Sir Peter Edward Trench (16 June 1918 – 10 September 2006) was a British developer and Liberal Party politician.

Background

He was a son of Lt-Col. James Knights Trench, managing director of the Sandoz Chemical Company Limited and Grace Sim of

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

. He was educated privately, at the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

London University The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree- ...

and

St John’s College, Cambridge St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge founded by the Tudor matriarch Lady Margaret Beaufort. In constitutional terms, the college is a charitable corporation established by a charter dated 9 April 1511. The ...

where he was awarded a BSc (Econ.) Hons. He married, in 1940, Mary St Clair Morford. They had one son and one daughter. Mary died in 2004. He was awarded an

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in 1945, a

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in 1964 and he was knighted in 1979.

Second World War

He served in The Queen’s Royal Regiment from 1939–46. He was at the Battle of Dunkirk. He went on a special mission to Italy. In 1944 he was on Field-Marshal Montgomery's staff. He reached the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.

Political career

At the age of 27 he was Liberal candidate for the Bradford Central Division of West Yorkshire at the 1945 General Election, finishing third. He did not stand for parliament again. The Liberal Party in Bradford had been dominated by the Liberal Nationals who favoured close co-operation with the Conservative party. However Trench was opposed to this arrangement and stood against a Conservative candidate. He openly criticised those Liberal Nationals who aligned themselves with the Conservatives. He served as a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

in Inner London from 1963–1971. He was a part-time Member of the National Board for Prices and Incomes from 1965–68.

Professional career

He went into the building and construction business, running a string of construction companies. He was a member of the

Chartered Institute of Building The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) is a UK-based international professional association which exists to promote and advance for the public benefit the science and practice of building and construction. On official website Originating in ...

. He was Director of the National Federation of Building Trades Employers from 1959–64.‘TRENCH, Sir Peter (Edward)’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2007; online edn, Oxford University Press, December 200
accessed 19 January 2014
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References

External links

*Iain Dale's Blogspot: http://iaindale.blogspot.co.uk/2006/09/quiz-question-of-day.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Trench, Peter Edward 1918 births 2006 deaths Liberal Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Alumni of the London School of Economics Alumni of the University of London Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Commanders of the Order of the British Empire English justices of the peace Knights Bachelor British Army personnel of World War II Queen's Royal Regiment officers