Francis Bingham Mildmay, 1st Baron Mildmay of Flete, TD, DL (26 April 1861 – 8 February 1947) was initially a

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 ...

and later a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

from 1885 until 1922 when he was raised to the peerage. Mildmay was the son of Henry Bingham Mildmay and his wife, Georgiana Frances (née Bulteel). He was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

. He became a partner in the firm of Baring Brothers. At the 1885 general election, Mildmay was elected

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

(MP) for the Totnes division of

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

. He was one of the

Liberal Unionist The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a politic ...

s who combined to oppose the

Home Rule Bill The Irish Home Rule movement was a movement that campaigned for self-government (or "home rule") for Ireland within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It was the dominant political movement of Irish nationalism from 1870 to the e ...

in 1885, and was returned in subsequent parliaments as a Liberal Unionist, and from 1912 as a Conservative. He held the seat for 37 years until he retired from the Commons at the 1922 general election and was ennobled. Mildmay held a commission in the

West Kent Yeomanry (Queen's Own) The Queen's Own West Kent Yeomanry was a British Army regiment formed in 1794. It served in the Second Boer War and the World War I, First World War. It amalgamated with the Royal East Kent Yeomanry, Royal East Kent (The Duke of Connaught's Own) ...

, a cavalry

Yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army Reserve, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of different military roles. History Origins In the 1790s, f ...

regiment, where he was first

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

, promoted to captain on 17 May 1893, and to major on 20 March 1901. He saw active service in the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South ...

when he volunteered for the

Imperial Yeomanry The Imperial Yeomanry was a volunteer mounted force of the British Army that mainly saw action during the Second Boer War. Created on 2 January 1900, the force was initially recruited from the middle classes and traditional yeomanry sources, but s ...

, where he was appointed a lieutenant in the 11th battalion on 10 February 1900, leaving

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

for

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

on the SS ''Cymric'' in March 1900. After the war had ended, he returned to a commission in the West Kent Yeomanry in August 1902. He later served in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

between 1914 and 1918. At one stage he was divisional interpreter of General Sir Thomas D'Oyly Snow, who referred to him with affection and some wonderment at his tireless work and bravery in doing his duty at the

Second Battle of Ypres During the First World War, the Second Battle of Ypres was fought from for control of the tactically important high ground to the east and south of the Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium. The First Battle of Ypres had been fought the pr ...

. Mildmay was often found to be carrying messages across the battlefield. Snow described him as a colourful and brave chap and recommended him for a decoration more than once though he never got one apart from the

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer Officer's Decoration when the Te ...

(TD).

Mildmay was created Baron Mildmay of Flete, of

Totnes Totnes ( or ) is a market town and civil parish at the head of the estuary of the River Dart in Devon, England, within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is about west of Paignton, about west-southwest of Torquay and abo ...

in the County of Devon, on 20 November 1922 and was a member of the Committee for Review of Political Honours Commission between 1923 and 1924. Appointed a deputy lieutenant of Devon on 31 March 1913, he became Lord-Lieutenant of Devon in 1928. He lived at

Flete House Flete House is a Grade I listed country house at Holbeton, in the South Hams region of Devon, England. History With roots in Saxon times, the Manor of Flete was held by the Damarell family from 1066 until the time of Edward III. The earlies ...

, a mansion near Plymouth built by his father which remodelled and extended the original house of the

Elizabethan era The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personific ...

. He was an extensive breeder and exhibitor of South Devon Cattle and was President of the Royal Agricultural Society of England in 1932 and from 1941 to 1943. He was a member and treasurer of the Medical Research Council and a director of the Great Western Railway, who named 'Bulldog' class locomotive 3417 after him.

Family

Mildmay married Alice O. St. J. Grenfell, daughter of Charles Seymour Grenfell, in 1906. They had two children: a son,

Anthony Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the '' Antonii'', a ''gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton, ...

, and a daughter.

References

External links