Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

George Charles Bingham, 5th Earl of Lucan, 1st Baron Bingham, (13 December 1860 – 20 April 1949), known by the

courtesy title A courtesy title is a title that does not have legal significance but rather is used through custom or courtesy, particularly, in the context of nobility, the titles used by children of members of the nobility (cf. substantive title). In some co ...

of Lord Bingham from 1888 to 1914, was a British soldier 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 i ...

politician.

Early life

Lucan was the son of

Charles Bingham, 4th Earl of Lucan Charles George Bingham, 4th Earl of Lucan, KP (8 May 1830 – 5 June 1914), styled Lord Bingham from 1839 to 1888, was an Irish peer and soldier. He was the eldest son of George Bingham, 3rd Earl of Lucan and Lady Anne Brudenell. His maternal gra ...

, and Lady Cecilia Catherine Gordon-Lennox, one of the three daughters of

Charles Gordon-Lennox, 5th Duke of Richmond Charles Gordon-Lennox, 5th Duke of Richmond, (3 August 179121 October 1860), of Goodwood House near Chichester in West Sussex, was a British peer, soldier and prominent Conservative politician. Origins He was born "Charles Lennox", the son an ...

.The Peerage
/ref> He was educated at

Harrow School (The Faithful Dispensation of the Gifts of God) , established = (Royal Charter) , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school , religion = Church of E ...

and then at the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infantry a ...

Military career

In 1881, from Sandhurst, Lucan was commissioned into the

Rifle Brigade The Rifle Brigade (The Prince Consort's Own) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army formed in January 1800 as the "Experimental Corps of Riflemen" to provide sharpshooters, scouts, and skirmishers. They were soon renamed the "Rifle ...

. He fought in the

Bechuanaland Expedition The Bechuanaland Expedition or Warren Expedition, of late 1884/1885, was a British military expedition to the Tswana country, to assert British sovereignty in the face of encroachments from Germany and the Transvaal, and to suppress the Boer sta ...

(1884–1885) and was awarded the

Order of the Nile The Order of the Nile (''Kiladat El Nil'') was established in 1915 and was one of the Kingdom of Egypt's principal orders until the monarchy was abolished in 1953. It was then reconstituted as the Republic of Egypt's highest state honor. Sultana ...

3rd Class. He first retired with the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in 1896. In 1900 he joined the 1st London Rifle Volunteers (territorial army) as a

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

, rising to the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

. He fought again in the

First World War 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 ...

, during which he was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

. He gained the rank of Honorary Brigadier-General in 1917 and retired as a Lieutenant-Colonel in 1923.

Political career

Lucan was for eighteen months 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 of ...

(MP) for the

Chertsey Chertsey is a town in the Borough of Runnymede, Surrey, England, south-west of central London. It grew up round Chertsey Abbey, founded in 666 CE, and gained a market charter from Henry I. A bridge across the River Thames first appeared in the ...

constituency in

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

. He was the successful

candidate at a by-election on 6 July 1904 and was defeated in the

1906 United Kingdom general election Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20 * one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film Mus ...

by the

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 ...

candidate in a landslide for that party. On his father’s death on 5 June 1914 he succeeded him as

Earl of Lucan Earl of Lucan is a title which has been created twice in the Peerage of Ireland for related families. History Patrick Sarsfield was one of the senior commanders of James VII & II (deposed in 1688) in battles in Ireland with William of ...

and in August of that year, a few days after Britain had declared war on Germany, he was elected as an

Irish representative peer This is a list of representative peers elected from the Peerage of Ireland to sit in the British House of Lords after the Kingdom of Ireland was brought into union with the Kingdom of Great Britain. No new members were added to the House after ...

, enabling him to sit in 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 ...

. He served under

David Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for leading the United Kingdom during t ...

Bonar Law Andrew Bonar Law ( ; 16 September 1858 – 30 October 1923) was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 1922 to May 1923. Law was born in the British colony of New Brunswick (now a ...

and

Stanley Baldwin Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, (3 August 186714 December 1947) was a British Conservative Party politician who dominated the government of the United Kingdom between the world wars, serving as prime minister on three occasions, ...

as a

Lord-in-Waiting Lords-in-waiting (male) or baronesses-in-waiting (female) are peers who hold office in the Royal Household of the sovereign of the United Kingdom. In the official Court Circular they are styled "Lord in Waiting" or "Baroness in Waiting" (without ...

(a government whip in the House of Lords) from 1920 to 1924 and under Baldwin from 1924 to 1929. In that year, he was appointed as

Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms The Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms is a post in the Government of the United Kingdom that has been held by the Government Chief Whip in the House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the ...

, a post he held until the government fell later that year. He held it again in the National Government from 1931 to 1940. Lucan was appointed as

High Sheriff of Mayo The High Sheriff of Mayo was the British Crown's judicial representative in County Mayo, Ireland from the 16th century until 1922, when the office was abolished in the new Free State and replaced by the office of Mayo County Sheriff. The sheriff ...

for 1902–03. He later held for life the family's customary office of Deputy Lieutenant (D.L.) of County Mayo, to which was added the same role for Middlesex; honorary roles which meant deputizing for the

Lord-Lieutenant A lord-lieutenant ( ) is the British monarch's personal representative in each lieutenancy area of the United Kingdom. Historically, each lieutenant was responsible for organising the county's militia. In 1871, the lieutenant's responsibility ...

