William Lygon, 8th Earl Beauchamp, JP, DL (3 July 1903 – 3 January 1979), styled as Viscount Elmley until 1938, was a politician in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The eldest son of the controversial

William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp, (20 February 1872 – 14 November 1938), styled Viscount Elmley until 1891, was a British Liberal Party (UK), Liberal politician. He was Governor of New South Wales between 1899 and 1901, a member of the Libera ...

, sometime leader of the Liberals 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 Westminste ...

, he was a

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 East Norfolk before in 1938 inheriting his father’s seat in the

. He remained a member there until his death.

Political career

Earl and Countess Beauchamp with their Family at Madresfield on the occasion of Viscount Elmley’s coming of age

Standing as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

, Lygon was elected as Member of Parliament for East Norfolk at the 1929 general election. At the 1931 general election, when the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

split over participation in Ramsay MacDonald's National Government, he stood and was elected in the interest of the breakaway Liberal National grouping (known as National Liberal after 1948), which aligned itself with the National Government even after the official Liberals (called "Samuelites" after their leader

Herbert Samuel Herbert Louis Samuel, 1st Viscount Samuel, (6 November 1870 – 5 February 1963) was a British Liberal politician who was the party leader from 1931 to 1935. He was the first nominally-practising Jew to serve as a Cabinet minister and to be ...

) crossed the floor into opposition in 1932, and eventually (in 1968) merged with the

Conservatives 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 ...

. Lygon, known in the House of Commons by his courtesy title of Viscount Elmley, retained his seat as a Liberal National in the 1935 general election. He succeeded to the peerage as the

Earl Beauchamp Earl Beauchamp () was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The peerage was created in 1815 for William Lygon, 1st Baron Beauchamp, along with the subsidiary title Viscount Elmley, in the County of Worcester. He had already been creat ...

on his father's death in 1938. At his own death without male issue in 1979, his peerages became extinct.

Personal life

On 16 June 1936, Lygon married Else "Mona" Schiwe (1895–1989), a daughter of Viggo Schiwe, a Danish character actor, and former wife of Peter Christian Blicher Dornonville de la Cour (d. 1924). Beauchamp had no issue of his own by this marriage, but he gained a stepdaughter, Agnete Regitze Dornonville de la Cour (1916–2010). At one time, Lygon lived in the disused Winterton Lighthouse in Winterton-on-Sea, Norfolk, a village in his parliamentary constituency. After succeeding his father as the Earl Beauchamp in 1938, he and his wife made their home at Madresfield Court, Worcestershire, the ancestral seat of the Earls Beauchamp.

In popular culture

Lygon is sometimes said to be the model for the character of Lord Brideshead ("Bridey"), eldest son of the Marquess of Marchmain, in

Evelyn Waugh Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh (; 28 October 1903 – 10 April 1966) was an English writer of novels, biographies, and travel books; he was also a prolific journalist and book reviewer. His most famous works include the early satires '' Decl ...

's novel ''

Brideshead Revisited ''Brideshead Revisited: The Sacred & Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder'' is a novel by English writer Evelyn Waugh, first published in 1945. It follows, from the 1920s to the early 1940s, the life and romances of the protagonist Charles ...

'', perhaps because both were heirs to ancient families and married elderly wives, and both had eccentric fathers. As a result, he was the last Earl Beauchamp. Lygon’s father has been cited as the model for Lord Marchmain, the father of "Bridey".Paula Byrne, "Sex scandal behind Brideshead Revisited", The Times (London), 9 August 2009

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Beauchamp, William Lygon, 8th Earl 1903 births 1979 deaths William 8 Lygon, William National Liberal Party (UK, 1931) politicians Lygon, William Lygon, William Lygon, William Beauchamp, E8 Deputy Lieutenants of Worcestershire People educated at West Downs School Conservative Party (UK) hereditary peers People from the Borough of Great Yarmouth

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...