John Charles Dodson, 3rd Baron Monk Bretton DL (17 July 1924 – 26 May 2022) was a British agriculturist,

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

landowner, and

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of September 2022, there are 807 hereditary peers: 29 dukes (including five royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 190 earls, 111 viscounts, and 443 barons (disregarding subsid ...

who was a long–serving member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

from 1948 to 1999. John Dodson succeeded his father, John William Dodson, on 29 July 1933; MONK BRETTON, John Charles Dodson. (2008). In ''Who's Who 2008''. Retrieved February 26, 2008, from http://www.credoreference.com/entry/7441825 MONK BRETTON, John Charles Dodson, Debrett's People of Today. MONK BRETTON, John Charles Dodson,

Dod's Parliamentary Companion ''Dods Parliamentary Companion'' (formerly "Dod's Parliamentary Companion") is an annual politics reference book published in the United Kingdom. It provides biographies and contact information on members of the Houses of Parliament and the Ci ...

. MONK BRETTON, John Charles Dodson,

Burke's Peerage 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 Br ...

. aged only nine. Thus he held a peerage for 88 years (1933-2022), this is thought to be the world record. He was educated at

Institut Le Rosey Institut Le Rosey (), commonly referred to as Le Rosey or simply Rosey, is a private boarding school in Rolle, Switzerland. Founded in 1880 by Paul-Émile Carnal on the site of the 14th-century Château du Rosey in the town of Rolle in the canto ...

;

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

(March 1941-July 1942); and New College, Oxford (matric. Michaelmas 1942; B.A. and M.A. 1952). He became a member of Brooks's in 1949 and married Zoe Diana Ian Douglas Scott, daughter of Ian Douglas Scott, of Winchelsea, Sussex, in 1958. They had two sons. Between 1966-68 Lord and Lady Monk Bretton had

Raymond Erith Raymond Charles Erith Royal Academy of Arts, RA FRIBA (7 August 1904 – 30 November 1973) was a leading classical architect in England during the period dominated by the modern movement after the Second World War. His work demonstrates his contin ...

re-model a Queen Anne house his great-grandfather,

Sir John Dodson Sir John Dodson (19 January 1780 – 27 April 1858) was an English judge, aka Dean of Arches, and member of parliament. Life Dodson was born at Hurstpierpoint on 19 January 1780. He was the eldest son of the Rev. Dr. John Dodson (1734–1807) ...

, had acquired near Barcombe from the family of

Percy Bysshe Shelley Percy Bysshe Shelley ( ; 4 August 17928 July 1822) was one of the major English Romantic poets. A radical in his poetry as well as in his political and social views, Shelley did not achieve fame during his lifetime, but recognition of his achie ...

. The Dodsons had hitherto largely just rented it out; Bosie,

Lord Alfred Douglas Lord Alfred Bruce Douglas (22 October 1870 – 20 March 1945), also known as Bosie Douglas, was an English poet and journalist, and a lover of Oscar Wilde. At Oxford he edited an undergraduate journal, ''The Spirit Lamp'', that carried a homoer ...

, for example, was a tenant circa 1920. The house, ''Shelley's Folly'', Erith described as 'a little pavilion, on a knoll, built for the view'. Monk Bretton, having consequently sold another larger and newer nearby house, lived there until moving to Switzerland in 2004. He has been a Deputy Lieutenant for East Sussex since 1983, and a stalwart of the South of England Agricultural Society show, at Ardingly, since its foundation in 1967. Following expulsion from the House of Lords in 1999 following the passing of the House of Lords Act, he moved to the

Lake Geneva , image = Lake Geneva by Sentinel-2.jpg , caption = Satellite image , image_bathymetry = , caption_bathymetry = , location = Switzerland, France , coords = , lake_type = Glacial lak ...

northern shore. Lord Monk Bretton died on 26 May 2022, at the age of 97.

Monk Bretton in the Lords

Lord Monk Bretton first sat in Parliament at the age of 23 on 27 January 1948. He was greeted by the Second Reading of the

Parliament Act 1949 The Parliament Act 1949 (12, 13 & 14 Geo. 6 c. 103) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It reduced the power of the House of Lords to delay certain types of legislation – specifically public bills other than money bills &n ...

. Over 51 years later the by then 75-year-old peer was excluded by the House of Lords Act 1999. His maiden speech was made on 18 March 1948 in

Lord Dowding Air Chief Marshal Hugh Caswall Tremenheere Dowding, 1st Baron Dowding, (24 April 1882 – 15 February 1970) was an officer in the Royal Air Force. He was Air Officer Commanding RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain and is generally ...

's ''Notice'' debate on the ''Slaughter of Animals''.Monk Bretton shares with his grandfather, 1st Lord Monk Bretton (a successful Chairman of Committees (1865-72) and friend of Gladstone), 'A cold formal manner, a dry voice, a level flow of speech, and a painfully practical turn of mind, hatwhilst making Mr. Dodson's intervention sometimes useful, do not endear him to his audience', see ''Men and Measures in Parliament'', 1874, quoted in G.E.C. (1936), vol. 9, p.55). At 5.30 p.m. on Tuesday 9 November 1999

Lord Grantchester Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

''rose to ask Her Majesty's Government how their proposals for the milk industry and in particular for the supply of raw milk will affect the rural economy'', in the ensuing debate Monk Bretton made his valediction. He concluded his 13-minute speech thus: :That is the end of my remarks, but I wish also to say goodbye. It is likely that the noble Lord, Lord Grantchester, who initiated this debate, and I will no longer attend this House. I am delighted that a maiden speaker (

Lord Carlile of Berriew Alexander Charles Carlile, Baron Carlile of Berriew, (born 12 February 1948) is a British barrister and crossbench member of the House of Lords. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Montgomeryshire from 1983 to 1997. Early life and career ...

) is to speak after me. I hope that he will carry the torch for British dairying.

Some ancestors

References

*Lucy Archer, ''Raymond Erith, Architect'', The Cygnet Press, 1985, (pages 184 & 185).

External links

John Charles Dodson, 3rd Baron Monk Bretton
at ThePeerage.com

in the second reading debate of

Lord Renton of Mount Harry Ronald Timothy Renton, Baron Renton of Mount Harry, (28 May 1932 – 25 August 2020) was a British Conservative politician. Early life Tim Renton, who rarely used his first name of Ronald, was born in London. He won scholarships to Eton C ...

's Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Bill.
Quoted in ''The Guardian''
5 November 1999. The paper edition had a photograph of him on the front page.

House of Lords, 9 November 1999. * New Residence (French Wiki) {{DEFAULTSORT:Monk Bretton, John Charles Dodson, 3rd Baron 1924 births 2022 deaths People educated at Westminster School, London Alumni of New College, Oxford Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Monk Bretton Monk Bretton Conservative Party (UK) hereditary peers Deputy Lieutenants of East Sussex Eldest sons of British hereditary barons Alumni of Institut Le Rosey Monk Bretton