Charles Edward Montague

Charles Edward Montague (1 January 1867 – 28 May 1928) was an English journalist, known also as a writer of novels and essays.

Biography Montague was born and brought up in London, the son of an Irish Roman Catholic priest who had left his vocation to marry. He was educated at the City of London School and Balliol College, Oxford. Montague also played rugby at Oxford and was a member of the Oxford rowing team. Montague also received a Bronze Medal from the Royal Humane Society for saving a man from drowning. During this time, Montague wrote William Thomas Arnold (1907), a biography of the titular journalist, with Mary Augusta Ward. Disenchantment criticised the British Press' coverage of the war and the conduct of the British generals.

Montague published a collection of essays, The Right Place: A Book of Pleasures (1924). This book celebrated Montague's interests, including cycling, mountaineering, and architecture.

Disenchantment was praised by John Masefield in the Manchester Guardian; Masefield described the book as "one of the very best of the books which have been written about the war". Disenchantment was also lauded by H. G. Wells, George Bernard Shaw, H. M. Tomlinson, Christopher Morley, Heywood Broun and Dorothy Canfield.

Literary critic Harry Hansen lauded The Right Place as "the sort of book that one can open at dawn and at dusk, and find solace therein" and called Montague "a brilliant English journalist."

Media portrayal Charles Edward Montague is one of the 14 main characters of the series 14 - Diaries of the Great War. He is played by actor David Acton.

Film Adaptions Montague's short story "Judith" was adapted as the 1929 Hollywood film True Heaven, directed by James Tinling.

Works The Manchester Stage, 1880-1900 (with William T. Arnold, O. Elton, and A.N. Monkhouse) (1900) reviews Studies of Roman imperialism (with William T. Arnold, Edward Fiddes, Humphry Ward) (1906) William Thomas Arnold (with Mrs. Humphry Ward, AKA Mary Augusta Ward) (1907) biography A Hind Let Loose (1910), a novel Dramatic Values (1910), reviews The Morning's War (1913), a novel The Front Line (illustrated by Muirhead Bone) (1916) non-fiction The Western Front (illustrated by Muirhead Bone, introduction by Gen. Sir Douglas Haig) (1917) non-fiction Disenchantment (1922), essays [thoughts on the First World War] Fiery Particles (1923), short stories The Right Place (1924), travel writing Rough Justice (1926), a novel Right off the Map (1927), a science fiction novel Action (1928), short stories A Writer's Notes on His Trade (1930) "Two or Three Witnesses", a short story