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Furse and Polly both spent their spare time painting (a Furse family past-time), with often visiting gardens for inspiration. They both mounted an exhibition of their work in 1937, but all the paintings they displayed at the show were lost during the Blitz.<ref name="jstor"/> Furse had also exhibited paintings at RHS shows in the 1930's.<ref name=Diary/>
Furse and Polly both spent their spare time painting (a Furse family past-time), with often visiting gardens for inspiration. They both mounted an exhibition of their work in 1937, but all the paintings they displayed at the show were lost during the Blitz.<ref name="jstor"/> Furse had also exhibited paintings at RHS shows in the 1930's.<ref name=Diary/>


On the 10th June 1935, Paul and Polly had a child, John Richard Furse.<ref name=Peerage>{{cite web |title=Person Page |url=https://www.thepeerage.com/p54772.htm#i547720 |website=www.thepeerage.com |access-date=8 July 2021}}</ref> He was also known as “Chris”, was born in Kent.<ref name=Telegraph>{{cite news |last1=Obituaries |first1=Telegraph |title=Commander Chris Furse, courageous polar explorer, illustrator, ornithologist and naval engineer – obituary |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2018/11/15/commander-chris-furse-courageous-polar-explorer-illustrator/ |accessdate=8 April 2020 |work=The Telegraph |date=15 November 2018}}</ref>
On the 10th June 1935, Paul and Polly had a child, John Richard Furse.<ref name=Peerage>{{cite web |title=Person Page |url=https://www.thepeerage.com/p54772.htm#i547720 |website=www.thepeerage.com |access-date=8 July 2021}}</ref> He was also known as “Chris”, was born in Kent.<ref name=Telegraph>{{cite news |last1=Obituaries |first1=Telegraph |title=Commander Chris Furse, courageous polar explorer, illustrator, ornithologist and naval engineer – obituary |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2018/11/15/commander-chris-furse-courageous-polar-explorer-illustrator/ |accessdate=8 April 2020 |work=The Telegraph |date=15 November 2018}}</ref> He also joined the Navy, and became an engineer, like his father.
He later married an Australian girl, was assigned to a carrier in Borneo, and then returned to greet his son Ralf. He had 2 years as Senior Engineer on HMS Ark Royal. Later he was a Staff Engineer on [[HMS Ajax (F114)|HMS Ajax]] (his first frigate).<ref>{{cite web |title=Wild Birds by Chris Furse |url=http://www.londonart.co.uk/editorial/article.aspx?c=2&articleid=1814 |website=www.londonart.co.uk |access-date=11 July 2021}}</ref>


John R. Furse wrote a book "Elephant Island:An Antarctic Expedition" book published on 16 October 1979 with the royalties going to the [[Royal Geographical Society|RGS]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Society's News |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/633265?seq=1 |website=The Geographical Journal |accessdate=9 April 2020 |pages=515–519 |date=1979}}</ref>
John R. Furse wrote a book "Elephant Island:An Antarctic Expedition" book published on 16 October 1979 with the royalties going to the [[Royal Geographical Society|RGS]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Society's News |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/633265?seq=1 |website=The Geographical Journal |accessdate=9 April 2020 |pages=515–519 |date=1979}}</ref>

Revision as of 02:39, 11 July 2021

John Paul Wellington Furse
Born(1904-10-13)13 October 1904
Frimley, Surrey, England
Died8 October 1978(1978-10-08) (aged 73)
Smarden, Kent, England
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service/branchRoyal Navy
Years of service1918–1959
RankRear Admiral
Battles/warsWorld War Two (1939-1945)
AwardsKnight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Officer of the Order of the British Empire
Victoria Medal of Honour
ChildrenJohn R. Furse (1935-2018 )
Relationsuncle, Sir William Thomas Furse; uncle, Rev. Michael Bolton Furse; great aunt Marianne North
Other workBotanical illustrator, author and plant hunter

John Paul Wellington Furse GCB, OBE, VMH (13 October 1904 – 8 October 1978) was an English Naval Officer who became a Rear-Admiral before he retired. He was a painter and botanical illustrator and later a plant hunter with his wife for the Royal Horticultural Society.

