Walter Francis Stirling was born 31 January 1880, and died 22 February 1958. He married Marygold Mackenzie-Edwards July 1920.
In the photo on the right we see W.F. Stirling on an Arab mare given him by the Emir Feisal
Notes for Colonel Walter Francis Stirling:
Education: Kelly College; Graduation: graduated Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst Military service: Lieutenant in Royal Dublin Fusiliers; Post: Governor of the Jaffa District in Palestine; Awarded: DSO, Order of the Nile, MC, Order of El Nah.
Served with Lawrence of Arabia. Wrote the book Safety Last (decribed in booksellers listing): "Foreword by Siegfried Sassoon and an epilogue by Lord Kinross. 1953, 17 photographs, one of Lawrence taken by the author."
Table of contents of Safety Last: I. England: 1880-1899, II. South Africa: 1899-1902, III. Malta and Egypt: 1902-1905, IV. The Sudan: 1905-1912, V. Canada and London: 1912-1913, VI. Egypt: 1913-1914, VII. The Suez Canal and Gallipoli: 1914-1915, VIII. The Palestine Campaign: 1915-1918, IX. Arab Revolt: 1918-1919, X. Cairo: 1919, XI. Sinai: 1920, XII. Palestine: 1920-1923, XIII. Albania: 1923-1931, XIV. London: 1931-1938, XV. Rumania: 1939, XVI. Censorship, London: 1939-1940, XVII. The Balkans: 1940-1941, XVIII. Jerusalem: 1941-1942, XIX. Spears Mission, Syria: 1944-1945
He spent his childhood at Hampton Court Palace where Queen Victoria had set aside a wing for widows of Naval officers who died in the course of duty. W.F.'s father went down with his ship in 1880, the year W.F. was born (he left on the fateful voyage on the day W.F. was born). Just before WWI he came to Canada for a brief stint of rough living. His cousin (presumably Grote Stirling) found him an orchard property which he bought near Kelowna. He concluded that he would never make money and sold it at the first opportunity and went back to England in time to go back into the Army for the War.
In 1949, which is after the end of the text he wrote in Safety Last, Stirling was shot and nearly killed in Damascus. This event is described in the epilogue by Lord Kinross, which ends: "A few days after the attempted assassination a friend of his was sitting in a small Arab café in the bazaars of Damascus. Two Arabs were sitting at a table next him. He overheard one say to the other: "Did they really think they could kill Colonel Stirling with only six shots?"
For more info on W.F. Stirling's fascinating life, find a copy of his book Safety Last through a used book store or website. There appear to be many copies readily available.
Submitted by Elspeth Flood
