William James Harris, 6th Earl of Malmesbury TD (18 November 1907 – 11 November 2000), styled Viscount FitzHarris until 1950, was a

British peer The peerages in the United Kingdom are a legal system comprising both hereditary and lifetime titles, composed of various noble ranks, and forming a constituent part of the British honours system. The term '' peerage'' can be used both coll ...

. The son of

James Harris, 5th Earl of Malmesbury James Edward Harris, 5th Earl of Malmesbury DL (18 December 1872 – 12 June 1950), styled Viscount FitzHarris from 1889 to 1899, was a British peer and conservative politician. Malmesbury was the eldest son of Edward Harris, 4th Earl of Ma ...

, Harris 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 ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

and, as a surveyor, joined and served in the

Royal Hampshire Regiment The Hampshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 37th (North Hampshire) Regiment of Foot and the 67th (South Hampshire) Regiment of Foot. The reg ...

. After leaving the army, he served in a variety of positions, all of which involved forestry, agriculture, or surveying work.The Earl of Malmesbury – Telegraph
/ref> He succeeded his father in the earldom in 1950. In 1973 he became

Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire. Since 1688, all the Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Hampshire. From 1889 until 1959, the administrative county was named the County of Southampton. *W ...

, a position he held until 1982. From 1966 to 1974 he was Official

Verderer Verderers are forestry officials in England who deal with common land in certain former royal hunting areas which are the property of the Crown. The office was developed in the Middle Ages to administer forest law on behalf of the King. Verderer ...

of the

New Forest The New Forest is one of the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in Southern England, covering southwest Hampshire and southeast Wiltshire. It was proclaimed a royal forest by William the Conqueror, featu ...

. The family seat was Greywell Hill House, near

Farnham Farnham ( /ˈfɑːnəm/) is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a trib ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

. Lord Malmesbury married firstly, the Honourable Diana Carleton (1912–1990), daughter of Dudley Carleton, 2nd Baron Dorchester, on 7 July 1932. They had three children:, *Lady Sylvia Veronica Anthea Harris (b. 17 May 1934), married John Maltby, son of Air Vice Marshal Sir Paul Copeland Maltby, and had issue. *Lady Nell Carleton Harris (b. 3 July 1937), married Captain Michael Boyle, descendant of

Henry Boyle, 5th Earl of Shannon Henry Bentinck Boyle, 5th Earl of Shannon (22 November 1833 in London – 8 February 1890 in Castlemartyr) was an Honorary Colonel of the 2nd Brigade, South Irish Division, Royal Artillery. Family He was a son of Richard Boyle, 4th Earl of Shanno ...

and William Edmund Cradock-Hartopp, 3rd Baronet, High Sheriff of Warwickshire, and had issue. *James Harris, 7th Earl of Malmesbury (b. 19 June 1946), married Sally Ann Rycroft, daughter of Sir Richard Newton Rycroft, 7th Baronet, and had issue. He married secondly, Margaret Campbell-Preston (d. 1994) in 1991 and thirdly, Bridget Hawkings on 5 July 1996.

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* 1907 births 2000 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Royal Hampshire Regiment officers Deputy Lieutenants of Hampshire 6 English people of Dutch descent English surveyors Lord-Lieutenants of Hampshire People educated at Eton College Schuyler family {{GB-earl-stub

Malmesbury Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the upp ...