Family

John Paul Wellington Furse was born in Frimley, Surrey, England. He was the son of portrait painter Charles Wellington Furse and (a British nursing and military administrator) Dame Katharine Furse (formerly Katherine Symonds). His father died in the same week Furse was born.[1] He had 4 uncles and 4 aunts.[2] Including; Rev. Michael Bolton Furse (12 October 1870 – 18 June 1955), an Anglican bishop and Sir William Thomas Furse (21 April 1865 – 31 May 1953), an army Lieutenant General.[3]

John Addington Symonds was his grandfather (on his mothers side) (1840 – 1893), he was an English poet and literary critic.[4] His great aunt was the botanical artist Marianne North (24 October 1830 – 30 August 1890).[1]

As a child, Furse spent a lot of time in the Alps with his family.[1]

His brother, Peter Reynolds Furse was born on 29 October 1901.[5] He became a Sub-Lieutenant on 15 May 1915.[6] Peter enlisted into the Royal Navy in 1918 (during World War 1), he was a Cartographer. In 1922, he graduated from Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge. On 25 June 1931, he married Barbara Elizabeth Ross, they then lived in Nairobi, Kenya and had a daughter Elizabeth Furse in 1936. They then moved to Cape Town, South Africa. During World War II, he returned to the Royal Navy and was eventually made Lieutenant Commander. After the war, he returned to South Africa before they eventually retired to Hampton, New Brunswick, Canada, since his wife was originally Canadian born.[7] His daughter Elizabeth Furse (October 13, 1936 – April 18, 2021) was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 1999.

Furse married Cicely Rathbone on the 7 April 1929 in London, England.[1] She was the daughter of Frederick Rathbone.[8] Cicely was often known as Polly.[9][10] His mother, Katherine had gone with Polly and Paul to Switzerland later in 1929.[9]

Furse and Polly both spent their spare time painting (a Furse family past-time), with often visiting gardens for inspiration. They both mounted an exhibition of their work in 1937, but all the paintings they displayed at the show were lost during the Blitz.[1] Furse had also exhibited paintings at RHS shows in the 1930's.[11]

On the 10th June 1935, Paul and Polly had a child, John Richard Furse.[4] He was also known as “Chris”, was born in Kent.[12] He also joined the Navy, and became an engineer, like his father. He later married an Australian girl, was assigned to a carrier in Borneo, and then returned to greet his son Ralf. He had 2 years as Senior Engineer on HMS Ark Royal. Later he was a Staff Engineer on HMS Ajax (his first frigate).[13]

John R. Furse wrote a book "Elephant Island:An Antarctic Expedition" book published on 16 October 1979 with the royalties going to the RGS.[14] John died on 30th October 2018.

Naval career

He was commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1918,[15] when he was just aged 13.[1] He then started his naval education at the Royal Naval College, Osborne, on the Isle of Wight,[15] then he went to Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, in Devon. Then ranked as a midshipman, he went onto the Royal Naval Engineering College in Keyham, Leicestershire in 1922, to study engineering.[16]

In 1925, he became a Sub-lieutenant and then in 1926, he was posted to the aircraft carrier HMS Eagle, which was initially assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet.[16]

In 1927, he became a Lieutenant,[16] He then served with HM Submarines between 1927-1939.[15] In 1928, he was an engineer on HMS Olympus, a newly built Odin-class submarine,[16] which was commissioned into service on 14 June 1930 and then based out of China Station.

In May 1932, he was an engineer on HMS Colombo (a light cruiser) with the Mediterranean Fleet.[16]

He then was posted in December 1932 to HMS Dolphin, a submarine depot ship.[15] In 1934, he was Assistant Engineer to the Rear-Admiral. In 1935, he was promoted to Lieutenant commander Lt.Cdr.[16]

In 1937, he was moved to HMS Medway (another submarine depot ship), part of 4 Submarine Flotilla, based at China.[15]

In December 1939, he was promoted to Commander Cdr.[16] He then served during World War Two between 1939-1945; he was a Senior Engineering Officer on board HMS Sandhurst (a converted merchant ship) in 1939.[15]

Then he became an Assistant Naval Attaché for Europe and the Americas between 1940-1943,[15] with HMS President.[16] As an Assistant Naval Attach, Furse wrote two documents entitled 'British Naval agent in Scandinavia, Mar-Apr 1940' and a note on a reported rumour of a German invasion of the UK, 16-17 Sep 1940.[15]

