Sir (William) Marcus John Worsley, 5th Baronet, (6 April 1925 – 18 December 2012), was a British Conservative Party politician. He served as a

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 o ...

in four parliaments between 1959 and 1974, and served as High Sheriff and Lord Lieutenant for

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

Biography

Worsley was born in the family home of

Hovingham Hall Hovingham Hall is a country house built in the Palladian style in the village of Hovingham, North Yorkshire, England. It has been the seat of the Worsley family and the childhood home of the Duchess of Kent. It was built in the 18th century on ...

, near

Malton, North Yorkshire Malton is a market town, civil parish and electoral ward in North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the North Riding of Yorkshire, the town is the location of the offices of Ryedale District Council and has a population of around 13,000 ...

, the eldest son of Colonel Sir William Worsley, 4th Baronet, and Joyce Morgan Brunner. He was the eldest brother of

Katharine, Duchess of Kent Katharine, Duchess of Kent, (born Katharine Lucy Mary Worsley, 22 February 1933) is a member of the British royal family. She is married to Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, a grandson of King George V. The Duchess of Kent converted to Roman Ca ...

. 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 ...

. After conscripted service in the

Green Howards The Green Howards (Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own Yorkshire Regiment), frequently known as the Yorkshire Regiment until the 1920s, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, in the King's Division. Raised in 1688, it served under vario ...

, which included a

secondment Secondment is the assignment of a member of one organisation to another organisation for a temporary period. Job rotation The employee typically retains their salary and other employment rights from their primary organization but they work close ...

to the

Royal West African Frontier Force The West African Frontier Force (WAFF) was a multi-battalion field force, formed by the British Colonial Office in 1900 to garrison the West African colonies of Nigeria, Gold Coast, Sierra Leone and Gambia. In 1928, it received royal recognitio ...

, he graduated as BA from New College, Oxford, in 1949. Worsley was a Councillor on Malton Rural District Council from 1955, serving as vice-chairman in 1965. He was an unsuccessful candidate at the 1955 election for the marginal constituency of

Keighley Keighley ( ) is a market town and a civil parish in the City of Bradford Borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is the second largest settlement in the borough, after Bradford. Keighley is north-west of Bradford city centre, north-west of ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

. However, at the 1959 election he defeated the sitting

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

(MP) Charles Hobson, taking the seat with a majority of only 170. At the 1964 general election, he lost his Keighley seat to Labour's John Binns, but for the 1966 election he was selected as candidate for the safe

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 in ...

seat of

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

in west

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. He held that seat for three Parliaments, before retiring at the October 1974 general election. He served as the

Second Church Estates Commissioner The Church Commissioners is a body which administers the property assets of the Church of England. It was established in 1948 and combined the assets of Queen Anne's Bounty, a fund dating from 1704 for the relief of poor clergy, and of the Eccle ...

, the church of England's link to the House of Commons, from 1970 to 1974. In 1973, when he inherited the title and estate, he moved back into Hovingham Hall and managed the estate. In 1982 he was appointed

High Sheriff of North Yorkshire The High Sheriff of North Yorkshire is a current High Sheriff title which has existed since 1974. For around 1,000 years the entire area of Yorkshire was covered by a single High Sheriff of Yorkshire. After the Local Government Act 1972 the title ...

. In 1978 he was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant for North Yorkshire, serving as Lord Lieutenant from 1987 to 1999. He also served the county as High Sheriff from 1982 to 1983. He was appointed a Knight of Justice of the Order of Saint John in 1987. Worsley was active in the National Trust becoming Chairman of the Yorkshire Regional Committee between 1969 and 1994 and for a time Chair of the Trust's Properties Committee, overseeing approval of the acquisition of many significant property acquisitions including Canons Ashby (1981), Belton House (1984), Calke Abbey (1985) and Keddleston Hall (1987). He served as Deputy Chairman of the Trust between 1986 and 1992. Worsley died on 18 December 2012 at Hovingham Hall and was buried in Hovingham cemetery. His eldest son William succeeded to the baronetcy.

Marriage and children

In 1955 he married

Hon Hon or HON may refer to: People * Han (surname) (Chinese: 韩/韓), also romanized Hon * Louis Hon (1924–2008), French footballer * Priscilla Hon (born 1998), Australian tennis player Other uses * Hon (Baltimore), a cultural stereotype of ...

Bridget Assheton (born 20 August 1926, died 22 May 2004), daughter of

Ralph Assheton, 1st Baron Clitheroe Ralph Assheton, 1st Baron Clitheroe, (24 February 1901 – 18 September 1984), was an English aristocrat and politician. Biography Assheton was born on 24 February 1901. His father was Sir Ralph Assheton, 1st Baronet (1860–1955), and his m ...

, and Hon Sylvia Benita Frances Hotham. They had four children together:The Peerage, entry for Sir Marcus Worsley Bt
/ref> * Sir William Ralph Worsley, 6th Baronet (born 12 September 1956) * Sarah Marianne Worsley (born 25 June 1958) * Giles Arthington Worsley (22 March 1961 – 17 January 2006) * Peter Marcus Worsley (born 15 September 1963)

References

External links

* *
Hovingham Hall website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Worsley, Marcus 1925 births 2012 deaths People from Hovingham Alumni of New College, Oxford Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Councillors in North Yorkshire UK MPs 1959–1964 UK MPs 1966–1970 UK MPs 1970–1974 UK MPs 1974 Lord-Lieutenants of North Yorkshire Deputy Lieutenants of North Yorkshire High Sheriffs of Yorkshire Knights of Justice of the Order of St John Green Howards officers Church Estates Commissioners

Marcus Worsley Sir William Marcus John Worsley, 5th Baronet, (6 April 1925 – 18 December 2012) was a British Conservative Party politician. He served as a Member of Parliament in four parliaments between 1959 and 1974, and served as High Sheriff and Lord ...

English justices of the peace People educated at Eton College