F.A. Mitchell-Hedges
Frederick Albert Mitchell-Hedges was born on 22nd October 1882. He grew up to be one of the most extraordinary and unconventional characters England has ever produced.
An adventurer with a rare and true spirit who cared passionately about the world and who could articulate his experiences, thoughts and dreams to those sufficiently open-minded to listen.
His occupations ranged from a stockbroker, antique dealer, explorer, archaeologist, big-game fisherman, lecturer, writer and poet – all experienced in his quest for adventure, to live life to the full and inspire others to follow in his footsteps. ‘Life lived without adventure is not life at all.’
His mother’s maiden name was Julia Alice Mitchell and, as a tribute to his mother and out of his great love for her, he added ‘Mitchell’ to his Father’s surname of Hedges whereupon he became known to his many friends as ‘MH’.
His love of fishing showed at an early age when he sneaked onto a private estate near to his parent’s house in Buckinghamshire. He told the man who challenged him that he’d been given permission to fish by the Lord of the Manor. The man was the Lord himself but he was so impressed by the lad’s boldness that he let him continue to fish.
The seed of danger is sown
His independent spirit surfaced at boarding school when he was twelve. The Headmaster intended flogging him in front of the whole school but Mitchell-Hedges defied him and refused to submit to being thrashed. Instead, he threw an inkwell at the Headmaster and ran away from school. He was to spend a great part of his life battling against authority.
As a lad, he read the great adventure novelists of the day and fantasized of discovering lost cities, meeting fierce tribes and surviving encounters with savage beasts.
Such dreaming did not endear him to his Father who wanted him to enter the family business. To try and quash his son’s spirit of adventure, his Father arranged for the 16 year old Mitchell-Hedges to go on a harsh prospecting trip to the Arctic with Brooke Mee – a business acquaintance.
Despite embarrassing the young lad by putting a woman in his bed – a temptation that Mitchell-Hedges resisted - and then laughing at his naivety, the plan backfired as Mitchell-Hedges relished the outdoor life. He became friendly with an Eskimo, Poochee, and together they went hunting and fishing to get supplies for the camp. Mitchell-Hedges’ one regret was ‘I craved excitement and… here there were no fierce animals, no hostile savages, not even a few poisonous snakes. I longed to test my nerve.’
His opportunity came on the return journey home. Caught in a blizzard, their boat had to battle through heavy seas. For the first time in his life and, indeed the only time he admits to it, Mitchell-Hedges experienced real fear when he thought the boat was going to sink. Although two men from the expedition died of exposure, his Father’s plan never succeeded in stopping his roving instinct. If anything, it encouraged him.
Not Nine to Five
Back in England, Mitchell-Hedges nonchalant attitude to his work eventually resulted is his dismissal from the stockbroker job his Father had arranged for him. A furious confrontation between Father and son followed.
Worse was to come. Following a rowdy stag night, Mitchell-Hedges was arrested and ended up in court - much to his Father’s embarrassment. His Father now gave up on his wayward son and actually ordered him to leave the country rather than bring further shame upon the family.
In February 1900, Mitchell-Hedges aged 18 emigrated to Canada. It was whilst on board the Canadian Pacific Steamship Lake Manitoba that Mitchell-Hedges found he had a gamblers instinct for playing poker – a skill that was to come in useful many times in the future.
Ironically, on arrival, fate steered him to New York where he got a job as a stockbroker working with Jules Bache – one of the richest men in America. Mitchell-Hedges describes this time as ‘Life was thrilling, exciting, dangerous. There were handsome profits to be made and handsome losses, too.’ It was during this time he also met J.P. ‘Mighty’ Morgan – the richest man in America who inspired Mitchell-Hedges to be determined and to turn his dream into reality.
Mitchell-Hedges had saved sufficient money to fund his first expedition when he received news his beloved Mother was ill. He abandoned his plans and hurried home. His mother survived but his planned expedition never took place for in 1906 he married Lillian Agnes Clarke known as ‘Dolly’. Although they remained married for over 50 years, Mitchell-Hedges spent amazingly little time with her and described himself ‘being among one of the leading contenders for the title of Worst Husband In The World’.
