David Armine Howarth (28 July 1912 – 2 July 1991) was a British naval officer, boatbuilder, historian and author.

Biography

After graduating from the

University of Cambridge 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 ...

, he became a war correspondent for

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

radio at the start of

World War II 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 ...

. Howarth joined the

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

after the fall of

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 ...

. He served in the

Special Operations Executive Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a British organisation formed in 1940 to conduct espionage, sabotage and reconnaissance in German-occupied Europe and to aid local Resistance during World War II, resistance movements during World War II. ...

(SOE) and helped set up the

Shetland Bus The Shetland Bus ( Norwegian Bokmål: ''Shetlandsbussene'', def. pl.) was the nickname of a clandestine special operations group that made a permanent link between Mainland Shetland in Scotland and German-occupied Norway from 1941 until t ...

, an SOE operation manned by Norwegians running a clandestine route between

Shetland Shetland (until 1975 spelled Zetland), also called the Shetland Islands, is an archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands, and Norway, marking the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the ...

and

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. He was second in command at the Naval base in Shetland. For his contributions to espionage operations against the German occupation of Norway, he received King Haakon VII's Cross of Liberty.Simenstad, Arne: ''Norwegian War Decorations Awarded to Members of the British Armed Forces 1940–1945'', London: The London Stamp Exchange, 1990, p. 41. The King also made Howarth a Chevalier First Class of the Order of St Olav. After the war, he wrote numerous books on naval and military history, including a memoir of the Shetland Bus. He also edited ''My Land and My People'', the first autobiography by the

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...

, which was published in 1962.Dalai Lama, ''My Land and My People: The Autobiography of His Holiness the Dalai Lama''. Ed. David Howarth. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1962. There is a good obituary in The Guardian 5 July 1991. Howarth died on 2 July 1991 at the age of 78. At his request, his ashes were scattered over the waters of Lunna Voe, Shetland, near Lunna House, the first base of the Shetland Bus operation.

Bibliography

Novels

* ''Group Flashing Two'' (1952) * ''One Night in Styria'' (1953) * ''Thieves' Hole'' (1954)

Non-fiction

;Autobiographies: * ''Pursued by a Bear: An Autobiography'' (1986) ;Biographies: * ''We Die Alone: A WWII Epic of Escape and Endurance'' (1955) * ''The Desert King: A Life of

Ibn Saud Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud (; 15 January 1875Ibn Saud's birth year has been a source of debate. It is generally accepted as 1876, although a few sources give it as 1880. According to British author Robert Lacey's book ''The Kingdom'', ...

'' (1964) * ''Great Britons'' (1978) * ''Wellington Commander: The Iron Duke's Generalship'' (1985), with

John Keegan Sir John Desmond Patrick Keegan (15 May 1934 – 2 August 2012) was an English military historian, lecturer, author and journalist. He wrote many published works on the nature of combat between prehistory and the 21st century, covering land, ...

and Paddy Griffith * ''Nelson: The Immortal Memory'' (1988), written with his son Stephen Howarth
A comprehensive biography of Britain's most famous Admiral. ;History: * ''The Shetland Bus: A WWII Epic of Escape, Survival, and Adventure'', or ''Across to Norway'' (1951) * '' The Sledge Patrol: The True Story of the Strangest Battle Front of All'', or ''The Sledge Patrol: A WWII Epic of Escape, Survival, and Victory'' (1957)London: Collins. Reissued in 2004 as ''The Sledge Patrol: A WWII Epic of Escape, Survival, and Victory'', . * ''Dawn of D-Day: These Men Were There, 6 June 1944'' (1959)
An account of the landing in Normandy, with many observations from participants. * ''Panama: Four Hundred Years of Dreams and Cruelty'', or ''The Golden Isthmus'' (1966) * ''Waterloo: A Near Run Thing'', or ''Waterloo: Day of Battle'' (1968)
Analysis of the Battle of Waterloo, from the reports of those who fought it. * ''Great Escapes'' (1969) * ''Trafalgar: The Nelson Touch'' (1969)
Account of the Battle of Trafalgar, between the navies of France and Great Britain in 1805. * ''Sovereign of the Seas: The Story of British Sea Power'' or ''British Sea Power: How Britain Became Sovereign of the Seas'' (1974)
The story of British sea power. * ''Waterloo: A Guide to the Battlefield'', or ''Waterloo: A Guide'' (1974) * ''The Greek Adventure'' (1976)
Narrative describing the Greek War of Independence in the 1820s. * '' 1066: The Year of the Conquest'' (1977)
A historical narrative of the personalities and events of 1066 AD and how they changed Britain. * ''The Dreadnoughts'' (1979), part of ''The Seafarers'' Series
A look at the development and use of battleship technology in the First World War. * ''The Men-of-War'' (1978), part of ''The Seafarers'' Series, in association with Time-Life editors, published by Time-Life Books
Sailing war-ships from the 16th to 18th centuries. * ''Famous Sea Battles'' (1981) * ''The Voyage of the Armada'', or ''The Voyage of the Armada: The Spanish Story'' (1981)
An account of the Spanish Armada of 1588, seen mostly from the Spanish perspective. Much of the account references newly available Spanish material. * ''Tahiti: A Paradise Lost'' (1983), pub. Harvill Press
The decline of Tahiti, from its discovery by H.M.S. Dolphin in June 1767 * ''The Story of P&O: The Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company'' (1986), with Stephen Howarth ;True events: * ''The Shadow of the Dam'' (1961)

Adaptations

* ''

Suicide Mission A suicide mission is a task which is so dangerous for the people involved that they are not expected to survive. The term is sometimes extended to include suicide attacks such as kamikaze and suicide bombings, whose perpetrators actively die ...

'' (1954), film directed by Michael Forlong, based on book ''The Shetland Bus: A WWII Epic of Escape, Survival, and Adventure'', and also on book ''None but the Brave'' by Frithjof Sælen * '' Nine Lives'' (1957), film directed by

Arne Skouen Arne Skouen (18 October 1913 – 24 May 2003) was a Norwegian journalist, author, film director and film producer. Biography Arne Skouen was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway. His parents were Peder Nikolai Skouen (1883-1978) and Jenn ...

, based on book ''We Die Alone: A WWII Epic of Escape and Endurance''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Howarth, David Royal Navy officers Royal Navy personnel of World War II British military writers 1912 births 1991 deaths Recipients of the King Haakon VII Freedom Cross 20th-century British historians