G. A. Beazeley facts for kids

George Adam Beazeley (born July 7, 1870, died May 8, 1961) was a British Army officer. He was a very important surveyor. He helped invent using cameras from the sky for mapping and finding old ruins. He might have been the first to call this "aerial archaeology."

Early Life and Training

George was the son of a civil engineer. He went to school at Chigwell Grammar School. He also studied at Cherbourg School in Malvern. Later, he trained at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. In 1890, he became a Second Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers.

He then went to the School of Military Engineering. This was from 1890 to 1892. After that, he worked with a special unit. This unit dealt with submarine mining in Cork Harbour, Ireland. He became a Lieutenant in 1893. In 1894, he moved to India. He spent most of his career there.

Working as a Surveyor

George continued working in submarine mining until 1897. Then, he changed his focus to surveying. He joined the Survey of India. He stayed there until he retired in 1925. He became a Captain in 1900. In 1910, he was promoted to Major.

From 1903 to 1904, he worked with the Somaliland Field Force. This was a military group. His work there was recognized as very good.

World War I and Aerial Discoveries

In October 1916, George was sent to Mesopotamia. This was during World War I. He was in charge of all the mapping work there. He had only a few British soldiers helping him. He also had about sixteen local porters.

He flew many missions in planes. These flights were to look for enemy positions. From the air, he also found old ruins. He looked for them on the ground too. He found the remains of an ancient city called Samarra. He also discovered old canal lines from the sky. These canals were on the Tigris-Euphrates plain.

In December 1917, he became a Lieutenant-Colonel. He received a special award called the Distinguished Service Order (DSO). This was for his excellent service. On May 2, 1918, his plane was shot down. He was captured by the Turks. He remained a prisoner of war until November 16, 1918. This was just after the war ended.

Later Career and Retirement

After the war, George worked with the Royal Air Force. This was in 1919 and again from 1921 to 1922. He retired from the Army in July 1925. But in 1929, he joined the Sudan Air Survey for a year.

He and his wife, Annette, retired to Jersey. They had married in 1900. From 1938, he worked in air raid precautions (ARP). This was to help protect people from air attacks. In 1940, he left Jersey for England. This was just before Germany took over the Channel Islands. He continued his ARP work until 1942. Then, he took an office job in Totnes. This job was also related to the war effort.

He returned to Jersey in July 1945. This was after the island was freed. His wife Annette passed away in 1950. George spent his retirement living in the Grouville Hall Hotel.

Family Tragedy

On November 4, 1938, a sad event happened. His daughter, Rozel, was killed. Her husband, Captain William Swan, also died. Their baby daughter was also killed. They were all in a plane crash. The plane was called St Catherine's Bay. It crashed at Jersey Airport.