He then served with 5 and 6 Submarine Flotillas, between 1943-1946.[15] He was awarded (Officer of the Order of the British Empire[1]) OBE in June 1946.[17]

He returned back to HMS President between 1947 and 1950. In December 1948, he was promoted to Captain.[16] In 1951, he was Chief Staff Officer to the Rear-Admiral of HMS Condor, a Royal Naval Air Station in Arbroath, Angus, Scotland.[15]

In September 1955,[16] he was made a Rear-Admiral.[18] Then he became Director of Aircraft Maintenance and Repair for the Admiralty between 1955-1958.[15] based on HMS President.[16]

In 1957, he had his portrait taken by Walter Bird, dressed in his Royal Navy uniform for the National Portrait Gallery archives.[19]

He was then awarded (Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath[1]) CB on 1st January 1958.[20] His last post was of Director General of the Aircraft Department for the Admiralty between 1958-1959,[15] based at HMS President.[16]

In May 1959, Rear Admiral J.P.W. Furse wrote in the Journal of the Royal Aeronautical Society, 'The Operation of Naval Aircraft and Aircraft Carriers', Vol. 63 on page 301, “in support of allied landings and coastal operations”.[21] He then retired from Royal Navy in 1959,[15][16] when he was 55 years old.[1]

After Naval retirement

His first post-retirement expedition with his wife, Polly was to north eastern Turkey and Iran in 1960,[15][1] they found specimens of Cyclamen elegans.[22] They drove from England in a Land Rover packed full of equipment to explore the mountain passes, that had hardly been seen before. They went with a party of explorers including Patrick Synge, the then editor of 'Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society'. The party travelled over 6,000 miles in 2 months exploring.[11] This first trip resulted in just over 900 collections of plants.[1]

They both returned to Turkey and Iran in 1962. Bulbs of Fritillaria uva-vulpis were collected in 1962, and then brought into cultivation under that name.[23] The Furses collected more than 3,100 plant specimens in the same countries in 1962.[1]


They carried out a botanical expedition to Afghanistan, in 1964 and then again in 1966.[15]

awarded the Victoria Medal of Honour by the Royal Horticultural Society, 1965; died 1978.[15]

Campanula 'Paul Furse' which was named after him

After his retirement from the British Royal Navy, Rear-Admiral Paul Furse took the opportunity to pursue his love of botany and botanical art on a full-time basis. Between 1960 and 1966, therefore, Furse and his wife, Polly, made four long journeys in Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan, collecting bulbs and perennials for the Royal Horticultural Society's garden at Wisley and herbarium specimens for Kew. Their efforts brought hundreds of new plants into cultivation including the yellow crown imperial, Fritillaria raddeana Regel (from the Kopet Dagh on the borders of Turkmenia), Iris afghanica Wendelbo (from the Salang Pass, north of Kabul), and, from the Black Sea coast, Iris lazica Albov.

Furse had a passion and specialist knowledge for fritillarias, and also for irises, daffodils, tulips, crocuses, colchicums, lilies and other bulbous plants. It is claimed that Furse had illustrated nearly every known species of lily.[11]

destinations decided upon in conjunction with the Royal Horticultural Society botanist Patrick Synge, who accompanied the Furses. Their 1964 and 1966 expeditions took them further east, as far as the Hindu Kush and the Wakhan Corridor, where they gathered nearly 4,200 specimens.[1]

The Furses' expeditions were recounted in the Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society and some of their collections discussed in The Lily Yearbook and The Iris Yearbook. Botanists working on the 'Flora of Turkey' and 'Flora Iranica' studied the dried collections and Kew holds Paul Furse's meticulous field notes and botanical paintings. He was awarded the Royal Horticultural Society's Victoria Medal of Honour for his work.[1]

There are over 800 water coloured illustrations by Furse in the Lindley Art Collection in the Lindley Library.[11]

Over 700 illustrations are stored at RBG Kew with the collecting notes, letters and various specimens.[11]

Paul was also Vice-chairman of the Lily Group (within the RHS).[11]

He was awarded 4 RHS Gold medals of his paintings between 1964 and 1968.[11]

