George Herbert Hyde Villiers, 6th Earl of Clarendon, (7 June 1877 – 13 December 1955), styled Lord Hyde from 1877 to 1914, 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 from the

Villiers family Villiers ( ) is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. Over time, various members of the Villiers family were made knights, baronets, and peers. Peerages held by the Villiers family include the dukedoms of Buckingham (1623–1687) and Cleve ...

. He served as

Governor-General of the Union of South Africa The governor-general of the Union of South Africa ( af, Goewerneur-generaal van Unie van Suid-Afrika, nl, Goeverneur-generaal van de Unie van Zuid-Afrika) was the highest state official in the Union of South Africa between 31 May 1910 and 31 ...

from 1931 to 1937.

Background

Clarendon was the only son of Edward Hyde Villiers, 5th Earl of Clarendon and his wife Lady Caroline Elizabeth Agar, daughter of

James Agar, 3rd Earl of Normanton James Charles Herbert Welbore Ellis Agar, 3rd Earl of Normanton DL (17 September 1818 – 19 December 1896), styled Viscount Somerton from birth until 1868, was a Conservative and later Peelite member of parliament in the United Kingdom of Great ...

George William Frederick Villiers, 4th Earl of Clarendon George William Frederick Villiers, 4th Earl of Clarendon, (12 January 180027 June 1870) was an English diplomat and statesman from the Villiers family. He served as Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs three times as part of a distinguished ...

, three times

Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwe ...

, was his grandfather.

Political career

Lord Hyde was in November 1902 appointed an extra aide-de-camp to the Earl of Dudley,

Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the King ...

. Clarendon took his seat on the Conservative benches in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...

on his father's death in 1914. When

Bonar Law Andrew Bonar Law ( ; 16 September 1858 – 30 October 1923) was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 1922 to May 1923. Law was born in the British colony of New Brunswick (now ...

became Prime Minister in 1922 he appointed Clarendon

Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms The Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms is a post in the Government of the United Kingdom that has been held by the Government Chief Whip in the House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is th ...

(government chief whip in the House of Lords), a position he also held under

Stanley Baldwin Stanley Baldwin, 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley, (3 August 186714 December 1947) was a British Conservative Party politician who dominated the government of the United Kingdom between the world wars, serving as prime minister on three occasions, ...

until January 1924, and again from December 1924 to 1925. He then served as the first

Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs The position of Under-Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs was a British ministerial position, subordinate to that of Secretary of State for Dominion Affairs, created in 1925 to deal with British relations with the Dominions – Canada, Aust ...

until 1927. In 1931 Clarendon was appointed

Governor-General of South Africa The governor-general of the Union of South Africa ( af, Goewerneur-generaal van Unie van Suid-Afrika, nl, Goeverneur-generaal van de Unie van Zuid-Afrika) was the highest state official in the Union of South Africa between 31 May 1910 and 31 ...

, in which position he remained until 1937. During his tenure as Governor-General of South Africa, he also served as Chief Scout of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

Clarendon High School for Girls Clarendon High School for Girls is a public English medium high school for girls situated in the suburb of Selborne of East London in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It was founded in 1903 as East London Girls' High School, The b ...

and its associated schools, Clarendon Primary School and Clarendon Preparatory School in

East London, South Africa East London ( xh, eMonti; af, Oos-Londen) is a city on the southeast coast of South Africa in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality of the Eastern Cape province. The city lies on the Indian Ocean coast, largely between the Buffalo River ...

are named after him. Clarendon became

Lord Chamberlain The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Sovereign of the United Kingdom while also acting as the main c ...

in 1938 and served until the death of King

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of I ...

in 1952. He was sworn of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...

in 1931 and made a

Knight of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George ...

in 1937.

Family

Lord Clarendon married Adeline Verena Ishbel Cocks, daughter of Herbert Haldane Somers Cocks, in 1905. They had three children: * George Villiers, Lord Hyde, killed in a shooting accident in South Africa in 1935, leaving a son George Frederick Laurence and a posthumous daughter, Rosemary. * (Nina) Joan Villiers, Lady Newman * (William) Nicholas Villiers. He died in December 1955, aged 78. His eldest son George Villiers, Lord Hyde, had been killed in a shooting accident in 1935; the earldom was inherited by George's son

Laurence Laurence is an English and French given name (usually female in French and usually male in English). The English masculine name is a variant of Lawrence and it originates from a French form of the Latin ''Laurentius'', a name meaning "man fro ...

Honours

* He was awarded the Freedom of the Borough of

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

on 28 July 1924. * UK Order St-Michael St-George ribbon

He was made a

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

on 2 December 1930, , which would normally allow him the Title " Sir" but this was outranked by his peerage so was not used. It gave him the

Post Nominal Letters Post-nominal letters, also called post-nominal initials, post-nominal titles, designatory letters or simply post-nominals, are letters placed after a person's name to indicate that the individual holds a position, academic degree, accreditation, ...

"GCMG" for life. * He was sworn in as a member of

His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of e ...

in 1931. This allowed him the Honorific Title "

The Right Honourable ''The Right Honourable'' ( abbreviation: ''Rt Hon.'' or variations) is an honorific style traditionally applied to certain persons and collective bodies in the United Kingdom, the former British Empire and the Commonwealth of Nations. The ter ...

" and the

"PC" for life. * Order of the Garter UK ribbon

He was made a

Knight of the Order of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British honours system, outranked in ...

in 1937 by HM King George VI, which would normally allow him the Title " Sir" but this was outranked by his peerage so was not used. It gave him the Post Nominal Letters "KG" for life. * UK Royal Victorian Order ribbon

He was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Royal Victorian Order on 8 June 1939 by HM King George VI, which would normally allow him the Title " Sir" but this was outranked by his peerage so was not used. It gave him the Post Nominal Letters "GCVO" for life. He also served as Chancellor of the Order from 1938-1952. * Order of St John (UK) ribbon -vector

He was made a Bailiff Grand Cross of the Order of St John on 18 June 1940. Within the Order this allowed him the post nominal letters "GCStJ" for life. He also served as Prior of the Order from 1943–1946. * Royal Victorian Chain Ribbon

He was awarded the

Royal Victorian Chain The Royal Victorian Chain is a decoration instituted in 1902 by King Edward VII as a personal award of the monarch (i.e. not an award made on the advice of any Commonwealth realm government). It ranks above the Royal Victorian Order, with which it ...

on 21 October 1952. by

HM Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

. * He was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...

. This gave him the Post Nominal Letters "DL" for life.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Clarendon, George Villiers, 6th Earl Of 1877 births 1955 deaths Bailiffs Grand Cross of the Order of St John Chairmen of the BBC Conservative Party (UK) Baronesses- and Lords-in-Waiting Deputy Lieutenants of Hertfordshire 6 Governors-General of South Africa Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms Knights of the Garter Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Permanent Lords-in-Waiting Scouting and Guiding in South Africa George Villiers, 6th Earl of Clarendon Villiers, George Presidents of the Southern Africa Association for the Advancement of Science