Michael Ansell: Difference between revisions
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In France in March 1940, during [[World War II]], he was given charge of the [[1st Lothians and Border Horse]], becoming the [[British Army]]'s youngest commanding officer.<ref name="Cecil" /> He won the [[Distinguished Service Order]] (DSO), but was shortly afterwards wounded in the hand and eyes by "[[friendly fire]]", blinding him permanently, and then became a [[prisoner of war]].<ref name="Cecil" /> All four fingers on his injured left hand were later amputated.<ref name=Olstrom /> He was repatriated from a German POW camp in 1943.<ref name="Cecil" /> |
In France in March 1940, during [[World War II]], he was given charge of the [[1st Lothians and Border Horse]], becoming the [[British Army]]'s youngest commanding officer.<ref name="Cecil" /> He won the [[Distinguished Service Order]] (DSO), but was shortly afterwards wounded in the hand and eyes by "[[friendly fire]]", blinding him permanently, and then became a [[prisoner of war]].<ref name="Cecil" /> All four fingers on his injured left hand were later amputated.<ref name=Olstrom /> He was repatriated from a German POW camp in 1943.<ref name="Cecil" /> |
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From 1957 to 1962 he was Colonel of the [[5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards]]. <ref name=regiments>{{cite web|url=http://www.regiments.org/regiments/uk/cav/DG5Innis.htm |title=5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards |publisher=Regiments.org |accessdate=6 August 2016 |deadurl=bot: unknown |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070227033318/http://www.regiments.org/regiments/uk/cav/DG5Innis.htm |archivedate=27 February 2007 |df= }}</ref> |
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==Showjumping== |
==Showjumping== |
Revision as of 19:26, 15 February 2017
Colonel Sir Mike Ansell CBE, DSO | |
---|---|
Personal information | |
Full name | Michael Picton Ansell |
Nationality | British |
Discipline | Show jumping |
Born | Curragh, County Kildare, Ireland | 26 March 1905
Died | 17 February 1994 Brighton, England | (aged 88)
Colonel Sir Michael Picton "Mike" Ansell, CBE, DSO (26 March 1905 - 17 February 1994) was a soldier, show jumping rider, polo player, and horse show administrator.
Early life
Ansell was born on 26 March 1905 at the Curragh, County Kildare.[1] His father George Ansell died in the First World War, while serving as a Lieutenant Colonel in the British Army.[2] After attending St Michael's Westgate-in-Sea and Wellington he went to Royal Military College Sandhurst.
Army
In 1924 he was commissioned into the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards[1][2] and in the 1930s was a cavalry officer, show jumping rider,[1] and international polo player. He was a Commander by 1935.[2]
In France in March 1940, during World War II, he was given charge of the 1st Lothians and Border Horse, becoming the British Army's youngest commanding officer.[1] He won the Distinguished Service Order (DSO), but was shortly afterwards wounded in the hand and eyes by "friendly fire", blinding him permanently, and then became a prisoner of war.[1] All four fingers on his injured left hand were later amputated.[2] He was repatriated from a German POW camp in 1943.[1]
From 1957 to 1962 he was Colonel of the 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards. [3]
Showjumping
An invitation to take up the position of chairman of the British Showjumping Association[1] led to him being credited with revitalising the sport.[1] He restarted the Royal International Horse Show and initiated the Horse of the Year Show.[1] He was Chairman of the British Horse Society[4] and Chaired the British Showjumping Association from 1945 until 1964.[2] He also was the first president of the British Equestrian Federation.[4]
In 1967, when his address was given as "Pillhead House, Bideford", he was High Sheriff of Devon. He was President of St Dunstan's, a charity for blind servicemen, from 1977 to 1986.[1]
Picton was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1951 and a Knight Bachelor (Kt) in 1968.[1] He appeared on the television programme This Is Your Life on 28 March 1960,[5] and as a "castaway" on the BBC Radio programme Desert Island Discs on 14 July 1973.[6] His autobiography, Soldier On,was published in 1973. It had a foreword by the Duke of Edinburgh.[7] His final book, Leopard: the story of my horse, featured a forward by Prince Charles.[8]
He died on 17 February 1994 in Brighton, England.[1]
Bibliography
- Ansell, Mike (1951). Show Jumping: Obstacles and Courses. Collins.
{{cite book}}
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suggested) (help) - Ansell, Mike (1954). Jumping. Naldrett Press.
{{cite book}}
: Unknown parameter|authormask=
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suggested) (help) - Ansell, Mike (1973). Soldier On. Peter Davies. ISBN 978-0432005866.
{{cite book}}
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ignored (|author-mask=
suggested) (help) - Ansell, Mike (1974). Riding High. Peter Davies. ISBN 978-0432005873.
{{cite book}}
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ignored (|author-mask=
suggested) (help) - Ansell, Mike (1980). Leopard: the story of my horse. Quartilles International Limited. ISBN 978-0903021173.
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References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Cecil, Blacker (2 March 1994). "Obituary: Sir Michael Ansell". The Independent. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ a b c d e Olstrom, Clifford E. (2011). Undaunted by Blindness (eBook) (2nd ed.). Perkins School for the Blind. pp. unpaginated. ISBN 9780982272190.
- ^ "5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards". Regiments.org. Archived from the original on 27 February 2007. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
{{cite web}}
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ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Laureates". British Horse Society. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
- ^ "Michael Ansell". Big Red Book. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ "Desert Island Discs - Castaway : Colonel Sir Michael Ansell". BBC Online. BBC. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ^ Ansell, Mike (1973). Soldier On. Peter Davies. ISBN 978-0432005866.
- ^ Ansell, Michael (20 July 2014). "Leopard the story of my horse". Goodreads.com. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
External links
- White City - The Man Behind The Horse Show 1955 British Pathe newsreel, showing Ansell at work at the International Horse Show
- Background on Butlins Show
- additional information
- 1905 births
- 1994 deaths
- British show jumping riders
- Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst
- People from County Kildare
- Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
- Knights Bachelor
- British military personnel of World War II
- Blind people from the United Kingdom
- 5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards officers
- People from Bideford
- High Sheriffs of Devon
- Lothians and Border Horse officers
- British male equestrians