| Horace Gundry Alexander | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 30 1889 Croydon, England |
| Died | September 30 1989 (aged 100) Pennsylvania, USA |
| Occupation | Pacifist, ornithologist |
| Nationality | British |
| Genres | Non-fiction |
| Subjects | Ornithology, Quakerism, India |
Horace Gundry Alexander (July 30, 1889 - September 30, 1989) was an English Quaker teacher and writer, pacifist and ornithologist. He was the youngest of four sons of Joseph Gundry Alexander (1848–1918). One of his brothers was Wilfred Backhouse Alexander.
Contents |
Family life
He was born in Croydon, England and studied at King's College, Cambridge University, and taught at Woodbrooke, a Quaker college in Birmingham from 1919 to 1944. His first wife died in 1942, and in 1958 he married Rebecca Bradbeer, an American Quaker. After ten years they moved to Pennsylvania, USA where he spent the remaining twenty years of his life. He died of a gastrointestinal illness at Crosslands, a Quaker retirement community in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.
Ornithology
Alexander was a life-long dedicated and gifted birdwatcher, keenly involved in the twentieth century movements for the protection and observation of birds. He was one of a small group of amateur birdwatchers who developed the skills and set new standards for combining the pleasures of birdwatching with the satisfaction of contributing to ornithological science. He made many significant observations, mainly in Britain but also in India and the USA, and was well respected for his work. Horace spent most of his time in India and became interested in its birds in 1927. Ornithology at that time was not popular among Indians in India and when Horace informed Gandhi of an expedition, Gandhi commented, "That is a good hobby, provided you don't shoot them." Horace demonstrated the use of binoculars as an acceptable alternative to the gun and carried them at most times. Horace Alexander joined Sidney Dillon Ripley on an expedition to the Naga hills in 1950. He also associated himself with a group of birdwatchers in New Delhi and encouraged Indian ornithologists such as Usha Ganguli. (Wood, 2003) He was also a founder member of the West Midland Bird Club, and its president, during his long residence in Birmingham, England.
Gandhi
Alexander's father-in-law John William Graham believed that Gandhi was a subversive and that the Indians were unprepared for self-government. However at an annual Quaker meeting, the Nobel prize winning poet Rabindranath Tagore attacked the British rule in India. The Quakers were disturbed by the address and John Graham was particularly outraged. After the meeting, it was agreed that a representative would be sent to India to attempt a reconciliation of the Viceroy, Lord Irwin and Gandhi. This task was assigned to Horace Alexander. He later became a close friend of Gandhi (who, in 1942, described Alexander as "one of the best English friends India has") and wrote extensively about his philosophy. He was consulted by Richard Attenborough in the making of the film Gandhi, and felt that the scripts did not do justice to the people around Gandhi. In 1984 he was awarded the Padma Bhushan medal, the highest honour given to a non-Indian civilian.
Bibliography
- Joseph Gundry Alexander
- Justice Among Nations (1927) scanned
- The Indian Ferment (1929)
- India Since Cripps Penguin (1941)
- New Citizens of India (1951)
- Consider India: An Essay in Values (1961)
- Gandhi Through Western Eyes (1969)
- 70 Years of Birdwatching T & A D Poyser (1974) ISBN 0 85661 004 6
Bird related notes
- (1974): What leads to increases in the range of certain birds? JBNHS. 71(3), 571-576.
- (1952): Birds attacking their reflections. JBNHS. 50(3), 674-675.
- (1948): The status of the Dusky Willow-Warbler Phylloscopus fuscatus (Blyth)] in India. JBNHS. 47(4), 736-739.
- (1948): White-winged Wood-Duck Asarcornis scutulatus (Mueller) on the Padma River, East Bengal. JBNHS. 47(4), 749.
- (1949): The Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus (Linn.) in Orissa. JBNHS. 48(2), 367-368.
- (1949): Whitecapped Redstart Chaimarrhornis leucocephalus (Vigors) feeding on berries. JBNHS. 48(4), 806.
- (1950): Some notes on the genus Phylloscopus in Kashmir. JBNHS. 49(1), 9-13.
- (1950): Possible occurrence of the Black Tern Chlidonias niger (L.) near Delhi. JBNHS. 49(1), 120-121.
- (1950): Field identification of birds. JBNHS. 49(1), 123-124.
- (1950): Kentish Plovers Leucopolius alexandrinus (Linn.) at Bombay. JBNHS. 49(2), 311.
- (1950): Large Grey Babbler attacking metal hub-cap of wheel of car. JBNHS. 49(3), 550.
- (1953): Rednecked Phalarope near Delhi. JBNHS. 51(2), 507-508.
- (1957): Bird life of Madhya Pradesh. JBNHS. 54(3), 768-769.
- (1949): The birds of Delhi and District. JBNHS. 48(2), 370-372.
- (1951): Some notes on birds in Lahul. JBNHS. 49(4), 608-613.
- (1972): On revisiting Delhi. NLBW. 12(9), 1-3.
- (1972): Nest building of the Baya Weaver Bird. NLBW. 12(9), 12.
- (1964): Return to Delhi. NLBW. 4(1), 1-3.
- (1929): Some birds seen in the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean. Ibis, 12 5(1), 41-53.
- (1952): Identifying birds of prey in the field. BBOC 72, 55-61.
- (1931): Shearwaters in the Arabian Sea. Ibis, 13 1(3), 579-581.
- (1955): Field notes on some Asian leaf warblers. British Birds. 48, 293-299,349-356.
- (1952): Letter to the Editor. Ibis 94(2), 369-370.
- (1969): Some Notes on Asian Leaf-Warblers (Genus Phylloscopus). Private/TRUEXpress, Oxford. 31 pages.
- (1952): with Abdulali,H Ardeidae with red legs. Ibis 94, 363.
Biography
- Wood, J. Duncan (2003). Horace Alexander: Birds and Binoculars. Sessions of York. ISBN 1-85072-289-7.
Other references
- Geoffrey Carnall and J. Duncan Wood, Alexander, Horace Gundry (1889–1989), Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [1], accessed 27 April 2007
