Colonel Sir John Luke Lowther (17 November 1923 – 11 April 2011) was a British soldier and

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

gentleman.

Family

Lowther was the son of Col. John George Lowther, who in turn was a younger brother of Sir Charles Lowther, 4th Baronet. He married Jennifer Jane Bevan in 1952, by whom he had three children: *Sarah Charlotte Margaret Lowther (b. 1954), married Henry Merton Henderson in 1977 and had issue *Hugh William Lowther (b. 1956), married Hon. Amanda Vivian in 1985 and had issue *Lavinia Mary "Lucy" Lowther (b. 1958), married Julian Edward Tomkins in 1983 and had issue

Career

Lowther was commissioned a second lieutenant in the King's Royal Rifle Corps on 6 March 1943. Lowther stood as

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 ...

candidate for Belper in the general elections of

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and 1966, but on both occasions was defeated by the incumbent MP,

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. In 1971, Lowther was appointed

High Sheriff of Northamptonshire This is a list of the High Sheriffs of Northamptonshire. The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the respo ...

. He received a deputy lieutenant's commission in 1977, and in 1984, he was appointed Lord Lieutenant of the county. While serving as Lord Lieutenant in 1986, he became Honorary Colonel of the

Royal Anglian Regiment The Royal Anglian Regiment (R ANGLIAN) is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It consists of two Regular battalions and one Reserve battalion. The modern regiment was formed in 1964, making it the oldest of the Line Regiments now operating i ...

, Northampton Territorial Army battalion, an appointment he held until 1989, following which he received the honorary rank of colonel. He was made a KCVO in the

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, and stepped down as Lord Lieutenant in 1998.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowther, John Luke 1923 births 2011 deaths Commanders of the Order of the British Empire High Sheriffs of Northamptonshire King's Royal Rifle Corps officers Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Lord-Lieutenants of Northamptonshire Conservative Party (UK) parliamentary candidates