Also in 1906, he went with his Father on a trip to France to purchase antique silver. Whilst there he met Mrs. Le Guillon – a chance friendship which was to have a major bearing on his life in later years.
For the next seven years, Mitchell-Hedges became one of the vast majority of people whose soaring spirits and high morale are ‘crippled by the confines of business’. His stockbroker business thrived enabling him to buy a house in Bayswater and one of the first Daimlers.
One day, he learnt of a plan by his business associates to oust him by ‘bearing’ a scheme whereby shares are artificially depressed on the stock exchange until small investors panic and sell at a loss.
Shocked and furious at their treachery, Mitchell-Hedges redeployed it to ensure the Directors were ruined as well as himself. When his last debt was paid, he bought Dolly a small cottage in the country and went back to America.
In 1913, after working as a cowhand in Texas and a waiter in New Orleans, Mitchell-Hedges eventually worked his way down to Mexico. Once there, he was captured by Pancho Villas bandits. Mitchell-Hedges only escaped being shot as an American by proving he was English by singing ‘God save the King’. Forced to join the bandits on several raids, Mitchell-Hedges was shot twice in the leg.
In 1914 Pancho Villa allowed him to return to England to fight for his country in World War One. However, because of his bullet wounds, he was told he was exempt from military service.
He returned to America where he got a job as a salesman. It was whilst doing this that, with the help of two other American salesmen, he looked up Mrs Le Guillon who had emigrated to Port Colborn in Canada. The trio went on regular fishing trips in the area using worms supplied by Mrs Le Guillon’s young daughter Anne Marie.
A kindred soul
In 1917, Mrs. Le Guillon died in childbirth and, as her husband had died a few months earlier in France, the two Americans persuaded Mitchell-Hedges to adopt the orphan Anne Marie. He did this somewhat against his better judgment. Anne Marie wasn’t particularly keen either, asking if she really had to go with ‘this ugly man with the wrinkled skin’.
Initially, Anne Marie refused to talk and sullenly sat in the window seat of Mitchell-Hedges’s New York apartment overlooking central park. She was terrified of his deep gravely voice. Try as he might to coax her out to buy clothes, meals or walks in the park.
However, one day Mitchell-Hedges returned to find Anne Marie darning one of his socks and a dialogue was struck up. And so began a relationship which was to last for the next 43 years.
Mitchell-Hedges parenting skills were well-meaning if amusing. He insisted on buying the ten year old girl the finest silk underwear. One day, Anne Marie did something foolish and Mitchell-Hedges labeled her ‘Silly Sam’. From that moment onwards, he always called her Sammy.
Mitchell-Hedges intended sending Sammy to boarding school but the emotion of parting proved too great and so Mitchell-Hedges took her on his first expedition to Central America. Mitchell-Hedges unorthodox approach to parenting meant he taught his adopted daughter how to fish shoot and play poker.
A revolution in Central America necessitated that Mitchell-Hedges continue his traveling alone and he was immediately arrested as a spy for photographing rebel troops. His freedom cost him two crates of whisky which wasn’t much of a hardship as he was teetotal.
Mitchell-Hedges also met General Lee Christmas, another rebel leader, whom he met at the poker table and whose troops he witnessed storming a bridge over a ravine at great cost of life.
The explorer is born
After two years of traveling around in Central America and hearing rumors of mysterious buried cities, inaccessible mountain ranges and lost tribes with strange ceremonies and grotesque customs, Mitchell-Hedges returned to London to try and raise funds for an expedition.
He also wanted to test his theory that much bigger fish existed than had ever been caught previously. He believed if such monsters of the deep could be landed, they would tell science much new information about ichthyology. And, if he was wrong, he would still have ‘an awful lot of fun!’ A chance encounter with an old friend, Lady Richmond Brown, provided both the money and an ideal companion.
They trekked deep into the jungle to encounter the San Blas and Chucunaque tribes. A great deal about the history and customs of these tribes was learned (including The Feast Of Hair Cutting and the Ritual Of Death). Much needed medical aid was dispensed and more hygienic practices introduced.
