Sir Frederic Mackarness Bennett (2 December 1918 – 14 September 2002) was a British journalist, author, barrister and

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 served as a

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 ...

for 35 years. He was appointed a

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of ei ...

in 1985, and a Deputy Lieutenant for Greater London in 1990. He was also

Lord of the manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...

Mawddwy Mawddwy is a community in the county of Gwynedd, Wales, and is 88.3 miles (142.2 km) from Cardiff and 172.8 miles (278.0 km) from London. In 2011 the population of Mawddwy was 622 with 59.5% of them able to speak Welsh. It is one of the ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

Early years

The second son of Sir

Ernest Nathaniel Bennett Sir Ernest Nathaniel Bennett (12 December 1865 – 2 February 1947) was a British academic, politician, explorer and writer. Lineage Ernest Bennett's grandfather, Thomas Bennett (of Roseacre, Lancashire), was born in 1785 and died in 1868. He ...

, (died 1947) of Cwmllecoediog, Aberangell,

Machynlleth Machynlleth () is a market town, community and electoral ward in Powys, Wales and within the historic boundaries of Montgomeryshire. It is in the Dyfi Valley at the intersection of the A487 and the A489 roads. At the 2001 Census it had a pop ...

, Wales, by his wife Marguerite (née Kleinwort), Bennett was educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

, and Lincoln's Inn, and was called to the

English Bar Barristers in England and Wales are one of the two main categories of lawyer in England and Wales, the other being solicitors. Barristers have traditionally had the role of handling cases for representation in court, both defence and prosecutio ...

in November 1946. He subsequently served as an Advocate in the High Court of

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally kno ...

from March 1947, and in 1947 he made the first overland car journey from South Africa to England. From 1947 to 1949 he was an Official Observer in the

Greek Civil War The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος �όλεμος}, ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom and ...

, becoming diplomatic correspondent for the '' Birmingham Post'' from 1950 to 1952. Later a director in various financial and industrial institutions in the United Kingdom and overseas, he was also an

underwriter Underwriting (UW) services are provided by some large financial institutions, such as banks, insurance companies and investment houses, whereby they guarantee payment in case of damage or financial loss and accept the financial risk for liabilit ...

Lloyd's Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gov ...

Military

In 1939 Bennett enlisted in the

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

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 ...

. He was commissioned as an officer into the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

in 1940; commended for gallantry in 1941; was Military Experimental Officer in the

Petroleum Warfare Department The Petroleum Warfare Department (PWD) was a government department established in Britain in 1940 in response to the invasion crisis during World War II, when Germany apparently would invade the country. The department was initially tasked with ...

, 1943–1946, then released to reserve with the permanent rank of Major.

Political career

At the

1945 general election The following elections occurred in the year 1945. Africa * 1945 South-West African legislative election Asia * 1945 Indian general election Australia * 1945 Fremantle by-election Europe * 1945 Albanian parliamentary election * 1945 Bulgarian ...

, Bennett was an unsuccessful candidate in the Burslem constituency, in Staffordshire. At the 1950 general election, he stood in the Birmingham Ladywood constituency, again unsuccessfully. The following year, at the 1951 general election, he was finally elected to 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 ...

(MP) for Reading North. When that constituency was abolished for the general election in May 1955, Bennett stood for in election in the new Reading seat, but lost by 238 votes to Labour's

Ian Mikardo Ian Mikardo (9 July 1908 – 6 May 1993), commonly known as Mik, was a British Labour Member of Parliament. An ardent socialist and a Zionist, he remained a backbencher throughout his four decades in the House of Commons. He was a member of Nat ...

, the outgoing MP for the abolished Reading South constituency. In October 1955, the MP for

Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paig ...

, Charles Williams, died after more than thirty years as the town's MP. Bennett was selected as Conservative candidate for the resulting

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

, which he won with a majority of over 10,000 votes. He represented Torquay until the constituency was abolished for the February 1974 general election, when he was returned to

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

for the new Torbay constituency. He held that seat until he retired from the Commons at the 1987 general election. He was Parliamentary Private Secretary to

Reginald Maudling Reginald Maudling (7 March 1917 – 14 February 1979) was a British politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1962 to 1964 and as Home Secretary from 1970 to 1972. From 1955 until the late 1960s, he was spoken of as a prospecti ...

from 1953 to 1955; to the Minister of Supply 1956–1957; the

Paymaster-General His Majesty's Paymaster General or HM Paymaster General is a ministerial position in the Cabinet Office of the United Kingdom. The incumbent Paymaster General is Jeremy Quin MP. History The post was created in 1836 by the merger of the posit ...

1957–1959; to the President of the Board of Trade, 1959–1961. He was Leader of the UK Delegation, and Chairman of the Council of Europe and

Western European Union The Western European Union (WEU; french: Union de l'Europe occidentale, UEO; german: Westeuropäische Union, WEU) was the international organisation and military alliance that succeeded the Western Union (WU) after the 1954 amendment of the 1948 ...

