Henry James Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, 11th Earl of Dundee (3 May 1902 – 29 June 1983), was a Scottish nobleman, soldier and politician.

Background and education

Dundee was the elder son of Colonel Henry Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, ''

de jure In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legally ...

'' 10th

Earl of Dundee Earl of Dundee is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1660 for John Scrymgeour, 3rd Viscount Dudhope. At his death in 1668, the Duke of Lauderdale declared that the first Earl had no heirs-male, and had the crown seize all o ...

, and Edith, daughter of John Moffat. He was educated at Winchester and Balliol College, Oxford, where he was president of the

Oxford Union The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to simply as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford England, whose membership is drawn primarily from the University of Oxford. Founded in 1823, it is one of Britain's oldest ...

in October 1924. He graduated with a Master of Arts degree in 1926.

Political career

After leaving Oxford, he joined the Territorial Army on 8 April 1927, as a second lieutenant in the 6th/7th Battalion of the

Black Watch The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regime ...

. Wedderburn was elected Unionist

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 ...

(MP) for West Renfrewshire from 1931 until 1945. He was appointed to be PPS to the President of Eden's board for two years before moving to the Ministry of Agriculture. In 1935, he was PPS to the Secretary of State for Scotland before being promoted as

Under-Secretary of State for Scotland The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland is a junior ministerial post (of Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State rank) in the Government of the United Kingdom, supporting the Secretary of State for Scotland. The post is also kno ...

until the outbreak of the war. He served 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 opposi ...

as an officer with the 7th Battalion, The Black Watch from 1939 to 1941, leaving with the rank of captain. Scrymgeour-Wedderburn was wounded so returned to London politics. He was briefly Joint Under-Secretary of State for Scotland from 1941 to 1942. He was chosen as a member of the parliamentary delegation to China just as Japanese soldiers stormed

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

. The delegates promised to offer the Chinese military support in a broader alliance to fight the occupation of

Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer M ...

. On 31 July 1952, the Scrymgeour family's claim to title of Dudhope and Scrymgeour in the Scottish peerage were accepted by the Lords Committee for Privileges; and again on 18 May 1953 his claim to the earldom of Dundee and Lord Innerkeithing was affirmed. On 30 July 1954, he was created Baron Glassary, of Glassary in the County of Argyll, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, giving him an automatic seat in the House of Lords (not guaranteed by his Scottish peerages). Macmillan chose Dundee minister without portfolio from 1958 to 1961 owing to a wealth of experiences at home and abroad. Dundee was successfully promoted to number two in the Foreign Office as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs from 1961 to 1964. Simultaneously he was Assistant Deputy Leader of 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 Westminste ...

from 1960 to 1962 and Deputy Leader of the House of Lords from 1962 to 1964. In 1959, he was appointed a

Privy Counsellor 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 ei ...

. Lord Dundee was also the Hereditary Royal Standard-Bearer for Scotland, a right established by his father before the Court of Claims in 1902. He was decorated with the award of Order of the Brilliant Star of China (with Special Cravat). He was awarded an honorary LLD by

St Andrews University (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

in 1954.

Family

Lord Dundee married his brother's widow,

Patricia Katherine Montagu Douglas Scott Patricia Katherine Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, Countess of Dundee (née Montagu Douglas Scott, formerly Faulkner, 9 October 1910 - December 3, 2012)Charles Mosley, editor, Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, Wilmington, Delaware, U ...

, granddaughter of

William Montagu Douglas Scott, 6th Duke of Buccleuch William Henry Walter Montagu Douglas Scott, 6th Duke of Buccleuch and 8th Duke of Queensberry, (9 September 1831 – 5 November 1914) was a Scottish Member of Parliament and peer. He was the paternal grandfather of Princess Alice, Duchess ...

, on 30 October 1946. She was in fact the widow of not one but two soldiers, both of whom were killed in action: Lt.-Col. Walter Douglas Faulkner MC of the Irish Guards (k. May 1940), and Lord Dundee's younger brother David Scrymgeour-Wedderburn DSO of the Scots Guards (1912–1944), with each of whom she had two children. Lord and Lady Dundee had one child together: * Alexander Henry Scrymgeour of Dundee, later 12th Earl of Dundee (born 5 June 1949). Lady Dundee died on 3 December 2012 at the age of 102. His stepdaughter and niece Elizabeth married John Roper-Curzon, 20th Baron Teynham.

References

*Charles Mosley, editor, ''

Burke's Peerage and Baronetage Burke's Peerage Limited is a British genealogical publisher founded in 1826, when the Irish genealogist John Burke began releasing books devoted to the ancestry and heraldry of the peerage, baronetage, knightage and landed gentry of Great Bri ...

'', 107th edition (2003).

External links

* , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Dundee, Henry Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, 11th Earl of 1902 births 1983 deaths Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, Henry Deputy Lieutenants of Fife Earls of Dundee Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, Henry Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ministers in the Churchill wartime government, 1940–1945 Presidents of the Oxford Union Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, Henry Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, Henry UK MPs who inherited peerages UK MPs who were granted peerages Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, Henry Ministers in the Chamberlain peacetime government, 1937–1939 Ministers in the Macmillan and Douglas-Home governments, 1957–1964 Hereditary barons created by Elizabeth II British Army personnel of World War II