Sir Dennis Fortescue Boles, 1st Baronet

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 ...

, DL (6 September 1861 – 26 July 1935) 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 in ...

politician and

Baronet 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 14t ...

Bishop's Lydeard Bishops Lydeard () is a village and civil parish located in Somerset, England, north-west of Taunton in the district of Somerset West and Taunton. The civil parish encompasses the hamlets of East Lydeard, Terhill, and East Bagborough, and had a ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, England. Boles was the son of Reverend James Thomas Boles of Ryll Court,

Exmouth Exmouth is a port town, civil parish and seaside resort, sited on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe and southeast of Exeter. In 2011 it had a population of 34,432, making Exmouth the 5th most populous settlement in Devon. Histo ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

. He was educated at Bradfield School and

Exeter College, Oxford (Let Exeter Flourish) , old_names = ''Stapeldon Hall'' , named_for = Walter de Stapledon, Bishop of Exeter , established = , sister_college = Emmanuel College, Cambridge , rector = Sir Richard Trainor ...

. Sir Dennis entered Parliament in 1911, upon the elevation to the peerage of Lord St Audries, was returned to Parliament for

Wellington, Somerset Wellington is a market town in rural Somerset, a county in the west of England, situated south west of Taunton in the Somerset West and Taunton district, near the border with Devon, which runs along the Blackdown Hills to the south of the t ...

, in 1911, a seat he held until 1918, and then sat for

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...

from 1918 to 1921. Apart from his political career, Boles was also

Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...

commanding the 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion, Devonshire Regiment, from 1910, a Justice of the Peace and Deputy Lieutenant of

and for 1923 the

High Sheriff of Somerset The office of High Sheriff of Somerset is an ancient shrievalty which has been in existence since the 11th century. Originally known as the "Sheriff of Somerset", the role was retitled on 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Government ...

. He was made a

in 1919 and in 1922 he has created a

baronet 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 14t ...

, of

in the County of Somerset. Boles married Beatrice, daughter of John Lysaght, in 1894. He died in July 1935, aged 74, and was succeeded in the baronetcy by his second but eldest surviving son Gerald. His eldest son, 2nd Lt. Hastings Fortescue Boles, was killed in action in France on 24 May 1915 while serving with the Royal Flying Corps. Lady Boles died in 1939. Sir Dennis was also a cricketer, and did much to popularise the Exmouth Club. He was a former president of Somerset County Cricket Club. During two and a half years of

the Great 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 ...

he commanded his Special Reserve battalion of the Devonshire Regiment training thousands of reinforcements for the regiment, from which he retired in February 1917 after 32 years of service. His total command was seven years, and on his retirement he was specially mentioned by the

Secretary at War The Secretary at War was a political position in the English and later British government, with some responsibility over the administration and organization of the Army, but not over military policy. The Secretary at War ran the War Office. Afte ...

for his valuable services. Sir Dennis founded two private

hunting Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, horn/antler, ...

packs, which were for some years run entirely at his own expense. In 1931, he resigned the Mastership of the Quantock Staghounds, but continued as popular leader of the West Somerset Hunt, where he completed 31 years' Mastership — a record. Up to his death Sir Dennis was president of Taunton Division Conservative Association, and in August 1917 succeeded Lord St. Audries as president of the West Somerset Farmers' Club. He was High Sheriff of Somerset in 1923. Sir Dennis was a supporter of the Taunton and Somerset Hospital, of which he was a life-governor, and he had been president on two occasions. He was also president of Taunton Motor Club, Assistant County Commissioner for the Boy Scouts and Chairman of the Bishops Lydeard Bank.

References

* Western Morning News — Obituary 27 July 1935 (edited)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Boles, Dennis Fortescue 1861 births 1935 deaths Devonshire Regiment officers British Army personnel of World War I Boles, Sir Dennis, 1st Baronet Boles, Sir Dennis, 1st Baronet Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1910–1918 UK MPs 1918–1922 Deputy Lieutenants of Somerset High Sheriffs of Somerset Somerset County Cricket Club presidents Devon Militia officers