John Hamilton Maxwell Staniforth
CBE (23 June 1893 – 26 December 1985), known to his family as Max,
was a British soldier, railwayman, radio presenter, clergyman and scholar.
Early life and education
Staniforth born in
Hinderwell, Yorkshire, on 23 June 1893 to
John William Staniforth
John William Staniforth (14 November 1863 – 3 January 1927) was a British writer who wrote under the pen-names Stain Cortley, John Andrews and Maxwell Scott.
He wrote primarily adventure and detective fiction. His most popular creation was ...
and Mary Jane Dobbin Maxwell.
He was named after his maternal great-grandfather, the writer
William Hamilton Maxwell. He was educated at
Charterhouse and
Christ Church, Oxford, where he held a classical scholarship. His intended academic career was foiled by the onset 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 ...
.
Military service
Staniforth served as an infantry officer with the
Prince of Wales's Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians) of the
16th Irish Division on the
Western Front from 1914-1918. He was awarded the
1914-15 Star, the
British War Medal, and the British
Victory Medal. Following his service, he married Ruby Di Stephens in 1922.
Railways
Staniforth became a railwayman on the British railways in
Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
, rising to the rank of Assistant Traffic Manager.
During his time in Argentina he had a daughter, Rosamund Ann Staniforth, on 4 April 1928; she would go on to marry Charles Edward Byron Du Cane, son of Charles Henry Copley Du Cane, and grandson of
Charles Du Cane.
Radio presenter
Staniforth returned from Argentina, and became the first full-time presenter for
Radio Normandy (a commercial English-language service) in 1931.
In November 1932 he transferred to
Radio Toulouse before taking up a position at the
International Broadcasting Company headquarters in London.
He then left radio to enter the church.
Clerical life
Staniforth took
Holy Orders
In certain Christian denominations, holy orders are the ordination, ordained ministries of bishop, priest (presbyter), and deacon, and the sacrament or rite by which candidates are ordained to those orders. Churches recognizing these orders inclu ...
, and spent twenty five years as a parish priest.
He was vicar of the Dorset villages of
Pentridge and
Sixpenny Handley from 1952 to 1963.
He retired as
Rural Dean
In the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion as well as some Lutheran denominations, a rural dean is a member of clergy who presides over a "rural deanery" (often referred to as a deanery); "ruridecanal" is the corresponding adjective ...
of
Blandford
Blandford Forum ( ) is a market town in Dorset, England, on the River Stour, Dorset, River Stour, north-west of Poole. It had a population of 10,355 at the United Kingdom 2021 census, 2021 census.
The town is notable for its Georgian archit ...
, in
Dorset
Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...
.
Translation
Staniforth translated
Marcus Aurelieus' ''
Meditations
''Meditations'' () is a series of personal writings by Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor from 161–180 AD, recording his private notes to himself and ideas on Stoic philosophy. Composition
Marcus Aurelius wrote the 12 books of the ''Meditations'' i ...
'' for
Penguin Classics
Penguin Classics is an imprint (trade name), imprint of Penguin Books under which classic works of literature are published in English language, English, Spanish language, Spanish, Portuguese language, Portuguese, and Korean language, Korean amon ...
,
[Reviewed by "K. G." in ''The Classical Outlook'', vol 43 n6 (1 February 1966) p. 69 and Elizabeth E. Seittelman in ''The Classical World'', vol 59 n3 (1 November 1965) page 88] and later worked on their ''Early Christian Writings''.
References
Further reading
*Richard S. Grayson, (2012) ''At War with the 16th Irish Division 1914-1918: The Letters of J. H. M. Staniforth''.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Staniforth, Maxwell
1893 births
1985 deaths
English classical scholars
English translators
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford
People educated at Charterhouse School
Scholars of ancient Greek literature
Translators of Ancient Greek texts
20th-century British translators
Penguin Books people
20th-century English male writers