Assemblies, 1979–1987. He was also sometime chairman of the

European Democrats The European Democrats were a loose association of conservative political parties in Europe. It was a political group in the European Parliament from 1979 until 1992, when it became a subgroup of the European People's Party–European Democr ...

political group in the Council of Europe. Bennett headed the list of the Secretariat for the ''European Freedom Campaign'', an anti-communist group established in London at an Inaugural Rally at

Westminster Central Hall The Methodist Central Hall (also known as Central Hall Westminster) is a multi-purpose venue in the City of Westminster, London, serving primarily as a Methodist church and a conference centre. The building, which is a tourist attraction, also ho ...

on 10 December 1988. This group's co-ordinating committee consisted almost exclusively of representatives from countries behind the Iron Curtain. In 1997, Bennett announced he would vote for the Labour Party in that year's general election, saying that because of the reforms of

New Labour New Labour was a period in the history of the British Labour Party from the mid to late 1990s until 2010 under the leadership of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. The name dates from a conference slogan first used by the party in 1994, later seen ...

, the party were "no longer Marxist socialists".

Other interests

Bennett had wide-ranging interests: he was a member of The Primrose League, and their guest of honour at a dinner held on 5 March 1979 in the Cholmondely Room,

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

, hosted by The Lord Mowbray and Stourton. He was sometime President of the Anglo-Turkish Society - he had an Honorary Doctorate of Law from the

University of Istanbul , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

, 1984, and was granted the Freedom of the City of

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

in 1992. He was a member of the Anglo-Polish Society, the

Council of the Baltic Sea States The Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) is a regional intergovernmental organisation working on three priority areas: Regional Identity, Safe & Secure Region and Sustainable & Prosperous Region. These three priority areas aim to address ...

, the Estonian Association, the Anglo-Jordanian Society, the Pakistan Society, and was a Vice-President of the

European-Atlantic Group The European-Atlantic Group (E-AG) is a non-governmental organization which aims to promote closer relations between the European and Atlantic countries by providing a forum in Britain for discussion of their problems and possibilities for better e ...

. Between 1959 and 1984 - the year he was also made a

Freeman Freeman, free men, or variant, may refer to: * a member of the Third Estate in medieval society (commoners), see estates of the realm * Freeman, an apprentice who has been granted freedom of the company, was a rank within Livery companies * Free ...

of the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

- he attended twenty of the yearly

Bilderberg Group The Bilderberg meeting (also known as the Bilderberg Group) is an annual off-the-record conference established in 1954 to foster dialogue between Europe and North America. The group's agenda, originally to prevent another world war, is now defi ...

conferences. He was a member of the group's Steering Committee. He was the recipient of a small catalogue of foreign honours and awards of merit. In 1976, Bennett assisted

George Kennedy Young George Kennedy Young, CB, MBE, M.A. (8 April 1911 – 9 May 1990) was a deputy director of MI6, and later involved in British Conservative Party politics. He was also a merchant banker. Early life George Kennedy Young was born in Dumfries, a ...

in creating the private army 'Unison'.

Personal life and death

He married in 1945, Marion Patricia, daughter of Major Cecil Burnham, OBE, Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons (Edinburgh). In 1997, Bennett listed his residence as

Aberangell Aberangell () is a village in Gwynedd, Wales. Geography Aberangell stands at the confluence of the Afon Angell and the Afon Dyfi, and lies within Dinas Mawddwy community. On the north side of the village, the long ridge of Pen y Clipau run ...

. He died on 14 September 2002, aged 83.

Publications

* Bennett, Frederic, ''Speaking Frankly'', London, 1960. * Bennett, Sir Frederic, ''Détente and Security in Europe'', London, 1976. * Bennett, Sir Frederic, ''

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...

- Fear is the Key'', London, 1978. * Bennett, Sir Frederic, ''China and European Security'', London, 1979, (2nd ed. 1980). * Bennett, Sir Frederic, ''Reds under the Bed, or the Enemy at the Gate - and Within'', London, 1979, (3rd edition, 1982). * Bennett, Sir Frederic, ''Impact of Individual & Corporate Incentives on Productivity and Standard of Living'', London, 1980. * Bennett, Sir Frederic, ''Electoral Reform'', London, 1996. * Bennett, Sir Frederic, '' Kashmir - Still Speaking Frankly'', London, 1997.

References

* ''Dod's Parliamentary Companion 1973'', 160th edition, published by Sell's Publications Ltd., Epsom, Surrey. * Black, A & C, ''Who's Who 2000'', London, * Crookes, John, with Alison Green (editors), ''Debrett's People of Today 2001'', 14th annual edition, London, * Obituary

*

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Frederic Mackarness 1918 births 2002 deaths 20th-century British journalists 20th-century English businesspeople 20th-century English lawyers 20th-century English male writers 20th-century English non-fiction writers British Army personnel of World War II Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Deputy Lieutenants of Greater London English barristers English male journalists English male non-fiction writers English political writers Insurance underwriters Knights Bachelor Members of Lincoln's Inn Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Members of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group Middlesex Yeomanry officers People educated at Westminster School, London People from St Davids Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 1st Class Royal Artillery officers UK MPs 1951–1955 UK MPs 1955–1959 UK MPs 1959–1964 UK MPs 1964–1966 UK MPs 1966–1970 UK MPs 1970–1974 UK MPs 1974 UK MPs 1974–1979 UK MPs 1979–1983 UK MPs 1983–1987