JPAE Posted 4 April , 2009 Share Posted 4 April , 2009 Finding Motor car connections to flying has been easy of late due to re-reading Motor Sport Magazines, and the extraordinary in depth articles by Bill Boddy MBE. These are only 10 year old copies but he is still contributing to this day, and aged 95 is the worlds longest serving journalist having submitted copy initially in 1930! In Jan. 2001 he told the story of the Marendaz specials that were raced, rallied and made as individual, fast road cars, and were the product of Capt. Donald M K Marendaz. His family were Swiss, but had settled in Wales in the 1700's. He flew Armstrong-Whitworth FK8s of No. 35 squadron RFC during WW1. apparantly inspired by watching C S Rolls flying near his Monmouth school. He was invalided out of the service in 1918, and never flew again. The rest of the story is of a very individualistic entrepreneur . Boddy states that "Marendaz has been described as colourful; I would think awkward and ingenious more appropriate." The Great War took away so many promising lives and makes one appreciate those survivors who were able to pursue their creative talents, even as eccentric as this chap. Anyone wishing to read more of the Captains post-war activities please PM. Cheers for now. Phil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
per ardua per mare per terram Posted 5 April , 2009 Share Posted 5 April , 2009 RAF record probabley in AIR 76/333 As his name is so unusual I didn't put limits on my general search of the UK National Archives catalogue so here are some off topic matches: FCO 47/274 South Africa: Captain D M K Marendaz in dispute with Dr de Wet, South African Minister of Mines and Health 1970 Jan 01 - 1970 Dec 31 HO 45/23722 WAR: Donald Marcus Kelway Marendaz, designer and manufacturer of Marendaz Special cars and Marendaz monoplanes: internment 1940-1941 J 13/14963 Name of Company: Marendaz Special Cars Ltd 1936 J 107/126 Marendaz Special Cars Ltd. 1936 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPAE Posted 6 April , 2009 Author Share Posted 6 April , 2009 RAF record probabley in AIR 76/333 As his name is so unusual I didn't put limits on my general search of the UK National Archives catalogue so here are some off topic matches: FCO 47/274 South Africa: Captain D M K Marendaz in dispute with Dr de Wet, South African Minister of Mines and Health 1970 Jan 01 - 1970 Dec 31 HO 45/23722 WAR: Donald Marcus Kelway Marendaz, designer and manufacturer of Marendaz Special cars and Marendaz monoplanes: internment 1940-1941 J 13/14963 Name of Company: Marendaz Special Cars Ltd 1936 J 107/126 Marendaz Special Cars Ltd. 1936 Thank you for the additional details. He was interned for taking photos of his OWN training 'plane, and fined, but imprisonment/internment had a fascist link too. His WW1 RFC status led to release. UK 1972 until death in 1988. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
per ardua per mare per terram Posted 7 April , 2009 Share Posted 7 April , 2009 He sounds an interesting charactor! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPAE Posted 7 April , 2009 Author Share Posted 7 April , 2009 He sounds an interesting charactor! He was. I can email the entire story[4 pages] if you would like. Just PM me the address. Cheers for now, Phil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LowNslow Posted 12 April , 2009 Share Posted 12 April , 2009 He sounds an interesting charactor! He certainly was. There is some interesting information on Marendaz and his 1930s connections with Barton le Clay aerodrome in Bedfordshire here: http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showthread.php?t=86219 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPAE Posted 12 April , 2009 Author Share Posted 12 April , 2009 LowNslow, Excellent link, and unmissable if you wish to learn of a flyer who survived 1917, and I suppose, had a right to be a tad idiosyncratic. His Lincolnshire home was two houses that he knocked together and called, with typical modesty, 'Asterby Hall'. Hoping for an interview a young Motor Sport reporter wrote to him, only to receive the reply: "Invitations to visit the doyen of Automotive and Aeronautical Engineers originate from Asterby Hall, and none are programmed for you." I have enjoyed the Art deco surroundings at Sywell Aerodrome Bar a couple of times, as well as a few pints, and the history stuff. Cheers, Phil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waddell Posted 26 March , 2020 Share Posted 26 March , 2020 pcartwright, The article and many others Phil was talking about are available freely from the Motor Sport Archives- https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/issues?search=marendaz Phil hasn't been on the forum for around a year, but after a few posts you should be able to send him a private message. Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quemerford Posted 26 March , 2020 Share Posted 26 March , 2020 There is a book about Marendaz (published by Fonthill IIRC) too: it's a good read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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