On their arrival amongst the Chucunaque, the tribe decided to kill the white intruders as it was a tribal custom that death should be dispensed to anyone violating their territory. Fortunately, Mitchell-Hedges had anticipated this danger and he had the foresight to bring some flares and Lady Richmond Brown’s Queen of Sheba costume.
A performance worthy of any theatre was put on which convinced the Chucunaque that Mitchell-Hedges and Lady Richmond Brown were Gods sent to cure their ills.
A huge number of fascinating exhibits were collected. Amongst these was the ‘Chief Fetish’ of the Chucunaque tribe used to treat males on the point of death. This was a human male fetus preserved by an unknown means so to be as perfect as it was when first removed from the mother.
Professor Sir Arthur Keith F.R.S., regarded as one of the greatest anthropologist of his day, examined the Chief Fetish and declared it had a skull formation ‘hitherto entirely unknown’. This anomaly has never been solved and the unique specimen was presented to The British Museum along with hundreds of others. Thousands more were donated to The Heye Foundation In New York.
Unleashed
Mitchell-Hedges then spent time fishing in Jamaica where he caught a record red snapper weighing 102.25lbs and a shovel nosed shark weighing in at 237.5lbs – the largest fish he had caught on rod and line at that time. He also caught hammer-head shark five foot three inches in length and a sting ray weighing 260 lbs. These catches are all the more remarkable when you consider Mitchell-Hedges was fishing from a relatively small and easily-cap sizable dinghy!
Perhaps the most notable event was to catch and kill a girl-eating shark in Kingston Harbour, Jamaica. It was caught on the less than conventional tackle of five empty fifty gallon oil drums and a hook baited with two dead dogs. The shark was only eleven feet long but its girth was eight feet six inches. It weighed 700 lbs. The shark was mounted and is now in the Kingston museum.
On Roatan, they discovered evidence of a cataclysmic event where giant boulders had been tossed about and cliffs contorted under enormous pressure.
In caves hewn out by man, hundreds of artifacts were found including a pottery ram or sheep with a branded mark. As the Maya didn’t keep domesticated animals, Mitchell-Hedges regarded this find as an important piece of evidence in support of his theory.
One of Mitchell-Hedges thoughtful habits was to plant coconuts wherever they found any sprouting. It was whilst doing this that they had the good fortune to unearth three chests of pirate treasure. Only able to remove two, the third was left.
In 1932, he visited New York. His easy-going English charm attracted the attention of Mrs. Shepherd a leading light of New York society who was so smitten that she announced the couples engagement. Mitchell-Hedges furiously denied it and quickly moved to Hollywood.
Mitchell-Hedges hired a house in Beverly Hills – the only one with a church organ. One of the many friends and film stars who visited the by now legendary Englishman was an MGM Studio Executive who encouraged Mitchell-Hedges to write a screenplay. This he did with Jean Harlow in the starring role, but the stars death put an end to the project.
Changes
In 1934, Mitchell-Hedges Father, John Hedges, died. It was a bitter blow to him that his Father had not remembered him in his will. Upsetting for emotional, not financial, reasons. All Mitchell-Hedges inherited was a title – Lord of Bantree which he never used.
Mitchell-Hedges spent time in New York where he became a popular radio broadcaster and lecturer. His deep voice, chiseled looks and cold eyes made him popular with New York ladies.
Vulnerable after his Father’s death he became easy prey for a New York gold-digger Dorothy whom he married after securing a divorce in Mexico. The divorce was later to prove illegible in Britain which was fortunate as the relationship with Dorothy was short-lived.
Mitchell-Hedges returned to England to live in Coverack, Cornwall. He began dealing in antique silver and some of the world’s most valuable pieces passed through his hands including Marie Antoinette’s mirror. He had the appreciation of a connoisseur and an eye for quality.
Mitchell-Hedges was planning another expedition when World War 2 broke out. Scotland Yard wrote to him requesting that he used his high-level American contacts to try and encourage America to join the war.
When this happened, he entertained such well-known names as General Hague, General Alexander, General Eisenhower, General Montgomery, General de Gaulle and Churchill. Indeed, Eisenhower and Nixon actually did the washing-up after one of Mitchell-Hedges legendary dinner parties.
