David James George Hennessy, 3rd Baron Windlesham and Baron Hennessy, (28 January 1932 – 21 December 2010), was a
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
politician in the United Kingdom who held visiting professorships at various universities.
Early life
Hennessy, an
Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the establis ...
peer, was educated at
Ampleforth College
Ampleforth College is a co-educational independent day and boarding school in the English public school tradition located in the village of Ampleforth, North Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1802 as a boys' school, it is situated in the groun ...
and
Trinity College, Oxford
(That which you wish to be secret, tell to nobody)
, named_for = The Holy Trinity
, established =
, sister_college = Churchill College, Cambridge
, president = Dame Hilary Boulding
, location = Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BH
, coordinates ...
, earning a
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
in
Jurisprudence
Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning a ...
in 1957.
He did his
National Service
National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939.
The l ...
with the
Grenadier Guards
"Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it."
, colors =
, colors_label =
, march = Slow: " Scipio"
, mascot =
, equipment =
, equipment ...
in
Tripoli
Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to:
Cities and other geographic units Greece
*Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece
* Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece
* Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...
.
His father,
James Hennessy, 2nd Baron Windlesham, was a Lieutenant General in the Grenadier Guards. They are closely related to the Franco-Irish Cognac Hennessy family.
Political career
Hennessy was elected to
Westminster Borough Council in 1958 to 1962,
unsuccessfully contested
Tottenham
Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Waltham ...
in
1959
Events January
* January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...
, and entered the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...
as the 3rd
Baron Windlesham upon his father's death in 1962, who died in a helicopter accident at sea, having been a brigadier in the Grenadier Guards. He joined the Government as Minister of State in the
Home Office in 1970 to 1972; and from 1972 to 1973, in the
Northern Ireland Office
The Northern Ireland Office (NIO; ga, Oifig Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster-Scots: ''Norlin Airlann Oaffis'') is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for N ...
, after which he became
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal and
Leader of the House of Lords
The leader of the House of Lords is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom who is responsible for arranging government business in the House of Lords. The post is also the leader of the majority party in the House of Lords who acts as ...
in June 1973 until October 1974.
He was appointed a Commander of the
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...
(CVO) in the 1981
New Year's Honours
The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark thi ...
. On 16 November 1999, he was created Baron Hennessy, of Windlesham in the County of Surrey
after the
House of Lords Act 1999
The House of Lords Act 1999 (c. 34) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the House of Lords, one of the chambers of Parliament. The Act was given Royal Assent on 11 November 1999. For centuries, the House of Lords ...
, so that he could continue sitting in the Lords.
Media
He worked for
Associated-Rediffusion
Associated-Rediffusion, later Rediffusion London, was the British ITV franchise holder for London and parts of the surrounding counties, on weekdays between 22 September 1955 and 29 July 1968. It was the first ITA franchisee to go on air, ...
and was involved in ''
This Week''. He later joined the board of
Rediffusion
Rediffusion was a business that distributed radio and TV signals through wired relay networks. The business gave rise to a number of other companies, including Associated-Rediffusion, later known as Rediffusion London, the first ITV (commercia ...
as Chief Programme Executive.
His TV career continued as managing director of
Grampian
Grampian ( gd, Roinn a' Mhonaidh) was one of nine former local government regions of Scotland created in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and abolished in 1996 by the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994. The region to ...
(1967–1970) and managing director of the
ATV network (1974–1981).
He was a director of ''
The Observer
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'' from 1981 to 1989.
Academic
Hennessy returned to Oxford, where he earned a
DLitt
Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Doctor ...
, and was principal of
Brasenose College
Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the m ...
from 1989 to 2002.
He had also been a visiting professor at
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...
in 1997 and 2002 to 2003.
Family
Baron Windlesham married the fashion journalist and author
Prudence Glynn
Prudence Glynn, Baroness Windlesham (1935–1986) was a British fashion journalist and author, best known for her long-running role as the first fashion editor of ''The Times''.
During her 15 years presiding over the fashion pages of one of the ...
in 1965. She died in 1986; he is survived by a son, James and a daughter, Victoria.
Arms
References
External links
Announcement of his taking the oath under his new title at the House of LordsHouse of Lords minutes of proceedings, 22 November 1999
David James George Hennessy, 3rd Baron Windlesham National Portrait Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Windlesham, David Hennessy, 3rd Baron
1932 births
2010 deaths
Alumni of Trinity College, Oxford
Lords Privy Seal
Barons Windlesham
Conservative Party (UK) councillors
Conservative Party (UK) life peers
Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order
Leaders of the House of Lords
Members of the Bow Group
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
People educated at Ampleforth College
Principals of Brasenose College, Oxford
British Roman Catholics
British people of Irish descent
Northern Ireland Office junior ministers
Eldest sons of British hereditary barons
Hennessy family
Honorary Fellows of the British Academy
Hennessy
Jas Hennessy & Co., commonly known simply as Hennessy (), is a French producer of cognac, which has its headquarters in Cognac, France.
It is one of the "big four" cognac houses, along with Martell, Courvoisier, and Rémy Martin, who together ma ...
Life peers created by Elizabeth II
Hereditary peers removed under the House of Lords Act 1999