C. E. Montague (Charles Edward Montague) Biography

Anglo-Irish novelist, essayist, and journalist, born in London, educated at Balliol College, Oxford. He was journalist for the Manchester Guardian from 1890 to 1925. His first novel, A Hind Let Loose (1910), a satire on various aspects of journalism in the Edwardian period, was followed by Dramatic Values (1911), a collection of drama reviews, and The Morning's War (1913), a celebration of mountaineering. Montague's experience of service during the First World War provided material for his most memorable writing: Disenchantment (1922), a collection of combative essays; and Rough Justice (1926), his best-known novel, and a powerful indictment of the war. He also produced The Right Place (1924), essays on lighter subjects; Fiery Particles (1923) and Action (1928), collections of short stories; and A Writer's Notes on His Trade (1930). Oliver Elton's C. E. Montague, A Memoir (1929) contains extracts from his war diaries.