Lionel Frederic Ellis CVO

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

DSO MC (13 May 1885 – 19 October 1970) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer and

military historian Military history is the study of armed conflict in the history of humanity, and its impact on the societies, cultures and economies thereof, as well as the resulting changes to local and international relationships. Professional historians ...

, author of three volumes of the official ''

History of the Second World War The ''History of the Second World War'' is the official history of the British contribution to the Second World War and was published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO). The immense project was sub-divided into areas to ease publication ...

''. Between the two

World Wars A world war is an international conflict that involves most or all of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World War I (19 ...

, he was General Secretary of the

National Council of Social Service The National Council of Social Service (NCSS) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Social and Family Development of the Government of Singapore The government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of Singapore, Constitution ...

(1919–1937) and then Secretary of the

National Fitness Council The National Fitness Council in the UK (1937 - 1939) was a government organisation to promote fitness set up according to the Physical Training and Recreation Act, 1937. The Secretary was Lionel Ellis. The National Fitness Council consisted of an ...

(1937–1939). In the 1950s he was an Associate Warden of

Toynbee Hall Toynbee Hall is a charitable institution that works to address the causes and impacts of poverty in the East End of London and elsewhere. Established in 1884, it is based in Commercial Street, Spitalfields, and was the first university-affili ...

Career

Born in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

, in 1916 Ellis was commissioned into the

Welsh Guards The Welsh Guards (WLSH GDS; ), part of the Guards and Parachute Division, Guards Division, is one of the Foot guards, Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. It was founded in 1915 as a single-battalion regiment, during the World War I, First ...

from the Inns of Court Officers' Training Corps and saw service in 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 ...

. Ellis was awarded a

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

, the citation for which reads: In 1919 he was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

for gallantry and devotion to duty, in the advance south of Bavai in the days before the

Armistice of 11 November 1918 The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed in a railroad car, in the Compiègne Forest near the town of Compiègne, that ended fighting on land, at sea, and in the air in World War I between the Entente and their las ...

. The medal's citation reads: He returned to civilian life and became the first General Secretary of the new

, a position he held from 1919 to 1937, then the first Secretary of the new National Fitness Council, 1937 to 1939, working with Lord Aberdare, the first chairman. In the 1930 Birthday Honours, Ellis was appointed a Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

"for services in connection with the Coalfields Distress Fund" and in 1937 a Commander of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

. On 18 September 1939, shortly after the beginning of 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 ...

, Ellis returned to the Welsh Guards and was later appointed as an official historian, contributing three volumes to the ''

''. After the war, he was an Associate Warden of

. His ''The War in France and Flanders'' (1954) begins with the

Phoney War The Phoney War (; ; ) was an eight-month period at the outset of World War II during which there were virtually no Allied military land operations on the Western Front from roughly September 1939 to May 1940. World War II began on 3 Septembe ...

of 1939–1940 and deals with the failed attempts of the British Expeditionary Force to defend Belgium and France from the German invasion of May and June 1940. It ends with the confusion of the Belgian surrender, the British failure to defend the Somme and the decision to evacuate British forces from Dunkirk. His later volumes dealt with the

Normandy Campaign Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the N ...

and the defeat of Germany.

Private life

In 1916, Ellis married Jane Richmond (died 1953) in the Southwark district and they had a son, Christopher St John Ellis (1920–1997), who served in the

Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Roya ...

during the Second World War and became a schoolmaster and also one daughter. Ellis died at Harlington, Middlesex, on 19 October 1970. Ellis was a painter and a friend of

Rex Whistler Reginald John "Rex" Whistler (24 June 190518 July 1944) was a British artist, who painted murals and society portraits, and designed theatrical costumes. He was killed in action in Normandy in World War II. Whistler was the brother of poet and ...

, who was stationed with him during the Second World War.Major Lionel Ellis CVO, CBE, DSO, MC
at arts-and-crafts-company.com, accessed 23 July 2016

Major publications

*''Welsh Guards at War'' (1946) *

' (London: HM Stationery Office, 1954) *''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: Victory in the West: The Battle of Normandy'' by L. F. Ellis, with G. R. G. Allen, A. E. Warhurst, and Sir James Robb (London, H.M. Stationery Office, 1962) *''History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series: Victory in the West: The Defeat of Germany'' (1968)

Notes

External links

*L. F. Ellis
The War in France and Flanders
full text at ibiblio.org
Ellis, Lionel Frederic (1885-1970), Major and military historian
at National Archives {{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, Lionel Frederic 1885 births 1970 deaths Military personnel from Nottingham British military historians Welsh Guards officers British Army personnel of World War I British Army personnel of World War II Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Recipients of the Military Cross