Sir Hugh Dacre Barrett-Lennard, 6th Baronet (27 June 1917 – 21 June 2007) was a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

priest. He previously served in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, being

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

and ending the war as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. He became a priest of the

London Oratory The London Oratory ("the Congregation of the Oratory of St Philip Neri in London") is a Catholic community of priests living under the rule of life established by its founder, Philip Neri (1515-1595). It is housed in an Oratory House, next to t ...

after the war, where he was noted for his eccentricity.

Early life

Barrett-Lennard's father, Sir Fiennes Cecil Arthur Barrett-Lennard (1880–1963), was a British soldier, who fought in the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

and in East Africa 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 became a judge in Malaya, then

Johore Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the northwest. Johor shares maritime bor ...

and

Kedah Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman (Islam), Aman and historically as Queda, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The state covers a total area ...

, and finally

Chief Justice of Jamaica Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

.Obituary, ''The Daily Telegraph'', 4 August 2007
/ref> He was educated at

Radley College Radley College, formally St Peter's College, Radley, is a public school (independent boarding school for boys) near Radley, Oxfordshire, England, which was founded in 1847. The school covers including playing fields, a golf course, a lake, and ...

in Oxfordshire. He and his mother converted to

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

ism in the 1930s. He became a teacher at St Philip's prep school in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

, and was due to join the

when the Second World War broke out.

Second World War

On the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he enlisted in the

as a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

in the London Scottish. He was commissioned and joined the Intelligence Corps before being transferred to the 2nd Battalion,

Essex Regiment The Essex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment served in many conflicts such as the Second Boer War and both World War I and World War II, serving with distinction in all three. ...

, part of the 56th Independent Infantry Brigade. After the battalion received severe casualties on 11 June/12 June 1944, shortly after the

D-Day landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...

, he took over the post of battalion

Intelligence Officer An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile or analyze information (known as intelligence) which is of use to that organization. The word of ''officer'' is a working title, not a rank, used in the same way a ...

until August 1944. Very early one morning at the time of the Battle of Falaise, he was responsible for a reconnaissance far into German lines in a jeep with only a driver for support. He was thus able to establish for the 56th Brigade and

49th (West Riding) Infantry Division The 49th (West Riding) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army. The division fought in the First World War in the trenches of the Western Front, in the fields of France and Flanders. During the Second World War, the divis ...

that the Germans had swiftly retreated and advance was possible. At the farthest extent of their patrol, they spoke to the local mayor while the Germans packed up and left on the other side of the Mairie. When challenged as to his identity by the mayor, Lt. Barrett-Lennard replied "Je suis L'Armee Britannique!" On return, his driver is reputed to have told all and sundry that Barrett-Lennard was bonkers. He finished his army career as a

and had twice been

. Two weeks prior to his

demobilisation Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and militar ...

, he was in Berlin, Germany. With the war over, he established a school for soldiers preparing men for their demob and return to civilian life.

Post-war career

Back in London, he joined the London Congregation of the

Oratory of St Philip Neri The Confederation of Oratories of Saint Philip Neri ( la, Confoederatio Oratorii Sancti Philippi Nerii) abbreviated CO and commonly known as the Oratorians is a Catholic society of apostolic life of Pontifical Right for men (priests and lay- ...

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End of London, West End. ...

. He studied at the

Pontifical Beda College The Pontifical Beda College ( it, Pontificio Collegio Beda) is a college in Rome. It was founded as the ''Collegio Ecclesiastico'' at the Palazzo dei Convertendi in 1852 by Pope Pius IX and is intended for older men, often convert clergymen, wi ...

in Rome, and was ordained as a Catholic priest at the

Basilica of St John Lateran The Archbasilica Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist in the Lateran ( it, Arcibasilica del Santissimo Salvatore e dei Santi Giovanni Battista ed Evangelista in Laterano), also known as the Papa ...

