Henry Frederick Thynne, 6th Marquess of Bath (26 January 1905 – 30 June 1992), styled Lord Henry Thynne until 1916 and Viscount Weymouth between 1916 and 1946, was a British aristocrat, landowner, and

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

politician.

Background and education

Lord Bath was the second son of

Thomas Thynne, 5th Marquess of Bath Thomas Henry Thynne, 5th Marquess of Bath (15 July 1862 – 9 June 1946), styled Viscount Weymouth until 1896, was a British landowner and Conservative politician. He held ministerial office as Under-Secretary of State for India in 1905 an ...

, and Violet Mordaunt, the illegitimate daughter of

Harriet Mordaunt Harriet Sarah, Lady Mordaunt (''née'' Moncreiffe; 7 February 1848 – 9 May 1906) was the Scottish wife of an English baronet and member of parliament, Sir Charles Mordaunt. She was the respondent in a sensational divorce case in which the Pri ...

and Lowry Cole, 4th Earl of Enniskillen. He was educated at the New Beacon School, Sevenoaks, Harrow, 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 ...

. In 1916 he became the

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

to his father’s estates and peerages after his elder brother, John, was killed in action 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 ...

. At Oxford, Thynne was part of the Railway Club, which included: Henry Yorke,

Roy Harrod Sir Henry Roy Forbes Harrod (13 February 1900 – 8 March 1978) was an English economist. He is best known for writing '' The Life of John Maynard Keynes'' (1951) and for the development of the Harrod–Domar model, which he and Evsey Domar dev ...

David Plunket Greene David Plunket Greene (19 November 1904 – 24 February 1941), together with his brother Richard and sister Olivia, was part of the Bright Young Things who inspired the novel ''Vile Bodies'' to Evelyn Waugh, a family friend. Biography David Plun ...

, Harry Fox-Strangways, Brian Howard, Michael Rosse,

John Sutro John Sutro (23 April 1903 – 18 June 1985) was a British film producer. He produced seven films between 1941 and 1951. He was a member of the jury at the 7th Berlin International Film Festival. Education At Oxford Sutro conceived the Railw ...

Hugh Lygon Hugh Patrick Lygon (2 November 190419 August 1936) was the second son of William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp, and is often believed to be the inspiration for Lord Sebastian Flyte in Evelyn Waugh's ''Brideshead Revisited''. He was a friend of Waugh's ...

Harold Acton Sir Harold Mario Mitchell Acton (5 July 1904 – 27 February 1994) was a British writer, scholar, and aesthete who was a prominent member of the Bright Young Things. He wrote fiction, biography, history and autobiography. During his stay in Ch ...

Bryan Guinness Bryan Walter Guinness, 2nd Baron Moyne, (27 October 1905 – 6 July 1992) was an heir to part of the Guinness family brewing fortune, and a lawyer, poet and novelist. He was briefly married to Diana Mitford. Early life He was born to Wa ...

, Patrick Balfour,

Mark Ogilvie-Grant Charles Randolph Mark Ogilvie-Grant (15 March 1905 – 13 February 1969) was a British diplomat and a botanist and one of the earliest members of the Bright Young Things. Despite his earliest frivolous past, he became a hero during the 1940–19 ...

, and

John Drury-Lowe Major John Drury Boteler Packe-Drury-Lowe (16 October 1905 - 1 June 1960) was an English aristocrat, part of the Bright Young Things crowd of the 1920s. Biography John Drury Boteler Drury-Lowe was born on 16 October 1905, the son of John Alfred E ...

. In the 1920s the

tabloid press Tabloid journalism is a popular style of largely sensationalism, sensationalist journalism (usually dramatized and sometimes unverifiable or even Fake news, blatantly false), which takes its name from the Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid ne ...

considered him one of the

Bright Young Things __NOTOC__ The Bright Young Things, or Bright Young People, was a nickname given by the tabloid press to a group of Bohemianism, Bohemian young Aristocracy (class), aristocrats and socialites in 1920s London. They threw flamboyant costume party, f ...

