Gordon Thomas Calthrop Campbell, Baron Campbell of Croy, (8 June 1921 – 26 April 2005) was a British Conservative politician and diplomat.

Biography

Early life and career

Campbell was born in Quetta, British India (now in Pakistan), the son of Major General James Alexander Campbell and was educated at

Rockport School Rockport School is an independent day and boarding school for boys and girls from 2.5 years to 18 years in the British Public School tradition. It is situated in of woodland on the shore of Belfast Lough in Craigavad, near Holywood, County ...

in Holywood, County Down, then at

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin *Wellington College, Wellington, New Z ...

before joining the Royal Artillery in 1939. He fought in the Second World War with the Royal Artillery from 1940, winning the Military Cross and Bar. Invalided out in 1947 with the honorary rank of major, he served 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 ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and Vienna until 1957.

House of Commons

Elected to Parliament in 1959, he served as Member of Parliament for the

constituency An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger State (polity), state (a country, administrative region, ...

of Moray and Nairn until February 1974 when he was defeated by Winnie Ewing of the

Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; sco, Scots National Pairty, gd, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from ...

. He served as a Government Whip, 1961–62; Lord Commissioner of the Treasury and Scottish Whip, 1962–63; Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland, 1963–64. He was Opposition Spokesman on Defence, 1967–68 and a member of the Shadow Cabinet, 1969–70.

Secretary of State for Scotland

He was

Secretary of State for Scotland The secretary of state for Scotland ( gd, Rùnaire Stàite na h-Alba; sco, Secretar o State fir Scotland), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the Unit ...

during the whole of Edward Heath's government. During his term in office the issues of fishing and oil led to him losing his Moray coastal seat to the SNP. Government papers released under the 30 year rule reveal an attitude that may explain that loss. Papers from 1970 revealed how the Scottish Office was prepared to have a "weaker and less efficient national fleet" to enable the UK to sign up to the controversial

Common Fisheries Policy The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is the fisheries policy of the European Union (EU). It sets quotas for which member states are allowed to catch each type of fish, as well as encouraging the fishing industry by various market interventions. I ...

. On oil in 1972 Campbell was against any move to pump oil revenues directly into the Scottish economy despite Heath asking government departments to explore such an arrangements to help revive Scotland's economy with "its own resources". Further papers from 1974 revealed how he proposed "exceptional measures" to force

Shetland Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands and formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the no ...

Islands Council to accept an oil terminal without financial benefit to the islands.

House of Lords

After being defeated by Winnie Ewing of the

at the February 1974 general election, Campbell was made a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. In modern times, life peerages, always created at the rank of baron, are created under the Life Peerages ...

as Baron Campbell of Croy, of Croy in the County of Nairn on 9 January 1975. He became Chairman of the Scottish Board in 1976, and was Vice President of the Advisory Committee on Pollution at Sea from 1976 to 1984.

Personal life

He married Nicola Madan, daughter of Geoffrey Spencer Madan and his wife Marjorie Noble, and had three children. * Hon. Colin Ian Calthrop Campbell b. 1950 * Colonel Hon. Alastair James Calthrop Campbell (6 Jan 1952 – 24 Aug 2021) * Hon. Christina Marjorie Campbell b. 1953. The Campbell family lived at Holme Rose at Croy in the Nairn Valley. In 2019, the property was put on the market for £2.3 million.

Arms

Footnotes

*Torrance, David, ''The Scottish Secretaries'' (Birlinn 2006)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Gordon Thomas Calthrop 1921 births 2005 deaths British Army personnel of World War II Campbell of Croy Deputy Lieutenants in Scotland Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Scottish constituencies Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ministers in the Macmillan and Douglas-Home governments, 1957–1964 People educated at Rockport School People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire People from Lossiemouth Politics of Moray Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Artillery officers Scottish Conservative Party MPs Secretaries of State for Scotland UK MPs 1959–1964 UK MPs 1964–1966 UK MPs 1966–1970 UK MPs 1970–1974 UK MPs who were granted peerages Unionist Party (Scotland) MPs Life peers created by Elizabeth II