Martin Conway

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William Martin Conway, 1st Baron Conway of Allington (April 12, 1856–April 19, 1937), English art critic, politician and mountaineer, was the son of Reverend William Conway, afterwards canon of Westminster.

W.M. Conway was born in Rochester, England, and educated at Repton and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he became a close friend of Karl Pearson. He became interested in early printing and engraving, and in 1880 made a tour of the principal libraries of Europe in pursuit of his studies, the result appearing in 1884 as a History of the Woodcutters of the Netherlands in the Fifteenth Century. His later works on art included:

Early Flemish Artists (1887)
The Literary Remains of Albrecht Durer (1889)
The Dawn of Art in the Ancient World (1891), dealing with Chaldean, Assyrian and Egyptian art.
Early Tuscan Artists (1902)
Art Treasures of Soviet Russia (1925)
Giorgione as a Landscape Painter (1929).

From 1884 to 1887 he was Professor of Art at University College, Liverpool; and from 1901 to 1904 he was Slade Professor of Fine Arts at Cambridge University. He was knighted in 1895 for his efforts in mapping 5,180 square km of the Karakoram Range in the Himalayas three years earlier.

Conway became an early member of the Alpine Club, of which he was president from 1902 to 1904. In 1892 he beat the then current climbing record by ascending to a height of 23,000 ft. (7,010 metres) in the Himalayas in the course of an exploring and mountaineering expedition undertaken under the auspices of the Royal Society, the Royal Geographical Society and the British Association. In 1896-1897 he explored the interior of Spitsbergen, and the following year he explored and surveyed the Bolivian Andes, climbing Sorata (21,500'/6,553m) and Illimani (21,200'/6,461m). He also ascended Aconcagua (22,831'/6,959m) and explored Tierra del Fuego. At the Paris exhibition of 1900 he received the gold medal for mountain surveys, and the founders medal of the Royal Geographical Society in 1905. His expeditions are described in:

Climbing and Exploration in the KaraKoram Himalayas (1894)
The Alps from End to End (1895)
The First Crossing of Spitsbergen (1897)
The Bolivian Andes (1901)
No Man's Land, a History of Spitsbergen from its discovery in 1596 to the beginning of the Scientific Exploration of the Country (1906)
Mountain Memories (1920)

Conway had been involved in politics for some time, consorting with both major parties allegedly in pursuit of a knighthood and a barony; he received both. He was elected Unionist Member of Parliament for the Combined English Universities in 1918, serving until 1931. He was raised to the peerage as 1st Baron Conway of Allington. This title became extinct on his death.

Conway was founder and first Director-General of the Imperial War Museum and a trustee of the National Portrait Gallery. His photograph collection formed the basis of the Conway Library at the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. He was also responsible for the restoration of Allington Castle

Conway died in London at the age of 81. His autobiography of 1932 is called Episodes in a Varied Life, while 1914's The Sport of Collecting explains his passion for collecting artworks, photographs, etc.

For a biography see The Conways by Joan Evans.

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by new constituency	Member of Parliament for Combined English Universities 2-seat constituency (with Herbert Fisher to 1926 Eleanor Rathbone 1926—) 1918–1931	Succeeded by Sir Reginald Henry Craddock Eleanor Rathbone