Miles Wedderburn Lampson, 1st Baron Killearn, (24 August 1880 – 18 September 1964) was a British diplomat.

Background and education

Miles Lampson was the son of Norman Lampson, and grandson of

Sir Curtis Lampson, 1st Baronet Sir Curtis Miranda Lampson, 1st Baronet (21 September 1806 – 12 March 1885) was an England, Anglo-American fur merchant, best remembered for his promotion of the transatlantic telegraph cable. Life Born New Haven, Vermont, to American Rev ...

. His mother was Helen, daughter of Peter Blackburn, MP for Stirlingshire. He was 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 ...

Diplomatic career

Miles Lampson, British Minister to China

Lampson entered the Foreign Office in 1903. He served as Secretary to Garter Mission, Japan, in 1906, as 2nd Secretary at Tokyo, Japan, between 1908 and 1910, as 2nd Secretary at

Sofia, Bulgaria Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...

in 1911, as 1st Secretary at Peking in 1916, as Acting British High Commissioner in Siberia in 1920 and as British Minister to China between 1926 and 1933. In 1934 he was appointed High Commissioner for Egypt and the Sudan. As a result of the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty in December 1936, to which Lampson was a signatory, Britain loosened its grip on Egypt and the post title was changed to Ambassador to Egypt and High Commissioner for the Sudan in 1936. Lampson continued in this office until 1946. As ambassador to Egypt he forced King Farouk I to change the cabinet to a Wafdist one through surrounding the king's palace with tanks. He was then Special Commissioner in Southeast Asia between 1946 and 1948. He was admitted to the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

in 1941 and raised to the peerage as ''

Baron Killearn Baron Killearn, of Killearn in the County of Stirling, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1943 for the diplomat Sir Miles Lampson. He was the second son of Norman Lampson, youngest son of Sir Curtis Lampson, 1st B ...

'', of Killearn in the County of Stirling, on 17 May 1943. He was also awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon of Japan"Pax Britannica (3rd Class)"
''Time'', 16 May 1932. and the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon of Japan.

Family

Cecil Beaton Photographs- Political and Military Personalities; Lampson, Jacqueline Aldine Leslie, Lampson, Miles Wedderburn CBM2016

Lord Killearn married firstly Rachel, daughter of William Wilton Phipps, in 1912. They had one son and two daughters: * Graham Curtis Lampson, 2nd Baron Killearn (1919–1996). He died leaving daughters only, the youngest Hon. Nadine Marisa Lampson being married to Sir Nicholas Bonsor, Bt. * Hon. Mary Lampson * Hon. Margaret Lampson After Rachel's death in 1930 he married secondly Jacqueline Aldine Leslie Castellani (1910–2015), daughter of Aldo Castellani, (Hon.), in 1934. They had one son and two daughters: * Victor Miles George Aldous Lampson, 3rd Baron Killearn. He has issue, including a son and heir apparent. * Hon. Jacquetta Jean Frederica Lampson; she married Peregrine Eliot, 10th Earl of St Germans, and had issue, three sons. * Hon. Roxana Rose Catherine Naila Lampson. She married to Ian Ross, mother of six children, including the musicians Atticus Ross, Leopold Ross and the model Liberty Ross. Lampson was a close personal friend of Sir Edward Peel.

Succession

Lord Killearn died in September 1964, aged 84, and was succeeded in the barony by his son by his first marriage, Graham. As Graham died without male heirs, the title subsequently passed to Lord Killearn's son from his second marriage, Victor. The 3rd Lord Killearn took legal action in 2011 to prevent his mother selling off the family home,

Haremere Hall Haremere Hall is a Grade I listed Jacobean building near Etchingham, East Sussex. Location The hall is approximately in size and sited in an grounds. It is around 12 miles north of Hastings and the grounds overlook the River Rother. History ...

.Daily Telegraph 18 Oct 2011 https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/8834008/Baroness-loses-legal-fight-with-son-to-sell-stately-home.html

Arms

References

Sources

* ''The Killearn Diaries, 1934–1946'', London: Sidwick and Jackson, 1972. * Yapp, M.E. (ed.): ''Politics and diplomacy in Egypt: The diaries of Sir Miles Lampson, 1935–1937'', Oxford: Published for the British Academy by Oxford University Press, 1997. * Lord Killearn's Diaries: Custodial history: In the possession of Lord Killearn, the Lampson family, Drs Trefor Evans and David Steeds of the

University of Aberystwyth , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

. Reference code: GB165-0176. Dates of creation: 1926–1951. 8 boxes 25 volumes. Scope and content: 25 MS and TS volumes of diaries, 1926–51, covering his service in China, Egypt and the Sudan, and South-East Asia. * Cassandra Jardine
"Grande dame is still giving high society plenty of cause for gossip"
in: ''The Independent'', Sunday 27 January 2008. Describes the life and times of the Dowager Lady Killearn (née Jacquetta Aldine Leslie Castellani). * O'Sullivan, Christopher D.: ''FDR and the End of Empire: The Origins of American Power in the Middle East.'', Palgrave Macmillan, 2012.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Killearn, Miles Lampson, 1st Baron 1880 births 1964 deaths Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to China Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Egypt High Commissioners of the United Kingdom to Egypt Companions of the Order of the Bath Diplomatic peers Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Members of the Royal Victorian Order Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People educated at Eton College Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, 3rd class Recipients of the Order of the Sacred Treasure Barons created by George VI