Henry FitzHerbert Wright (9 October 1870 – 23 February 1947) was an English

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

er, lawyer 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. He was active in local government in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

and sat in 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 ...

from 1912 to 1918. Wright was the eldest son of FitzHerbert Wright of the Hayes,

Alfreton Alfreton ( ) is a town and civil parish in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England. The town was formerly a Norman Manor and later an Urban District. The population of the Alfreton parish was 7,971 at the 2011 Census. The villages of Ir ...

, Derbyshire and his wife Louise Charlotte Rudolphine von Beckmann, daughter of E C Frederick von Beckmann. His paternal grandparents were Francis Wright of Osmaston, proprietor of the

Butterley Company The Butterley Company was an English manufacturing firm founded as Benjamin Outram and Company in 1790. Its subsidiaries existed until 2009. Origins This area of Derbyshire had been known for its outcrops of iron ore which had been exploited at ...

, and his wife Selena FitzHerbert, daughter of Sir Henry FitzHerbert 3rd Bt. of

Tissington Hall Tissington Hall is an early 17th-century Jacobean mansion house in Tissington, near Ashbourne, Derbyshire. It is a Grade II* listed building. The FitzHerberts, descended from the Norman family of Norbury Hall, acquired Tissington by the marr ...

. He was educated at Eton where he was a proficient cricketer and at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

. In the 1891 season he played two games for

, making his debut against

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

(MCC). He played one game for Derbyshire against Essex in the 1892 season and spent the following winter touring in Ceylon and India with

Lord Hawke Martin Bladen Hawke, 7th Baron Hawke (16 August 1860 – 10 October 1938), generally known as Lord Hawke, was an English amateur cricketer active from 1881 to 1911 who played for Yorkshire and England. He was born in Willingham by Stow, near G ...

's XI. Wright suspended his first-class cricket career and was called to the bar at

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and ...

in 1895. He was on the Midland Circuit and was an alderman of the Derbyshire County Council. He returned to first-class cricket in the 1904 season when he played two games for Derbyshire. In the 1905 season managed he seven games and ended his cricket career. Wright was a right hand batsman who played 22 matches in 13 first-class games with an average of 19.38 and a top score of 55. He was a right-arm medium pace bowler. Wright was commissioned as a

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry ...

captain in the 1st Derbyshire Howitzer Battery of the Royal Field Artillery in 1908. He served in

as a Justice of the Peace and vice chair of the

County Council A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Ireland The county councils created under British rule in 1899 continue to exist in Irel ...

. Wright was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for the

Leominster Leominster ( ) is a market town in Herefordshire, England, at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater. The town is north of Hereford and south of Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of 11,700, Leominster i ...

constituency at an unopposed by-election in 1912, following the retirement of the incumbent. He also saw service with 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 ...

during World War I from 1914 to 1917. He held his parliamentary seat until the general election of 1918. Wright was

High Sheriff of Derbyshire High may refer to: Science and technology * Height * High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area * High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory * High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift to ...

in 1927, and chairman of the

River Trent The Trent is the third-longest river in the United Kingdom. Its source is in Staffordshire, on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor. It flows through and drains the North Midlands. The river is known for dramatic flooding after storms and ...

Catchment Board from 1931 to 1937. He was also a governor of

Repton School Repton School is a 13–18 co-educational, independent, day and boarding school in the English public school tradition, in Repton, Derbyshire, England. Sir John Port of Etwall, on his death in 1557, left funds to create a grammar school whi ...

. Wright died at his home near Ashbourne, Derbyshire at the age of 76. Wright married Muriel Harriet Fletcher. Among his children were Muriel Wright, who had a wartime affair with Ian Fleming and is commonly thought to have been the inspiration for the first Bond girl; and Margaret Wright who married Prince Michael Bagration-Imeretinsky, son of the head of the royal house of Georgia. He is also the maternal great-grandfather of

Sarah, Duchess of York Sarah, Duchess of York (born Sarah Margaret Ferguson; 15 October 1959), also known by the nickname Fergie, is a member of the British royal family. She is the former wife of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, the younger brother of King Charles III ...

, through her mother Susan Barrantes.Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, H. FitzHerbert 1870 births 1947 deaths Wright family of Nottingham People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Royal Artillery officers People from Ashbourne, Derbyshire Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1910–1918 English cricketers Derbyshire cricketers High Sheriffs of Derbyshire Councillors in Derbyshire Members of the Inner Temple Lord Hawke's XI cricketers British Army personnel of World War I Royal Field Artillery officers