Thomas Geoffrey Charles Michael Taylour, 6th Marquess of Headfort (20 January 1932 – 21 October 2005), styled Earl of Bective until 1960, was an Irish
peer, aircraft salesman, and politician.
Biography
Thomas Geoffrey Charles Michael Taylour, known to family and friends simply as Michael, was born on 20 January 1932 to
Terence Geoffrey Thomas Taylour, 5th Marquess of Headfort
Publius Terentius Afer (; – ), better known in English as Terence (), was a Roman African playwright during the Roman Republic. His comedies were performed for the first time around 166–160 BC. Terentius Lucanus, a Roman senator, brought ...
and Elise Florense Tucker.
He was educated at
Stowe School in
Stowe
Stowe may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
*Stowe, Buckinghamshire, a civil parish and former village
**Stowe House
**Stowe School
* Stowe, Cornwall, in Kilkhampton parish
* Stowe, Herefordshire, in the List of places in Herefordshire
* Stowe, Linc ...
,
Buckinghamshire, England, before attending
Christ's College, Cambridge. While there, he was a member of the university air squadron.
It was during this time, also, that he had his first brush with the law, being fined for £2 for driving in
Acton with his arm around a girl.
In 1955 he received his Bachelor of Arts, and four years later a Master of Arts.
He received a certificate of proficiency in rural estate management from Christ's College. He also received his qualification as a commercial pilot.
In 1953, he began his career working as a director at Bective Electrical Co., before working as a sales manager and chief pilot at Lancashire Aircraft Co. in 1959.
In 1958, he married
The Hon. Elizabeth Angela Veronica Rose Nall-Cain, a
goddaughter of
Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and the sole daughter of
The 2nd Baron Brocket at
St James's Church, Spanish Place.
Two years later, the couple travelled to Africa, selling aircraft.
With her he had three children:
*
Thomas Michael Ronald Christopher Taylour, 7th Marquess of Headfort (b. 10 February 1959)
* Lady Rosanagh Elizabeth Angela Mary Taylour (b. 20 January 1961)
* Lady Olivia Sheelin Davina Anne Taylour (b. 4 October 1963)
Following his father's sudden death in
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...
in October 1960, he acceded to become the
Marquess of Headfort
Marquess of Headfort is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1800 for Thomas Taylour, 2nd Earl of Bective.
The Marquess holds the subsidiary titles of Earl of Bective (1766), Viscount Headfort (1762), Baron Headfort, of Headfo ...
on 24 October.
His maiden speech as a member of the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
discussed air safety, and he quickly became interested in politics, particularly
Irish politics. He ran for the
Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann (, ; "Senate of Ireland") is the upper house of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (the lower house).
It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its memb ...
, the Irish Senate, in 1973 with only the nomination the
Irish Georgian Society
The Irish Georgian Society is an architectural heritage and preservation organisation which promotes and aims to encourage an interest in the conservation of distinguished examples of architecture and the allied arts of all periods across Ire ...
in 1973, but lost with only a few votes.
By 1968, his marriage with Elizabeth Nall-Cain was collapsing, and the ensuing divorce proceedings in 1969 in the
Isle of Man
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, anthem = "O Land of Our Birth"
, image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg
, image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg
, mapsize =
, map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe
, map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green)
in Europe ...
led the legal disputes with her and other family members, causing significant financial hardship. He was forced to sell
Headfort House
Headfort House is a large country house on the southern outskirts of Kells in County Meath, Ireland.
History
The house was constructed in the 1760s for The 1st Earl of Bective to a design by the Irish architect George Semple. The interiors ...
, the historic seat of the
Marquess of Headfort
Marquess of Headfort is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1800 for Thomas Taylour, 2nd Earl of Bective.
The Marquess holds the subsidiary titles of Earl of Bective (1766), Viscount Headfort (1762), Baron Headfort, of Headfo ...
, for £1 million, to B.J. Kruger, a Canadian multimillionaire.
His departure was the cause of much mourning by estate workers, as he was well liked.
By now, all that remained of his inheritance were 16 acres of
bog in County Cavan.
For some time afterward, he lived in Hong Kong, where he was an honorary
Inspector of Police.
He later moved to the Philippines, the home of his second wife, Virginia Nable, a friend of
Imelda Marcos
Imelda Romualdez Marcos (; born Imelda Remedios Visitacion Trinidad Romualdez; July 2, 1929) is a Filipino politician who served as the First Lady of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, wielding significant political power during the dictato ...
.
The two married in 1972. Settling in a
bungalow complex called Kenlis House on
Lubang Island
Lubang Island is the largest island in the Lubang Group of Islands, an archipelago which lies to the northwest of the northern end of Mindoro in the Philippines. The Lubang Islands are about southwest of Manila. There are seven islands in the gro ...
, he was active in the coast guard and donated a public library to the local municipality.
He also maintained a residence in Manila.
In 1987, he gave his final speech in the House of Lords. The speech was a tribute to the accomplishments of
Alcoholics Anonymous.
On 21 October 2005, he died at the age of 73.
His funeral took place in
Manila
Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...
, Philippines.
Mental health
The Marquis of Headfort suffered from
bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder, previously known as manic depression, is a mental disorder characterized by periods of depression and periods of abnormally elevated mood that last from days to weeks each. If the elevated mood is severe or associated with ...
that occasionally necessitated hospitalisation.
This was related to a period of alcoholism.
As a result, to these conditions, police intervention was required on at least one occasion in 1965, when, at the age of 33, he was escorted by the police to St Lawrence's Hospital,
Bodmin, after hiring a waiter to row him out in a boat to an uninhabited island in the
Isles of Scilly, and during the trip, asked him to kill Prime Minister
Harold Wilson.
This episode received national attention and was widely recorded, despite Headfort's later denial of the incident.
In another, unrelated, incident, neighbours reported how he had fired three blanks into the ceiling of a local
pub
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
during a party.
Memberships
*
Land Agents' Society
*
Irish Auctioneers and Valuers Institute Council
*
Royal Agricultural Society of England
The Royal Agricultural Society of England (RASE) promotes the scientific development of English agriculture. It was established in 1838 with the motto "Practice with Science" and received its Royal Charter from Queen Victoria in 1840. RASE is bas ...
*
Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is a global professional body for surveyors, founded in London in 1868. It works at a cross-governmental level, and aims to promote and enforce the highest international standards in the va ...
Arms
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Headfort, Thomas Taylour, 6th Marquess of
1932 births
2005 deaths
Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge
People educated at Stowe School
Marquesses of Headfort
Commercial aviators
Michael
Headfort