Sir John Vernon Wills, 4th Baronet, KCVO,

KStJ The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of c ...

, TD, JP (3 July 1928 – 26 August 1998) was an English landowner, businessman, farmer and royal representative. Born on 3 July 1928, Wills came from a prominent

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

family. One of his ancestors was among the founders of W. D. and H. O. Wills, which became

Imperial Tobacco Imperial Brands plc (formerly Imperial Tobacco Group plc), is a British multinational tobacco company headquartered in Bristol, England. It is the world's fourth-largest international cigarette company measured by market share after Philip Mor ...

."Sir John Wills", ''The Times'' (London), 31 August 1998, p. 23. . His grandfather, George Wills, was president of the latter and was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

in 1923; his son (Wills's father), George Vernon Proctor Wills, succeeded to the baronetcy in 1926 and served as a director of Imperial Tobacco, dying in 1931. Wills's mother was Nellie Jeannie Rutherford, ARRC, JP (died 1961).Charles Moseley (ed.), ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage'', 107th ed., vol. 3 (Wilmington: Burke's Peerage, 2003), p. 4198. Educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

and the Royal College of Agriculture, Wills succeeded his elder brother George to the baronetcy in 1945. He took no part in the family business, instead he ran dairy farms and bred

Hereford cattle The Hereford is a British breed of beef cattle originally from Herefordshire in the West Midlands of England. It has spread to many countries – there are more than five million purebred Hereford cattle in over fifty nations worldwide. The bre ...

while pursuing a career in the Territorial Army from 1954 to 1967; he received the

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer Officer's Decoration when the Te ...

for his service. He held directorships in the Bristol and West Building Society, Bristol Water Holdings Plc, and the

Bristol Evening Post The ''Bristol Post'' is a city/regional five-day-a-week (formerly appearing six days per week) newspaper covering news in the city of Bristol, including stories from the whole of Greater Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire. It was ...

and Bristol United Press. He chaired the Wessex Water Authority from 1973 to 1982. He served as Pro-Chancellor of the

University of Bath (Virgil, Georgics II) , mottoeng = Learn the culture proper to each after its kind , established = 1886 (Merchant Venturers Technical College) 1960 (Bristol College of Science and Technology) 1966 (Bath University of Technology) 1971 (univ ...

, which awarded him an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

(as did the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

). He was an independent member of the

Somerset County Council Somerset County Council is the county council of Somerset in the South West of England, an elected local government authority responsible for the most significant local government services in most of the county. On 1 April 2023 the county counc ...

from 1958 to 1974. Having been a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

for

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

since 1962 and the

High Sheriff of Somerset The office of High Sheriff of Somerset is an ancient shrievalty which has been in existence since the 11th century. Originally known as the "Sheriff of Somerset", the role was retitled on 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government A ...

in 1968, he served as the first and last

Lord Lieutenant of Avon The Lord Lieutenant of the County of Avon from the creation of the county on 1 April 1974 to its abolition in 1996 was Colonel Sir John Vernon Wills, 4th Baronet. He subsequently became Lord Lieutenant of Somerset This is an incomplete list of pe ...

, from 1974 to 1996, and as the

Lord Lieutenant of Somerset This is an incomplete list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Somerset. Since 1714, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Somerset. Lord Lieutenants of Somerset * John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford 1552–1555 * Wil ...

from 1994 to his death. He was appointed a Knight of Grace of the

Order of St John of Jerusalem The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic military order. It was headq ...

in 1978 and a Knight Commander of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

in 1998. He died on 26 August 1998.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wills, John 1928 births 1998 deaths English landowners English businesspeople 20th-century English farmers People educated at Eton College Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Military personnel from Bristol British Army officers Lord-Lieutenants of Somerset

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...