Eric Cyril Boyd Edwards, Baron Chelmer , previously styled Sir Eric Edwards, (9 October 1914 – 3 March 1997) was an English solicitor and organiser for the

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 ...

. He was Chairman of the National Executive Committee of the

National Union of Conservative and Unionist Associations The National Conservative Convention (NCC), is the most senior body of the Conservative Party's voluntary wing. The National Convention effectively serves as the Party's internal Parliament, and is made up of its 800 highest-ranking Party Office ...

from 1957 to 1965, and Joint Treasurer of the party from 1965 to 1977.

Early life

Eric Edwards was the eldest son of Colonel C E Edwards DSO, a solicitor and

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

councillor. He attended

Felsted School (Keep your Faith) , established = , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent day and boarding , religion = Church of England , president = , head_label = Headmaster , head = Chris Townsend , r_head_l ...

, and gave up his early hope of becoming a

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

to enter his father's firm of solicitors, after taking an

LLB Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the China, People's Republic ...

at the University of London. He joined the

Essex Yeomanry The Essex Yeomanry was a Reserve unit of the British Army that originated in 1797 as local Yeomanry Cavalry Troops in Essex. Reformed after the experience gained in the Second Boer War, it saw active service as cavalry in World War I and as ar ...

, which in World War II became

147th (Essex Yeomanry) Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery The Essex Yeomanry was a Reserve unit of the British Army that originated in 1797 as local Yeomanry Cavalry Troops in Essex. Reformed after the experience gained in the Second Boer War, it saw active service as cavalry in World War I and as ar ...

. He fought in the invasion of France, winning a Military Cross in 1944, and gaining the rank of lieutenant-colonel. He was commanding officer of the Essex Yeomanry in 1945–6.

Conservative Party

After the war, he and his father joined the Conservative Party. Having failed to be preselected as Parliamentary candidate for Southend, he thereafter served the party in a voluntary capacity, at the same time adding insurance and property interests to his legal career. With the support of

Harold Macmillan Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, (10 February 1894 – 29 December 1986) was a British Conservative statesman and politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1957 to 1963. Caricatured as "Supermac", he ...

, he rose to become deputy party chairman. He was knighted in the

1954 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1954 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made to celebrate t ...

. and had the honour conferred on him by the Queen on 6 July. With Oliver Poole, he transformed party funding by setting a quota for subscription revenue from each constituency branch, with the results published at the annual party conference.

House of Lords

On 31 January 1963 he was created Baron Chelmer, ''of Margaretting in the County of Essex'', but never gave a maiden speech in the House of Lords, in keeping with the custom for party fund-raisers. He made 13 speeches in all.Mr Eric Edwards / Lord Chelmer: Contributions
from Hansard When Macmillan retired that year, he got The Lord Chelmer to sound out The Earl of Home as his successor, with the party split between Quintin Hogg and Rab Butler.

Arms

Personal life

He married Enid Harvey in 1939; they had one son.

Other interests

He was on the

board of directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

of several companies. He enjoyed sailing, especially

catamaran A Formula 16 beachable catamaran Powered catamaran passenger ferry at Salem, Massachusetts, United States A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a multi-hulled watercraft featuring two parallel hulls of equal size. It is a geometry-stab ...

s, and was involved with music charities.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chelmer, Eric Edwards, Baron 1914 births 1997 deaths Conservative Party (UK) life peers English solicitors Knights Bachelor Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Artillery officers British Army personnel of World War II People from Essex People educated at Alleyn Court School People educated at Felsted School Alumni of the University of London 20th-century British lawyers Essex Yeomanry officers 20th-century English lawyers Life peers created by Elizabeth II Military personnel from Essex