Sir Giles Rolls Loder, 3rd Baronet DL (1914–1999) was an English aristocrat, World War II veteran, public official, horticulturalist and yachtsman.

Biography

Early life

Giles Rolls Loder was born on 10 November 1914 in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England.The Peerage: Sir Giles Rolls Loder, 3rd Bt.
/ref>
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 22 March 1999 His father was Robert Egerton Loder (1887–1917) and his mother, Muriel Rolls Hoare (1879–1955). His paternal grandfather was

Sir Edmund Giles Loder, 2nd Baronet Sir Edmund Giles Loder, 2nd Baronet (7 August 1849 – 14 April 1920) was an English aristocrat, landowner and plantsman. Biography Early life Edmund Giles Loder was born on 7 August 1849 in London, England. His father was Sir Robert Loder, 1st B ...

(1849–1920) and his paternal great-grandfather was Sir Robert Loder, 1st Baronet (1823–1888). He graduated from

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

, a private boarding school in Eton, Berkshire, in 1936, and from

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

, a constituent college of the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, in 1944.

Public service

During

World War II 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 ...

, he served in the

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. ...

and

Sussex Yeomanry The Sussex Yeomanry is a yeomanry regiment of the British Army dating from 1794. It was initially formed when there was a threat of French invasion during the Napoleonic Wars. After being reformed in the Second Boer War, it served in the First Wo ...

, and later worked with the

Vosper & Company Vosper & Company, often referred to simply as Vospers, was a British shipbuilding company based in Portsmouth, England. History The Company was established in 1871 by Herbert Edward Vosper, concentrating on ship repair and refitting work. By t ...

for the

British Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

. He later served as High Sheriff of Sussex in 1948 and

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 1949. He also served as Deputy Lieutenant of West Sussex in 1977.

Horticulture

He served as vice-president of

The Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nort ...

. He was a recipient of the Victoria Medal of Honour for his horticultural prowess in 1968. At his family estate of

Leonardslee Leonardslee is an English country house and English landscape garden and woodland garden in Lower Beeding, near Horsham, West Sussex, England. The Grade I listed garden is particularly significant for its spring displays of rhododendrons, azal ...

, he planted hundreds of varieties of

rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...

magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...

s, and

camellia ''Camellia'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are more than 220 described species, with some controversy ...

s, and built two

greenhouse A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of Transparent ceramics, transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic condit ...

s. He was elected President of Sussex Wildlife Trust on 21 October 1978 and remained in office until October 1983.

Yachting

An avid yachtsman, he was a member of the Royal Yacht Squadron. He took part in the Cowes Week, one of the longest-running regular

regatta Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other wate ...

s in the world, where he sometimes skippered on the Kaylena, a well-known yacht.

Personal life

On 11 July 1939, he married Marie Violet Pamela Symons-Jeune (unknown-2005), at St Margeret Church in Westminster, daughter of Captain Bertram Symons-Jeune, a famous garden designer. They had two sons: * Sir Edmund Jeune Loder, 4th Baronet (born 1941). He married (and later divorced) Penelope Jane Forde. They had a daughter: ** Gillian Marie Loder (born 1968). She married James D. P. Morgan. They had two children: *** Mathew Morgan (born 1995). *** Olivia Morgan (born 1996). * Robert Reginald Loder (born 1943). He married Quenelda Jane Royden, daughter of Sir John Ledward Royden, 4th Baronet (1907–1976). They had four children: ** Christopher Giles Loder (born 1968). ** Catherine Marie Violet Loder (born 1970). ** Peter Thomas Loder (born 1972). ** Mary Charlotte Loder (born 1972). They resided at

Ockenden Manor Garden gate, Ockendon Manor Ockenden Manor is located in Cuckfield, West Sussex, England. The building itself dates from 1520 and is operated as a hotel and restaurant by the Historic Sussex Hotels group. History Ockenden Manor has been operate ...

, a Grade II*-listed house in Cuckfield, West Sussex.British Listed Buildings: Ockenden House
/ref> He died on 24 February 1999.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Loder, Giles Rolls English botanists English gardeners English horticulturists 1914 births 1999 deaths Deputy Lieutenants of West Sussex High Sheriffs of Sussex Victoria Medal of Honour recipients Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Sailors from London People from Cuckfield People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge 20th-century British botanists