Awarded the medal in 1965.[11]

Patrick Synge expeditions, including those to Nepal with Colville Barclay and Turkey with Admiral Paul Furse were documented in his 1973 book In Search of Flowers.[24]

Paul Furse was an accomplished botanical artist and amateur botanist who, after his retirement from the Navy, spent several years searching for bulbs, travelling to remote locations in the Near East. He went to Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and collected many plants which are still in cultivation today. His pioneering expeditions and enthusiasm inspired a generation of botanists to explore these areas. [25]

Plant honours

Paul Furse was made a Fellow of the Linnean Society of London in January 1964.[26]

In 1965, he was awarded the Victoria Medal of Honour from the Royal Horticultural Society.[11][27]

Campanula 'Paul Furse' (a blue-violet flowers on arching stems with a branching habit) was named after him.[28]

He was also remembered in Eremurus furseorum Wendelbo (from Afghanistan), published in 1966,[29] Fessia furseorum (Meikle) Speta (from NE. Afghanistan), originally Scilla furseorum Meikle, Bot. Mag. 176: t. 507[30] (published in 1967),[31] and also Sempervivum furseorum[28] (from NE. Turkey), published in 2011.[32]

A new juno iris for the Flora of Afghanistan, Iris furseorum T. Hall & Seisums, it was described and illustrated. It was collected in N.E. Afghanistan by Paul and Polly Furse in 1966 and has been maintained in cultivation.[33] It was first published in Curtis's Botanical Magazine Vol.31 on page 257 in 2014.[34]

The Royal Horticultural Society Pocket Diary 2021

Publications

Furse, J. P. W., (1963), Irises in Iran and Turkey, The Iris Year Book 1963, p. 135-144. Furse, J. P. W., (1965), Irises in Iran and Afghanistan, The Iris Year Book 1965, p.100-112. Furse, J. P. W., (1966), Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society 91: fig. 8. Iris platyptera as 'Old Smokey'. Furse, J. P. W., (1966), The Iris Year Book 1965, p.106. The British Iris Society. Iris platyptera as 'Old Smokey'. Furse, J. P. W., (1968), Iris in Turkey, Iran and Afghanistan., The Iris Year Book 1968, p.63-77. The British Iris Society. Iris doabensis as 'Doab Gold'. p.71 Furse, J. P. W., (1971), Iris species in the wild. In International Rock Garden Plant Conference, 4th, Harrogate, 1971. The world of rock plants: 46-49. Furse, J. P. W., (1971), Oncocyclus and Regelia irises in Turkey, Iran and Afghanistan. Iris Year Book 1971, 119-132. Furse, J. P. W. (1972), Iris Reticulata Section, Furse, J. P. W., (1973), Iris reticulata section or the genus Iridodictyum. Iris Yearbook 1972, 103-111. Furse, J. P. W., (1975), Irises in Iran and Afghanistan, 1964. Aril Society International Yearbook 1975: 52-55. Furse, J. P. W., (1975), Irises in Iran and Turkey. Aril Society International Yearbook 1975, 55-58.[35]

Death

Rear-Admiral Furse died on 8 October 1978 at age 73 in Kent, England.[4]

He was buried in Smarden St Michael the Archangel Churchyard with his wife Polly (1899-1991) of Hegg Hill House.[36]