, opening local buildings, and supporting local charities. He also served as a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

in local magistrates courts in

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

. Lucan in 1943 On 26 June 1934, Lucan was created Baron Bingham, of Melcombe Bingham, in the County of Dorset, in the

peerage of the United Kingdom The Peerage of the United Kingdom is one of the five Peerages in the United Kingdom. It comprises most peerages created in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Acts of Union 1800, Acts of Union in 1801, when it replaced the ...

, giving him and his lawful heirs the right to sit in the House of Lords. His son,

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

, sat on the

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

benches after inheriting the peerage in 1949. However, 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 ...

excluded most hereditary peers from the House of Lords. Laleham_Abbey_-_geograph

In 1922 Lucan sold his family's home since 1803 at Laleham House and most of its remaining land; the purchaser of the house was the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He had earlier widened his father's gift of land which gave over Laleham Park for community use.

Personal life

In 1896 Lucan married Violet Sylvia Blanche Spender Clay, a daughter of Joseph Spender Clay and Elizabeth Sydney Garrett, with whom he had four children: Laleham AllSaints LucanGrave 5Right

George Charles Patrick Bingham, 6th Earl of Lucan George Charles Patrick Bingham, 6th Earl of Lucan MC (24 November 1898 – 21 January 1964), known as Lord Bingham from 1914 to 1949, was an Irish peer, British soldier and Labour politician. Early life Pat Lucan was the eldest son of the 5th E ...

(24 November 1898 – 21 January 1964) * Lady Barbara Violet Bingham (17 August 1902 – 17 December 1963), who married John Bevan, * John Edward Bingham (29 February 1904 – 1992) * Lady

Margaret Bingham Margaret Bingham, Countess of Lucan (1740 – 27 February 1814)Ernest Radford, "Bingham, Margaret, Countess of Lucan (c. 1740–1814)", rev. V. Remington, ODNB, Oxford University Press, 200Retrieved 4 October 2014/ref> was an English painter, co ...

(16 September 1905 – 17 August 1977) married Field Marshal the 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis, son of

James Alexander, 4th Earl of Caledon James Alexander, 4th Earl of Caledon, (11 July 1846 – 27 April 1898), styled Viscount Alexander from birth until 1855, was a soldier and politician. He was the eldest son of James Du Pre Alexander, 3rd Earl of Caledon and his wife, Lady Jane ...

Lord Lucan died in April 1949, aged 88, succeeded in the earldom by his eldest son George through whom the title continues as at . The Dowager Countess of (Lady) Lucan died after their eldest son in 1972; her net estate at death was sworn as £26,433 that year; she lived at 40 Orchard Court,

Portman Square Portman Square is a garden square in Marylebone, central London, surrounded by elegant townhouses. It was specifically for private housing let on long leases having a ground rent by the Portman Estate, which owns the private communal gardens. ...

. Lucan's grandson,

Richard John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan Richard John Bingham, 7th Earl of Lucan (born 18 December 1934 – disappeared 8 November 1974, declared dead 3 February 2016), commonly known as Lord Lucan, was a British peer who disappeared after being suspected of murder. He was an Anglo-I ...

, who inherited the title in 1964, disappeared in 1974, after allegedly murdering his children's nanny in a failed attempt to kill his estranged wife, Veronica. He was declared legally dead in 2016.

Honours

In 1885, Lucan was awarded the

, 3rd Class. During the First World War, he was awarded by

Nicholas II of Russia Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Pola ...

the Order of St. Stanislas of Russia, second class. Lucan was appointed a Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

(C.B.) in 1919 and a Knight Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(K.B.E.) in the 1920 civilian war honours list. He was also awarded 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 ...

(T.D.) in 1920. From 1920 until 1928 he was one of the King's aides-de-camp, a ceremonial honour awarded to military figures which entitles the recipient to wear

aiguillette An aiguillette (, from '' aiguille'', "needle"), also spelled , or , is a cord with metal tips or lace tags, or the decorative tip itself. Functional or purely decorative fasteners of silk cord with metal tips were popular in the 16th and ea ...

Death

Lucan died in 1949 while staying at the Cavendish Hotel,

Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...

, but by then usually lived in

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

at 19 Orchard Court,

. His son swore net assets for probate at £14,464; two months later his son-in-law and James Hamilton, Marquess of Hamilton swore to settled land whose free value was £119,153. Together these figures are , to be taxed, subject to exemptions.''Probate Calendars of England and Wales of 1949'' p.432

Ancestry

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lucan, George Bingham, 5th Earl of 1860 births 1949 deaths British Army generals of World War I British military personnel of the Bechuanaland Expedition Companions of the Order of the Bath Conservative Party (UK) Baronesses- and Lords-in-Waiting Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Deputy Lieutenants of Mayo Deputy Lieutenants of Middlesex

Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst High Sheriffs of Mayo Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms Irish representative peers Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order London Regiment officers Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ministers in the Chamberlain peacetime government, 1937–1939 Ministers in the Chamberlain wartime government, 1939–1940 People educated at Harrow School Politicians from County Mayo Presidents of the Marylebone Cricket Club Recipients of the Order of Saint Stanislaus (Russian) Rifle Brigade officers UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs who inherited peerages UK MPs who were granted peerages Barons created by George V London Rifle Brigade officers Bingham Baronets, of Castlebar