Robert Trotter Hermon-Hodge, 1st Baron Wyfold, (23 September 1851 – 3 June 1937) was a British

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 i ...

politician. Born Robert Trotter Hodge, he was the son of G W Hodge of

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

. He was educated at

Clifton College ''The spirit nourishes within'' , established = 160 years ago , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent boarding and day school , religion = Christian , president = , head_label = Head of College , head ...

and

Worcester College, Oxford Worcester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1714 by the benefaction of Sir Thomas Cookes, 2nd Baronet (1648–1701) of Norgrove, Worcestershire, whose coat of arms w ...

. In 1877 he married Frances Caroline Hermon, only daughter of

Edward Hermon Edward Hermon (2 April 1822 – 6 May 1881) was a British cotton magnate and Conservative Party politician. At the 1868 general election he was elected on his first attempt a Member of Parliament (MP) for the two-seat constituency of Preston in ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) for Preston. In 1903 he added her surname to his own to become "Hermon-Hodge".

Parliamentary career

He entered politics in 1884, when he was adopted as Conservative candidate for the Wallingford seat. The seat was abolished by the

Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 (48 & 49 Vict., c. 23) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a piece of electoral reform legislation that redistributed the seats in the House of Commons, introducing the concept of equal ...

, when he contested the new seat of

Accrington Accrington is a town in the Hyndburn borough of Lancashire, England. It lies about east of Blackburn, west of Burnley, east of Preston, north of Manchester and is situated on the culverted River Hyndburn. Commonly abbreviated by locals to ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, winning it first on the next general election, called in 1886, his first return to the

Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons ...

. He served one term losing the seat at the next election in 1892, and narrowly failing to be re-elected in an 1893 by-election.The Constitutional Year Book
1904, published by

Conservative Central Office The Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ), formerly known as Conservative Central Office (CCO), is the headquarters of the British Conservative Party, housing its central staff and committee members, including campaign coordinators and manag ...

, page 147 (171 in web page), Lancashire North East Hodge gained his longest spell in the Commons from the 1895 general election as MP for the Southern or Henley Division of

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

. He held the seat in

1900 As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...

and was defeated in the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

landslide of

1906 Events January–February * January 12 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: A nationalistic coalition of merchants, religious leaders and intellectuals in Persia forces the shah Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar to grant a constitution, ...

. His years for this seat proved longer than the total years he served in three separate chunks at other times. It was announced that he would receive a

baronetcy 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 the

1902 Coronation Honours The 1902 Coronation Honours were announced on 26 June 1902, the date originally set for the coronation of King Edward VII. The coronation was postponed because the King had been taken ill two days before, but he ordered that the honours list shou ...

list published on 26 June 1902 for the (subsequently postponed) coronation of

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria a ...

, and on 24 July 1902 he was created a Baronet, of

Wyfold Court Wyfold Court is a country house at Rotherfield Peppard in south Oxfordshire. It is a Grade II* listed building. By the year 2000, the estate had been converted into apartments. History The house was designed by George Somers Leigh Clarke for t ...

in the Parish of Checkendon in the county of Oxford. He returned to the Commons for a third time when he won a by-election in March 1909 at

Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensi ...

. Re-elected at the ensuing poll in January 1910, he stood down for the election in December of the same year. In May 1917

Valentine Fleming Major Valentine Fleming (17 February 1882 – 20 May 1917) was a British Conservative Member of Parliament who was killed in World War I. He was the father of authors Peter Fleming and Ian Fleming, the latter of whom created the James Bond c ...

, the sitting MP for

Henley Henley may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Henley, Dorset, a location * Henley, Gloucestershire, a location * Henley-on-Thames, a town in South Oxfordshire, England ** Henley (UK Parliament constituency) ** Henley Rural District, a former ru ...

, was killed fighting on the Western Front. An election was announced and Hermon-Hodge was returned unopposed for his old seat at the by-election in June. He retired from parliament at the post-

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

general election in 1918. In May 1919 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Wyfold, of

in the

County Palatine of Lancaster Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a Historic counties of England, historic county, Ceremonial County, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significa ...

and participated in the Lords 34 times, all before 1931. His son did so 13 times all in the 1937-1938 period.

Life outside parliament

He enjoyed the life of a country gentleman at the family estate of

, near

Reading, Berkshire Reading ( ) is a town and borough in Berkshire, Southeast England, southeast England. Located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the rivers River Thames, Thames and River Kennet, Kennet, the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 mot ...

. He was an enthusiastic sportsman, being a member of various hunts in Berkshire and South Oxfordshire. He also participated in

deer-stalking Deer stalking, or simply stalking, is a British term for the stealthy pursuit of deer on foot with the intention of hunting for meat, for leisure/trophy, or to control their numbers. As part of wildlife management, just as with rabbiting and ...

, shooting and fishing. He attended the

Henley Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It differs from the three ...

each year, and is remembered in the name of the

Wyfold Challenge Cup The Wyfold Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless fours at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from a single rowing club. Boat clubs from any university, college ...

. He was also a leading

freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

and was for thirty years a member of the

Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars The Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars (QOOH) was a Yeomanry Cavalry regiment of the British Army's auxiliary forces, formed in 1798. It saw service in the Second Boer War with 40 and 59 Companies of the Imperial Yeomanry and was the first Yeomanry ...

. He was honorary colonel of the regiment at the time of his death. He had seven sons, two of whom died in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and one daughter. His wife died in 1929, and Lord Wyfold died in June 1937, aged 85.

Arms

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wyfold, Robert Hermon-Hodge, 1st Baron 1851 births 1937 deaths People educated at Clifton College Alumni of Worcester College, Oxford Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Deputy Lieutenants of Oxfordshire Politics of the London Borough of Croydon UK MPs 1886–1892 UK MPs 1895–1900 UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1906–1910 UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 UK MPs who were granted peerages Politics of Hyndburn Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars officers Barons created by George V