18 Facts About Kinahan Cornwallis

Kinahan Cornwallis was born on 19 February 1883 in the United States and was the son of British poet, writer, and world traveler Kinahan Cornwallis and his wife Elisabeth Cornwallis of Hartford, Connecticut.

Kinahan Cornwallis left university and spent eight years in the Sudan Civil Service.

From 1916 to 1920, Kinahan Cornwallis was the Director of the Arab Bureau.

Kinahan Cornwallis had been deputy director of the bureau under David Hogarth, a Naval Intelligence officer.

On 11 September 1923, Kinahan Cornwallis asked the British administrative inspectors in all Iraqi provinces to telegraph him the names of candidates who they and the Iraqi provincial governors felt would vote for the treaty.

On 8 February 1924, after considering the names, Kinahan Cornwallis sent each provincial inspector and governor a list of proposed candidates for the 100-member constituent assembly.

In 1940, Kinahan Cornwallis wrote the Introduction to Gertrude Bell's posthumously published The Arab War.

Kinahan Cornwallis had much experience in Mesopotamia having spent twenty years in the country as adviser to former King Faisal I who had died in 1933.

Kinahan Cornwallis, being highly regarded, was sent to Iraq on the understanding that he would be able to hold a more forceful line with the new Iraqi government than had hitherto been the case.

Unfortunately the British agent Kinahan Cornwallis arrived in Iraq too late to prevent the outbreak of war.

Kinahan Cornwallis referred the issue to London and received the reply that there was no interest in moving the troops out of the country.

Kinahan Cornwallis was informed not to inform Rashid Ali who, as he had taken control of the country via a coup d'etat, had no right to be informed about British troop movements.

Kinahan Cornwallis signaled the Foreign Office that he regarded the Iraqi actions as an act of war which required an immediate air response.

Kinahan Cornwallis informed them that he intended to demand the withdrawal of the Iraqi forces and permission to launch air strikes to restore control.

From this point, Kinahan Cornwallis was confined to the British Embassy compound in Baghdad.

On 14 October 1911 in London, Kinahan Cornwallis married Gertrude Dorothy Bowen, daughter of Sir Albert Edward Bowen, 1st Baronet, and Alice Anita Crowther.

Kinahan Cornwallis married again in 1937 to Margaret Hilda Mary Clark.

Kinahan Cornwallis died 3 June 1959 at his home at North Warnborough, Basingstoke, aged 76.