In 1943, Mitchell-Hedges got embroiled in another controversy that still rages in some quarters to this day. In times before burglar alarms, it was not unusual to leave valuable items with friends if one was going away for long periods of time.
Mitchell-Hedges did this with a school friend, Sidney Burney, who had always shown an interest in the Crystal Skull. However, in 1943, Burney inexplicably put the Crystal Skull up for auction at Sotheby’s in London.
Mitchell-Hedges learnt of this the day before and was so furious that for a while he was unable to speak. Unable to contact Burney, he arose the next day at 5am and travelled to London to retrieve his property.
Sotheby’s informed him that the vendor was Sidney Burney’s son. When they refused to withdraw it from the sale, Mitchell-Hedges realized the easiest way of regaining his property was to purchase it back. This he did for £400.
After the war, Mitchell-Hedges became depressed at all the petty regulations and ‘the unedifying spectacle of official snoopers’. Mitchell-Hedges and Sammy were invited to South Africa by General Smuts.
Mitchell-Hedges reciprocated by making two incredibly generous gestures. Mitchell-Hedges took the silver cup and plinth presented at the instigation of George 3rd to Admiral Sir David Baird after he had reduced the Cape Settlement in 1805. He presented this to the people of Cape Town. It can still be seen in the Cape Town museum.
He also gave the impressive Shield Of Jove to the Government and people of South Africa for them to present to the South African athlete who most distinguishes him or herself in each Olympic Games.
Mitchell-Hedges was soon to surpass even this generosity when they traveled to the resort of St. Lucia on the coast near the Zululand. When Sammy said she would never tire of seeing the spectacular sunset with clouds of flamingos, he excused himself and returned within half an hour having purchased the entire resort.
When it came to be sold, it posed an awkward problem as there were strict regulations in force concerning taking currency out of the country. However, Mitchell-Hedges solved it legally and with typical ingenuity.
He bought the Black Virgin of Kazaan, the Russian icon that went missing from Russia after the 1917 revolution. It had previously helped rally the Russian people against Napoleon and was claimed to work miracles. It was encrusted with over one thousand precious jewels.
Mitchell-Hedges bought the icon in England but paid for it in South Africa.
Settling down
In 1953, Mitchell-Hedges bought Farley Castle in Berkshire. It made an ideal setting for his many treasures and several Archbishops from the Russian Orthodox Church traveled to see it there. It was his wish that the icon should one day be sold back to the Russian Orthodox Church although he did not want it to return to a country under Communist rule.
In 1954, Mitchell-Hedges’ autobiography ‘Danger My Ally’ was published. It was his sixth and final book. The others he wrote were;
Land Of Wonder and Fear, published 1927
The White Tiger, published 1931
Battles With Giant Fish, published 1923
Battles With Sea Monsters, published 1929
Pancho Villa’s Prisoner, published 1947
In addition he also had a chapter of his exploits in Heroes Of Modern Adventure. It is a little known fact, and perhaps surprising, for such a swashbuckling explorer that he also wrote poetry with great passion and sensitivity.
Mitchell-Hedges passed away in 1959 at Shaldon House, Shaldon. He was cremated and his ashes scattered at sea.
He was a man of honor. His dying wish was that the remaining treasure chest should be given to the two Americans who persuaded him to adopt Sammy. This was duly carried out by Sammy.
In 1970 the Crystal Skull was examined by experts at the Hewlett Packard Crystal laboratories. Their conclusions surprised even themselves. They found that the Crystal Skull had been carved out of an exceptional piece of pure crystal against the grain or structure of the crystal. This should have caused the crystal to shatter. More puzzling still, there were no tool marks to be seen. Not even microscopic ones.
Although it is an anthropologically accurate carving of a human skull produced by a scientifically advanced civilization, they admitted that we couldn’t make it today and had no idea who had made it and for what purpose.
All findings that would have greatly amused Mitchell-Hedges greatly and had him reminding us of his theory.
But perhaps Mitchell-Hedges greatest achievement is not the adventurous lifestyle that has led him to be described as ‘the real Indiana Jones’ or the thirty seven thousand artifacts now residing in various museums all collected at his own expense, but the widespread admiration and love he earned from all those who had the pleasure of knowing him.
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