Avro Manhattan

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Baron Avro Manhattan (April 6, 1914 – November 27, 1990)<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> was an Italian writer, historian, poet and artist. A born aristocrat who wrote about various political topics throughout his career, Manhattan is perhaps best remembered as the author of several works discussing the Vatican's role in world politics and global affairs. Manhattan attended both the Sorbonne and the London School of Economics.<ref name=":0" />

Life and careerEdit

Born in Milan, Italy, on April 6, 1914, to American and Swiss/Dutch parents of Jewish extraction, Manhattan was originally known asTeofilo Lucifero Gardini in his early days in Italy.<ref name=":1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Before his exile, Manhattan was known to spend his summers at the home of the artist, Paolo Troubetzkoy, in Verbania.<ref name=":1" />

Manhattan, himself a painter, exhibited a number of his works at local Italian museums. The last of these exhibitions was at the Museo del Paesaggio, in Verbania, where two of his paintings remain to this day.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Manhattan was exiled to England from Italy during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War.<ref name=":5">Template:Cite news</ref> During World War II, he operated a radio station called "Radio Freedom" broadcasting to nations occupied by the Axis Powers. Manhattan officially changed residence to the United Kingdom in 1945 for "political reasons," but not until 1953 did Manhattan legally change his name, relinquishing the names "Teofilo Angelo Mario Gardini" and "Teophile Lucifer Gardini."<ref name=":3">Template:Cite news</ref> At the time, he lived in Wimbledon, London.<ref name=":3" />

File:This is a photograph of the Bandstand, South Marine Park, South Shields, August 1950. (10291198694).jpg

August 1950 photo of the South Marine Park in South Shields where Manhattan and his wife were known to enjoy walking.<ref name=":4" />

In 1961, Manhattan met his future wife, Anne Manhattan née Cunningham Brown,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> in London, and two years later, they moved into a house on Henry Nelson Street in South Shields, North East England.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":4" />

He is buried with his wife at Shotley Bridge in Benfieldside Cemetery, Consett, County Durham, England.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":4">Template:Cite news</ref> Their gravestone reads:<ref name=":2" />

To The Beloved Memory of BARON AVRO MANHATTAN, K.T. P.H.d. Knight Commander of the Crown of Savoy, Grand Cross of the Order of Mercedes, Knight Commander of Justice...Malta, Commander Grand Cross of Bethlehem, Writer and historian, Poet and Artist. Departed This Life Nov. 27th 1990, Deeply Mourned and Sadly Missed By His Beloved Wife Anne, Friends and Readership – Worldwide. Also His Dear Wife BARONESS ANNE MANHATTAN Died 18th Jan, 2008 Aged 86 Years.{{#if:|{{#if:|}}
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{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Blockquote with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | author | by | char | character | cite | class | content | multiline | personquoted | publication | quote | quotesource | quotetext | sign | source | style | text | title | ts }}His friends included H. G. Wells,<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":4" /> Pablo Picasso,<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":4" /> George Bernard Shaw, scientist Marie Stopes and the Rev. Ian Paisley.<ref>Patrick Marrinan (1973). Paisley. Man of Wrath (Tralee, Anvil), p. 229</ref>