George John Charles Mercer Nairne Petty-Fitzmaurice, 8th Marquess of Lansdowne, DL (27 November 1912 – 25 August 1999), was a

British peer The peerages in the United Kingdom are a legal system comprising both hereditary and lifetime titles, composed of various noble ranks, and forming a constituent part of the British honours system. The term ''peerage'' can be used both collec ...

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.

Background

Petty-Fitzmaurice was the only son of Lord Charles Mercer Nairne, the second son of

Henry Petty-FitzMaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne Henry Charles Keith Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne, (14 January 18453 June 1927), was a British statesman who served successively as Governor General of Canada, Viceroy of India, Secretary of State for War and Secretary of State f ...

. His father was killed in action in 1914 while on active service 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 ...

, and his mother, the former Lady Violet Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, later married secondly

John Jacob Astor, 1st Baron Astor of Hever Lieutenant-Colonel John Jacob Astor V, 1st Baron Astor of Hever, DL (20 May 1886 – 19 July 1971) was an American-born English newspaper proprietor, politician, sportsman, military officer, and a member of the Astor family. Biography Astor wa ...

.”Lansdowne, 8th Marquess of, (George John Charles Mercer Nairne Petty-Fitzmaurice) (27 Nov. 1912 – 25 Aug. 1999)”
in ''

Who's Who ''Who's Who'' (or ''Who is Who'') is the title of a number of reference publications, generally containing concise biography, biographical information on the prominent people of a country. The title has been adopted as an expression meaning a gr ...

'' online edition, accessed 4 June 2022 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

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

, and served in the British Army in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

.Peter W. Hammond, ed., ''The Complete Peerage'', Vol. XIV (Stroud: Sutton Publishing, 1998), p. 424 In August 1944, Petty-Fitzmaurice’s life was significantly changed when his cousins the 7th Marquess of Lansdowne and his younger brother were both killed in action in the War. As a result, he suddenly and unexpectedly inherited the family peerages and estates, except for the Lordship of Nairne, which under Scottish law went to the 7th Marquess's sister Katherine Evelyn Constance Bigham (1912–1995).

Career

Lansdowne became 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 ...

for

Perthshire Perthshire (locally: ; gd, Siorrachd Pheairt), officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, ...

in 1950 and a Deputy Lieutenant of Wiltshire in 1952. In 1957 and 1958 he was 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 ...

(

government whip A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology o ...

) and then was

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (or just Parliamentary Secretary, particularly in departments not led by a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), Secretary of State) is the lowest of three tiers of Minister (government), government minist ...

at the

Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * Unit ...

between 1958 and 1962 and Minister of State for Commonwealth and Colonial Affairs between 1962 and 1964.George John Charles Mercer Nairne Petty-FitzMaurice, 8th Marquess of Lansdowne
/ref> Effectively his political career was ended by the election of the Labour government of 1964–1970. In 1964 he was appointed as a

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a privy council, formal body of advisers to the British monarchy, sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises Politics of the United King ...

Personal life

Lansdowne was married four times. On 18 March 1938 he married firstly Barbara Dempsey Chase (1918–1965), only child of Harold Stuart Chase (1890–1970), a real-estate investor of

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...

, and

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, and his wife, née Gertrude Boyer. The first Lady Lansdowne died on 18 February 1965, from injuries sustained in a shotgun blast in the gunroom at her Scottish home, Meikleour House, found by the police to be an accident."Marchioness of Lansdowne, 46, Succumbs to Gunshot Wounds, ''The New York Times'', 18 February 1965 They had four children: * Lady Caroline Margaret Petty-Fitzmaurice (1939–1956); she, like her mother, died in a shooting accident. * Charles Maurice Petty-Fitzmaurice (born 1941); later 9th Marquess of Lansdowne. * Lord Robert Harold Mercer Nairne (born 1947); married Jane Elizabeth Gordon (born 1950), a cousin of

Granville Gordon, 13th Marquess of Huntly Granville Charles Gomer Gordon, 13th Marquess of Huntly (born 4 February 1944), styled Earl of Aboyne until 1987, is a Scottish peer and the Premier Marquess of Scotland. Early life Huntly is the son of Douglas Gordon, 12th Marquess of Huntly, ...

, and had issue, two sons and one daughter. He is a writer who lives in Scotland on the Mercer-Nairne estates, inherited from his ancestress Emily Jane de Flahaut, 8th Lady Nairne. He has two sons and one daughter: ** Emily Jane Mercer Nairne (born 1974); married Dominic Robertson, has three daughters. ** Samuel George Mercer Nairne (born 1976); married Claire Aussudre, and has two sons (born 2009 and 2011) and one daughter. ** Joseph Douglas Mercer Nairne (born 1980); married Melissa Wakeley, and has one son and one daughter. * Lady Georgina Elizabeth Petty-Fitzmaurice (1950–2022); married Guy Hamilton in 1974 (divorced 1980), and married Robert Eric Miller in 1981 (divorced 1991). She lived in London and had two children and three grandchildren. ** Josiah Stirling Hamilton (born 1975); married Justine Miller and lives in Santa Barbara, California - has one son and one daughter. ** Emma Carissa Hamilton (born 1977); married David Malina and lives in New York City - has one daughter. On 22 December 1969, Lansdowne married, secondly, Selina Polly Dawson Carnegie, a daughter of

David Eccles, 1st Viscount Eccles David McAdam Eccles, 1st Viscount Eccles (18 September 1904 – 24 February 1999), was an English Conservative politician. Education and early career Eccles was educated at Winchester College and New College, Oxford, where he obtained a sec ...

, and former wife of Robin Andrew Duthac Carnegie, becoming the stepfather of Andrew James Carnegie (born 1963). This marriage ended in divorce in 1978. On 15 October 1978 Lansdowne married thirdly Gillian Anna Morgan (1936–1982), daughter of Alured A.E. Morgan and his first wife, the former Nancye Little-Jones. On 12 July 1995, Lansdowne married fourthly Penelope Eve Astor (died 2006), widow of his half-brother John Astor, a former wife of David Rolt, and daughter of

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

George Francis Norton Bradford.

References

Links

George, 8th Marquess of Lansdowne profile
thepeerage.com; Retrieved 1 June 2009.

thepeerage.com; Retrieved 1 June 2009.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lansdowne, George Petty-FitzMaurice, 8th Marquess of 1912 births 1999 deaths British Army personnel of World War II British Army soldiers Conservative Party (UK) Baronesses- and Lords-in-Waiting Deputy Lieutenants of Wiltshire Earls of Kerry 8 Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ministers in the Macmillan and Douglas-Home governments, 1957–1964