T. E. Lawrence

British archaeologist, army officer and diplomat (1888–1935)

Colonel T.E. Lawrence (in full Thomas Edward Lawrence), better known in history as Lawrence of Arabia (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935), was a British Army officer, explorer, scholar, writer, military strategist and linguist. He was born in Tremadog, Caernarfonshire, Wales. He studied history at University of Oxford. He joined the Army by taking part in the Officers' Training Corps at Oxford. He is best known for having helped the Arabs organize themselves against the Turks during the First World War.

T. E. Lawrence
Lawrence in 1919
Birth nameThomas Edward Lawrence
NicknameLawrence of Arabia, El Aurens
Born16 August 1888
Tremadog, Caernarfonshire, Wales, United Kingdom
Died19 May 1935 (aged 46)
Bovington Camp, Dorset, England, United Kingdom
Buried atSt Nicholas, Moreton, Dorset
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Arab Revolt
Kingdom of Hejaz
Service/branch British Army
Royal Air Force
Years of service1914–18
1923–35
RankColonel and Aircraftman

His memoirs of the time spent with the Arabs, The Seven Pillars of Wisdom (1926), is a well-known work of literature. He died in 1935 in a motorcycle accident in Dorset.