Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

Miles Francis Stapleton Fitzalan-Howard, 17th Duke of Norfolk, (21 July 1915 – 24 June 2002) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

general and

peer Peer may refer to: Sociology * Peer, an equal in age, education or social class; see Peer group * Peer, a member of the peerage; related to the term "peer of the realm" Computing * Peer, one of several functional units in the same layer of a ne ...

. He was the eldest son of Bernard Fitzalan-Howard, 3rd Baron Howard of Glossop, and his wife Mona Stapleton, 11th Baroness Beaumont. In 1975, he inherited the

Dukedom of Norfolk Duke of Norfolk is a title in the peerage of England. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the title refers to the county of Norfolk. The current duke is Edward Fitzalan-Howard, 18th Duke of Norfolk. The du ...

from his second cousin once removed, making him the premier duke in the Peerage of England.

Military career

Educated at Ampleforth College and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniq ...

,Obituary: The Duke of Norfolk
''The Daily Telegraph'', 26 June 2002 Miles Fitzalan-Howard was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Territorial Army as a university candidate on 3 July 1936. and was subsequently commissioned in the same rank in the

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

on 27 August 1937, with seniority from 30 January 1936. His service number was 52703. He was promoted to lieutenant on 30 January 1939 and to captain on 30 January 1944. In April 1944, as a temporary major during 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 ...

, he was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

for reconnaissance of mined roads. He was at the time on foot and under enemy fire. He was quoted in his obituary in ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'' as saying: "Anyone can be the Duke of Norfolk, but I'm rather proud of that medal." Fitzalan-Howard was promoted to the substantive rank of major on 30 January 1949. Promoted to

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 ...

on 28 February 1955, he was appointed Chief of the British mission to the Soviet forces in Germany in 1957, and received a promotion to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

on 24 April 1958 He was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire 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 ...

(CBE), Military Division, in the 1960 New Year Honours. In 1961, he was appointed Commander of the 70th Brigade ( King's African Rifles and the

Kenya Regiment The Kenya Regiment was a unit of the British Army that recruited primarily from White Kenyans and some Ugandans with Black Kenyan recruits increasingly employed most notably, during the Mau Mau conflict. Formed in 1937, it was disbanded at the o ...

), just before Kenyan independence.Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives
/ref> Promoted to

brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. ...

on 1 January 1963, he became General Officer Commanding 1st Division on 5 November, with the rank of temporary

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

. He was confirmed in the substantive rank of major-general in February 1964, retroactive to 5 November and with seniority from 10 April 1963. After relinquishing his command on 5 November 1965, he became Director of Management and Support Intelligence at the Ministry of Defence on 6 January 1966 Appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) in the 1966 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed Director of Service Intelligence at the Ministry of Defence on 29 July. He relinquished this appointment on 18 September of the following year and retired the same day, after 31 years of service.

Baronies of Beaumont and Howard of Glossop

The Duke inherited the Barony of Beaumont from his mother, the 11th Baroness, in 1971, and the Barony Howard of Glossop from his father, the 3rd Baron, in 1972.

Dukedom of Norfolk

When he was Lord Beaumont he inherited the

from his second cousin once removed, The 16th Duke of Norfolk, in 1975 and added his mother's maiden name of Stapleton before his own that year. He also inherited the Great Office of Earl Marshal and Hereditary Marshal of England, which is attached to the Dukedom of Norfolk, thereby becoming responsible for State occasions. He became, by virtue of this office, the hereditary judge of the

Court of Chivalry His Majesty's High Court of Chivalry is a civil law (i.e., non common law) court in English and Welsh law with jurisdiction over matters of heraldry. The court has been in existence since the fourteenth century; however, it rarely sits. The so ...

and head of the

College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the British Sover ...

, responsible for

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known bran ...

in England and Wales as well as other parts of the

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the C ...

such as Australia and New Zealand. The Dukes of Norfolk remained

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

despite the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

(see recusancy). The Duke, as senior Roman Catholic peer of the United Kingdom, represented The Queen at the installations of Pope John Paul I and

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

and at the funeral of Pope John Paul I. The 17th Duke was the patron of many Catholic charities and benevolent organisations, including the

Catholic Building Society The Catholic Building Society was a UK building society based in Westminster, London. It was the 57th largest in the United Kingdom based on total assets of £44 million at 31 December 2007. The Society was started by Vincent Byrne and the Hon. ...

Personal life

One of eight children (all of whose first names started with the letter "M"), the Duke married Anne Mary Teresa Constable-Maxwell in 1949. They had two sons and three daughters: * Lady Tessa Mary Isabel Fitzalan-Howard (born 20 September 1950), married

Roderick Balfour, 5th Earl of Balfour Roderick Arthur Francis Balfour, 5th Earl of Balfour (born 9 December 1948), is a British peer and businessman. Biography Balfour was born on 9 December 1948 in London to Eustace Arthur Goschen Balfour (1921–2000) and his wife, Anne (née Yul ...

; has issue, four daughters, one of whom is the playwright, Lady Kinvara Balfour. *Lady Carina Mary Gabrielle Fitzalan-Howard (born 20 February 1952), married Sir David Frost; has issue. * Lady Marcia Mary Josephine Fitzalan-Howard (born 10 March 1953), better known as the actress Marsha Fitzalan, married Patrick Ryecart (marriage dissolved); has issue. * Edward Fitzalan-Howard, 18th Duke of Norfolk (b. 2 December 1956), married Georgina Susan Gore, has issue. * Lord Gerald Bernard Fitzalan-Howard (born 13 June 1962), married Emma Roberts; has issue. He has resided with his family at Carlton Towers since 1991. The Duke lived in the parish of Hambleden until his death on 24 June 2002. He was buried at Fitzalan Chapel on the western grounds of Arundel Castle. A memorial service was held at Westminster Cathedral, celebrated by the Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster; the congregation was led by Princess Alexandra of Kent representing the Queen and by Field Marshal Lord Bramall representing the Duke of Edinburgh.

Catholicism

He was Catholic but disagreed with the Church's view on birth control at a conference of Catholic teachers, "How can you ask a married couple to do it by thermometers and what not?", he asked, "My wife and I did that – it didn't bloody work. Has everybody got to have eight children like my mother?"

Honours and awards

;Domestic * Royal Victorian Chain (2000) * Knight of the Order of the Garter (1983) * Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (1986) * Companion of the Order of the Bath (1966) *

(1960) *

* Deputy Lieutenant of West Sussex ;Foreign *: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Pius IX *: Grand Cross ''pro merito Melitensi''

Family

Ancestry

Family tree

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Norfolk, 17th Duke of, Miles Stapleton Fitzalan-Howard 1915 births 2002 deaths People educated at Ampleforth College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford British Army personnel of World War II Grenadier Guards officers British Army major generals British Roman Catholics English Roman Catholics Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of the Bath Deputy Lieutenants of West Sussex 317 *35 306 123 *25 Barons Howard of Glossop Barons Beaumont Miles Fitzalan-Howard, 17th Duke of Norfolk Earls Marshal Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Knights of the Garter Knights of the Order of Pope Pius IX Recipients of the Military Cross Recipients of the Order pro Merito Melitensi King's African Rifles officers 20th-century Roman Catholics 21st-century Roman Catholics Earls of Norfolk (1644 creation) Eldest sons of British hereditary barons Military personnel from London