in Rome in 1950, alongside a German that he had shot at in Normandy. After his ordination, he became a parish priest at the

and became a priest to the Royal House Guards. He was one of the priests suggested by

Alec Guinness Sir Alec Guinness (born Alec Guinness de Cuffe; 2 April 1914 – 5 August 2000) was an English actor. After an early career on the stage, Guinness was featured in several of the Ealing comedies, including ''Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (194 ...

who could help

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier (; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the Theatre of the U ...

convert to Catholicism. Father Hugh succeeded to the baronetcy on the death of a distant cousin,

Sir Richard Barrett-Lennard, 5th Baronet Sir Thomas Richard Fiennes Barrett-Lennard, 5th Baronet, (12 December 1898 – 28 December 1977) was a British banker who had served as vice-chairman of Norwich Union and Chairman of the East Anglian Trustee Savings Bank. Life and family He was ...

, at Swallowfield Park, Reading on 28 December 1977. Father Hugh helped at the

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

said in

Bayeux Cathedral Bayeux Cathedral, also known as Cathedral of Our Lady of Bayeux ( French: ''Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Bayeux''), is a Roman Catholic church located in the town of Bayeux in Normandy, France. A national monument, it is the seat of the Bishop of B ...

for the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...

, in 1994. He also addressed the congregation and unveiled a plaque near the cathedral entrance to the soldiers of the 56th Infantry Brigade–the 2nd Battalions of the Essex Regiment, the

Gloucestershire Regiment The Gloucestershire Regiment, commonly referred to as the Glosters, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army from 1881 until 1994. It traced its origins to Colonel Gibson's Regiment of Foot, which was raised in 1694 and later became the ...

and the

South Wales Borderers The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years. It came into existence in England in 1689, as Sir Edward Dering's Regiment of Foot, and afterwards had a variety of names and headquarters. In ...

–who landed on

Gold Beach Gold, commonly known as Gold Beach, was the code name for one of the five areas of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during the Second World War. Gold, the central of the five areas, was lo ...

on 6 June 1944 and pushed inland to secure the right flank of the

British Second Army The British Second Army was a field army active during the First and Second World Wars. During the First World War the army was active on the Western Front throughout most of the war and later active in Italy. During the Second World War the army ...

by that evening, liberating

Bayeux Bayeux () is a Communes of France, commune in the Calvados (department), Calvados Departments of France, department in Normandy (administrative region), Normandy in northwestern France. Bayeux is the home of the Bayeux Tapestry, which depicts ...

the following day. A colleague said of him that he shared "St Philip's eccentricity, especially about dress and those type of things. His family had a certain reputation for a lack of grandeur". He apparently inherited this from his eccentric great grandfather,

Sir Thomas Barrett-Lennard, 1st Baronet Sir Thomas Barrett-Lennard, 1st Baronet FSA, DL (6 January 1762 – 25 June 1857) was a British politician and baronet. He was the illegitimate son of the 17th Baron Dacre and Elizabeth FitzThomas. Barrett-Lennard was educated at Downing Colleg ...

, who wore very old and shabby clothing and had been mistakenly apprehended by the police as a miscreant and also assumed to be a servant when he opened the park gates to a carriage for which he received a tip. Father Hugh died a few days before his ninetieth birthday. A

Requiem Mass A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

was held at Brompton Oratory on 3 July 2007. He was succeeded in the baronetcy by a distant cousin, although in July 2012 the baronetcy was still regarded as vacant.the Standing Council of the Baronetage
/ref>

Arms

Notes

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Barrett-Lenard, Hugh Dacre 1917 births 2007 deaths People educated at Radley College Intelligence Corps officers British Army personnel of World War II Essex Regiment officers 6

Hugh Hugh may refer to: *Hugh (given name) Noblemen and clergy French * Hugh the Great (died 956), Duke of the Franks * Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France under his father, Robert II * Hugh, Duke of Alsace (died 895), modern-day ...

20th-century English Roman Catholic priests London Scottish soldiers Converts to Roman Catholicism