Christopher George Walter James, 5th Baron Northbourne, 6th Baronet (18 February 1926 – 8 September 2019), was a British farmer and aristocrat. He was one of the ninety hereditary peers elected to remain in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999 until his retirement in 2018, and sat as a crossbencher.

Biography

The son of Walter James, 4th Baron Northbourne, and his wife, Katharine Louise Nickerson of Boston, Massachusetts, he succeeded to his father's title in 1982. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

in Berkshire and

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by Bishop of Winchester William of Waynflete. It is one of the wealthiest Oxford colleges, as of 2022, and ...

, where he graduated with a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in 1959. Lord Northbourne served as the Crossbench spokesman for families and children in the House of Lords. He was deputy chair of Toynbee Hall and had been chair of Betteshanger Farms Ltd until 1997. Since 1999, he has been chair of the Parenting Support Forum and governor of Wye College. Since 2002, he has been also chair of the Stepney Children's Fund. He was a Deputy Lieutenant and a Fellow of the

Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is a global professional body for those working in the Built Environment, Construction, Land, Property and Real Estate. The RICS was founded in London in 1868. It works at a cross-governmental ...

(FRICS). He retired from the House of Lords on 4 September 2018. He died on 8 September 2019 at the age of 93. Lord Northbourne's garden at Elizabethan Northbourne Court near Deal in Kent, set within the standing former outbuildings (the manor house burned in the 18th century) and upon ancient terracing, nurtured for a century, is reputed one of the finest in England; it is not generally open to the public.

Family

On 18 July 1959, the future Baron married Aliky Louise Hélène Marie-Sygne Claudel, daughter of Henri Charles Claudel, and granddaughter of Paul Claudel. cites . They had four children:The Peerage, entry for 5th Baron Northbourne of Betteshanger
/ref> * Charles Walter Henri James, 6th Baron Northbourne (14 June 1960); married Catherine Lucy Burrows on 3 October 1987. They have three children, two sons and a daughter: **Henry Christopher William James (born 3 December 1988), the

heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...

**Anastasia Aliki James (born 18 February 1992) **Alexander Oliver Charles James (born 27 February 1996) * Hon. Anthony Christopher Walter Paul James (14 January 1963); married with two children. *Hon. Sebastian Richard Edward Cuthbert James (11 March 1966); married Anna Katherine Gregory in August 1997. They have three sons and a daughter. *Hon. Ophelia Mary Katherine Christine Aliki James (23 August 1969); married Jocelyn Charles Stewart Hoare. They have two children.

Notes

References

* 1926 births 2019 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford Deputy lieutenants of Kent Crossbench hereditary peers British people of American descent

Christopher Christopher is the English language, English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek language, Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or ''Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Jesus ...

People from Northbourne, Kent

{{UK-baron-stub Hereditary peers elected under the House of Lords Act 1999 Peers retired under the House of Lords Reform Act 2014