Air Commodore John Allan Cecil Cecil-Wright

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(28 August 1886 – 14 July 1982), born John Allan Cecil Wright, was a British Royal Air Force officer and Conservative Party politician.

Early life and military service

Born in Knowle, Warwickshire, he was educated at

Winchester School Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of t ...

. In 1905 he was granted a commission in the 1st Volunteer Battalion, Royal Warwickshire Regiment. Three years later, when the Territorial Force was created, he helped form a company of the Army Service Corps. Following the outbreak of war, he accompanied his unit to France in 1915. In 1916 he transferred to the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

in 1916. He rose to become squadron leader of 605 (County of Warwick) Bomber Squadron,

Royal Auxiliary Air Force The Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF), formerly the Auxiliary Air Force (AAF), together with the Air Force Reserve, is a component of His Majesty's Reserve Air Forces (Reserve Forces Act 1996, Part 1, Para 1,(2),(c)). It provides a primary rein ...

, from 1926 to 1936. He was awarded the Air Force Cross (AFC) in the

1931 New Year Honours The 1931 New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the United Kingdom and British Empire. They were announced on 30 December 1930. The recipients of honour ...

Industry and local government in Birmingham

Cecil Wright was an industrialist, and became chairman of Warne, Wright & Rowlands Limited, screw, nut and bolt manufacturers. In 1934, he was elected to Birmingham City Council, where he was an advocate for the establishment of a municipal airport.

Member of Parliament

In August 1936,

John Frederick Eales John Frederick Eales (19 January 1881 – 6 August 1936) was a British lawyer and Conservative Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1931 to 1936. Early life and legal career He was born in Manchester, and was the son ...

, the Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for the Birmingham constituency of Erdington died. On 18 August, the executive committee of Erdington Division Unionist Association unanimously chose Cecil Wright as their candidate to contest the resulting by-election. The other main candidate was C J Simmons of the Labour Party, who had held the seat from 1929 – 1931. The election was held on 20 October, and Cecil Wright was elected with a majority of 6,234 votes over Simmons. With the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, elections were postponed, and Wright held the seat until the general election in 1945, when he was defeated by his Labour opponent,

Julius Silverman Julius Silverman (8 December 1905 – 21 September 1996) was a British Labour Party politician. Silverman, whose father escaped anti-Jewish pogroms in Minsk, Russian Empire, was born in Leeds. He attended Leeds Central High School and first wor ...

. From 1941 to 1945, he was Commandant of Midland Command Air Training Corps.

Later life

Cecil Wright and his second wife, Lilian, had an interest in the breeding and showing of dogs. He was an early enthusiast of the German Shepherd, and was one of the founding members of the Alsatian League and Club of Great Britain in 1924. After leaving parliament, he became

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of the Kennel Club of Great Britain from 1948 to 1973, and its president from 1976 until his death. He was president of Crufts Dog Show from 1962 to 1976. He was also served as president of the Welsh Kennel Club and the Scottish Kennel Club. He was a supporter of the Birmingham Dog Show Society, and was instrumental in having it raised to championship status. In 1957, Cecil Wright altered his surname to Cecil-Wright by

deed poll A deed poll (plural: deeds poll) is a legal document binding on a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an intention or create an obligation. It is a deed, and not a contract because it binds only one party (law), party. Et ...

, He returned to local politics as a member of Warwickshire County Council from 1958 to 1961. although he had always used the unhyphenated version as a surname. Cecil-Wright died in Milford-on-Sea in 1982 aged 95.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cecil-Wright, John Allan Cecil 20th-century Royal Air Force personnel 1886 births 1982 deaths Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1935–1945 People educated at Winchester College Royal Warwickshire Fusiliers officers Royal Army Service Corps officers Royal Flying Corps officers Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) British Army personnel of World War I Royal Air Force squadron leaders