Awards and decorations

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Furse, J. Paul W. (1904-1978)". jstor.org. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  2. ^ Bernard Burke A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Landed Gentry of ..., Volume 1, (1894), p. 524, at Google Books
  3. ^ "Obituary: Lt.-Gen. Sir William Furse". The Times. 1 June 1953. p. 8.
  4. ^ a b c "Person Page". www.thepeerage.com. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  5. ^ "Kindred Britain". kindred.stanford.edu. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  6. ^ "Catalogue description Name;Furse, Peter Reynolds Date of Birth: 29 October 1901 Rank: ..." 15 May 1915. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  7. ^ "Furse, Peter Reynolds (October 29, 1901 - 1970): Geographicus Rare Antique Maps". www.geographicus.com. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  8. ^ Dame Katherine Symonds Furse (published, Peter Davies, 1940) Hearts and Pomegranates: The Story of Forty-five Years, 1875 to 1920 at Google Books
  9. ^ a b Joan C. Tonn Mary P. Follett: Creating Democracy, Transforming Management (2003) at Google Books
  10. ^ Kate Rathbone (published by B. & H. Walker, 1989) The Dales: Growing Up in a Victorian Family : the Writings of Kate Rathbone (1861-1948) Recording Her Childhood Days and Later Stages of Her Life at Google Books
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i Royal Horticultural Society Royal Horticultural Society Pocket Diary 2021, p. 5, at Google Books
  12. ^ Obituaries, Telegraph (15 November 2018). "Commander Chris Furse, courageous polar explorer, illustrator, ornithologist and naval engineer – obituary". The Telegraph. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  13. ^ "Wild Birds by Chris Furse". www.londonart.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  14. ^ "The Society's News". The Geographical Journal. 1979. pp. 515–519. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "FURSE, R Adm (John) Paul (Wellington) (1904-1978) - Archives Hub". archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Royal Navy (RN) Officers 1939-1945 -- F". www.unithistories.com. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  17. ^ "Supplement to the London Gazette" (PDF). The London Gazette. 11 June 1946. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  18. ^ "Janet Symonds: St Sepulchre's Cemetery, Oxford". www.stsepulchres.org.uk. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  19. ^ "(John) Paul Wellington Furse - National Portrait Gallery". www.npg.org.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  20. ^ "SUPPLEMENT TO THE LONDON GAZETTE, 1 JANUARY, 1958" (PDF). 1 January 1958. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  21. ^ Ellner, Andrea (2006). "Carrier Airpower in the Royal Navy during the Cold War: The International Strategic Context". Defense & Security Analysis. 22 (1): 23–44.
  22. ^ Christopher Grey-Wilson Cyclamen: A Guide for Gardeners, Horticulturists and Botanists , p. 57, at Google Books
  23. ^ Paul Furze 1961, Some Fritillarias exhibited at the R.H.S. shows, 1960. Lily Year Book 1961
  24. ^ Best of British Magazine, Jan. 2014, p. 31
  25. ^ Strange, Kit (February 2007). "PAUL FURSE AND HIS PLANT COLLECTIONS AT KEW". Curtis's Botanical Magazine. 24 (1): 71–80.
  26. ^ "Record of the Proceedings of the Society for the Session 1962–1963". Proceedings of the Linnean Society of London. 1964. pp. 57–82. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8312.1964.tb00922.x. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  27. ^ Desmond, Ray (1977). Dictionary Of British And Irish Botanists And Horticulturists. p. 267. ISBN 0850668433.
  28. ^ a b "Number 9 The Scottish Rock Garden Club September 2010" (PDF). International Rock Gardener. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  29. ^ "Eremurus furseorum Wendelbo | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  30. ^ "Scilla furseorum | International Plant Names Index". www.ipni.org. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  31. ^ "Fessia furseorum (Meikle) Speta | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  32. ^ "Sempervivum davisii subsp. furseorum (Muirhead) Karaer | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  33. ^ Hall, Tony; Seisums, Arnis (September 2014). "794. IRIS FURSEORUM". Curtis's Botanical Magazine. 31 (3).
  34. ^ "Iris furseorum T.Hall & Seisums | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
  35. ^ "Scientist Paul Furse (1904-1978)". 3 March 2017. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  36. ^ "Smarden Churchyard Ashes plots" (PDF). 4 November 2017. Retrieved 10 April 2020.

Other sources

  • M. Alam, 2009, "Plant Collectors in Afghanistan", Bulletin de la Société vaudoise des Sciences naturelles, 91(3): 330
  • K. Strange, 2007, "Paul Furse and his Plant Collections at Kew", Curtis's Botanical Magazine, 24(1): 71-80.
  • References Vegter, H.I., Index Herb. Coll. N-R (1983): 984;

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rear Admiral John Paul Wellington Furse.
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;Category:People educated at the Royal Naval College, Osborne ;Category:Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College ;Category:Royal Navy admirals ;Category:Royal Navy submarine commanders ;Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire ;Category:Companions of the Order of the Bath ;Category:Members of the Linnean Society of London ;Category:Fellows of the Linnean Society of London ;Category:1904 births ;Category:1978 deaths

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