The Papers of General Sir Charles Bonham-Carter

Charles Bonham-Carter was born 25 February 1876, the 9th son of Henry and Sibella Charlotte Bonham-Carter. He was educated at Clifton College, the Royal Military College at Sandhurst, and at Staff College, Camberley. His first marriage was in 1902, to Gladys Beryl Coddington, they had two sons and were divorced in 1910. His second marriage was in 1911, to Gabrielle Madge Jeanette Fisher, they had one son.

He served in the South African War, 1900; the First World War, 1914-1918 for which he was awarded a number of honours. He was Director of Staff Duties at the War Office, 1927-1931. He was Commander of the 4th Division at Colchester, 1931-1933. He was Director-General of the Territorial Army, 1933-1936. He was Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Malta, 1936-1940. He was made up to General in 1937. He was ADC General to the King, 1938-1941. In 1940 he suffered a heart attack, returned to England and retired. He died 21 Oct 1955.

Bonham-Carter was awarded the following: Knight Grand Cross of the Bath, 1941; Knight Commander of the Bath, 1935; Companion of the Bath, 1926; Companion of St Michael and St George, 1919; Companion of the Distinguished Service Order, 1917; Honorary LLD from Royal Malta University.

The papers include Bonham-Carter's diaries, correspondence, photographs and speeches particularly from his time as Governor and Commander in chief of Malta.

General Charles Bonham-Carter's sons, Desmond and Victor, deposited the papers at Churchill Archives Centre in 1966, 1967, 1970 and 1984.

The papers are arranged into 13 series, seven of the series deal with his time in Malta, and two are related to the First World War. The remaining series deal with wider subjects.

The collection is owned by Churchill College.

The collection is open for consultation by researchers using Churchill Archives Centre, Churchill College, Cambridge. Churchill Archives Centre is open from Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm. A prior appointment and two forms of identification are required.

Researchers wishing to publish excerpts from the papers must obtain prior permission from the copyright holders and should seek advice from Archives Centre staff.

Please cite as Churchill Archives Centre, The Papers of General Sir Charles Bonham-Carter, BHCT

The papers of Lieutenant Octavius Henry Bonham-Carter (1873 - 1901) are also held at Churchill Archives Centre (collection code OHBC).

The Bonham-Carter papers were catalogued in 1969 and 1986. A copy of the printed catalogue is available at Churchill Archives Centre and at the National Register of Archives.

This collection (fonds) level description was prepared by Louise King at Churchill Archives Centre in April 2002 using information from the catalogue introduction and "Who Was Who".