayfair in the City of Westminster, central London, built in the early eighteenth century as part of a project to build fifty new churches around London ...

, London, she married Henry A. Hetherington, of Berechurch Hall,

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in northeastern Essex, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the county, with a population of 130,245 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census. The demonym is ''Colcestrian''. Colchester occupies the ...

. McMahon and his wife retired to England. McMahon died on 29 December 1949 at the Cadogan Hotel in

Sloane Street Sloane Street is a major London street in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea which runs north to south, from Knightsbridge to Sloane Square, crossing Pont Street about halfway along. History Sloane Street takes its name from Sir Han ...

, Chelsea, where he had been living. He was survived by his wife. He left an estate valued at £26,918, probate for which was granted to Jessica Merriell Hetherington and

Lord Courtauld-Thomson Courtauld Greenwood Courtauld-Thomson, 1st Baron Courtauld-Thomson, (born Courtauld Thomson; 16 August 1866 – 1 November 1954) was a British businessman and holder of public and charitable offices. Background Thomson was the son of Robert ...

."McMahon sir Arthur Henry" in ''Wills and Administrations 1950 (England and Wales)'' (1951), p. 787 McMahon was buried in the Golders Green Cemetery.

Arms

Taxa named in his honour

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of Asian viper, '' Eristicophis macmahoni'', is named in honour of Henry McMahon. *''Eirenis mcmahoni'', also named in his honour, is considered a synonym of '' Eirenis persicus''.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 2967 pp. . ("McMahon", p. 173). *The Pakistani fish '' Labeo macmahoni'' is potentially named in his honour.

References

Bibliography

Books

* * * *

Articles

External links

Henry McMahon
* {{DEFAULTSORT:McMahon, Henry 1862 births 1949 deaths Administrators in British India British Indian Army officers Companions of the Order of the Star of India Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst High commissioners of the United Kingdom to Egypt Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Knights of Justice of the Order of St John Indian Staff Corps officers People educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College Military personnel from Shimla British people of Irish descent British military personnel in colonial India Chief Commissioners of Baluchistan British Freemasons King's Regiment (Liverpool) officers 19th-century British Army personnel