Political and military careers

As Viscount Weymouth, he was elected as the

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

Frome Frome ( ) is a town and civil parish in eastern Somerset, England. The town is built on uneven high ground at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills, and centres on the River Frome. The town, about south of Bath, is the largest in the Mendip d ...

between 1931 and 1935, and served as a member of the Council of the

Duchy of Cornwall The Duchy of Cornwall ( kw, Duketh Kernow) is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch obtains possession of the duchy and the title of 'Duke of Cornwall' at ...

from 1933 to 1936 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 ...

for

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

in 1938. He gained the rank of major in the service of the

Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry The Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry (RWY) was a Yeomanry regiment of the Kingdom of Great Britain and the United Kingdom established in 1794. It was disbanded as an independent Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial Army unit in 1967, a time when t ...

, fought 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 ...

, and was awarded the

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

. Thynne succeeded his father as Marquess of Bath in 1946. He was noted for his forestry work on the ancestral estate of

Longleat Longleat is an English stately home and the seat of the Marquess of Bath, Marquesses of Bath. A leading and early example of the Elizabethan era, Elizabethan prodigy house, it is adjacent to the village of Horningsham and near the towns of War ...

. It was he who developed the safari park and opened the house to the public in 1949.Hugo Vicker
Obituary: Henry Thynne, 6th Marquess of Bath
''The Independent'', 1 July 1992 From 1960 onwards he amassed what would become the largest collection of paintings by

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

, numbering sixty by 1983. To some extent an admirer of Hitler, the Marquess is quoted as saying “Hitler did a hell of a lot for his country”.

Family

On 27 October 1927, Lord Weymouth married, first, Daphne Vivian, daughter of

George Vivian, 4th Baron Vivian George Crespigny Brabazon Vivian, 4th Baron Vivian (21 January 1878 – 28 December 1940) was a British soldier from the Vivian family who served with distinction in both the Second Anglo-Boer War and World War I. Early life He was born at Con ...

. Before divorcing, in 1953, they had five children: * Lady Caroline Jane Thynne (1928–1995); married

David Somerset, 11th Duke of Beaufort David Robert Somerset, 11th Duke of Beaufort GCC (23 February 1928 – 16 August 2017), known as David Somerset until 1984, was an English peer and major landowner. An important figure in the world of fox hunting, he was also chairman of Marl ...

, and had issue. * The Honourable Thomas Timothy Thynne (1929–1930); died in infancy. * Alexander George Thynn, 7th Marquess of Bath (1932–2020); married Anna Gyarmathy and had issue. * Lord Christopher John Thynne (1934–2017); married Antonia Palmer, daughter of Sir Anthony Palmer, 4th Baronet, and had issue. * Lord Valentine Charles Thynne (1937–1979); married, first, Veronica Jacks and had issue. He married, secondly, Susanne Alder; and, thirdly, Liese Dennis. After becoming Lord Bath he married, secondly, Virginia Penelope Parsons (1917–2003), on 15 July 1953, following her divorce earlier that year from

David Tennant David John Tennant (''né'' McDonald; born 18 April 1971) is a Scottish actor. He rose to fame for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor (2005–2010 and 2013) in the BBC science-fiction TV show '' Doctor Who'', reprising the rol ...

. They had one daughter: * Lady Silvy Cerne Thynne (b. 22 December 1958); married Iain McQuiston and has issue. A sister-in-law of the current Marchioness of Bath. Hoare, Philip
"Virginia, Marchioness of Bath"
''The Independent'', 26 September 2003

References

* *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bath, Henry Thynne, 6th Marquess of 1905 births 1992 deaths 6

Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) * Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

People educated at Harrow School Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Conservative Party (UK) hereditary peers Thynne, Henry Thynne, Henry British Army personnel of World War II Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry officers 20th-century English nobility