Courtenay Charles Evan Morgan, 1st Viscount Tredegar,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

KStJ The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (), commonly known as the Order of St John, and also known as St John International, is an order of chivalry constituted in 1888 by royal charter from Queen Victoria and dedica ...

, VD (10 April 1867 – 3 May 1934), was a Welsh peer.

Early life

Morgan was born on 10 April 1867 at

Ruperra Castle Ruperra Castle or Rhiwperra Castle () is a Grade II* Listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument, situated in Lower Machen in the county borough of Caerphilly, Wales. Built in 1626, the castle is in a ruinous condition as at 2023. Its gr ...

near Newport, Monmouthshire.Published under Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians. He was the eldest son of the Hon. Frederick Courtenay Morgan (third son of

Charles Morgan, 1st Baron Tredegar Charles Morgan Robinson Morgan, 1st Baron Tredegar (10 April 1792 – 16 April 1875), known as Sir Charles Morgan Robinson Morgan, 3rd Baronet from 1846 to 1859, was a Welsh Whig peer and a member of the House of Lords. Early life Morgan was ...

) and the former Charlotte Anne Williamson (a daughter of Charles Alexander Williamson, of Lawers,

Perthshire Perthshire (Scottish English, locally: ; ), officially the County of Perth, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore, Angus and Perth & Kinross, Strathmore ...

). 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 ...

Career

Tredegar was appointed a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in the

Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers The Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (Militia) is the most senior regiment of the British Army Reserve. The regiment was formed in 1539 during the reign of by King Henry VIII. The R Mon RE (M) became a militia unit in 1660 and then became a p ...

on 30 December 1891, and was later promoted an honorary

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. In early 1900 he was Aide-de-camp to Sir Thomas Fraser, Commandant

Royal School of Military Engineering The Royal School of Military Engineering (RSME) Group provides a wide range of training for the British Army and Defence. This includes; Combat Engineers, Carpenters, Chartered Engineers, Musicians, Band Masters, Sniffer Dogs, Veterinary Techni ...

at Chatham and Commanding the Thames District. Tredegar was a minor cricketer who played at county level for

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

between 1896 and 1898 while playing at club level for Ludlow.''Shropshire Cricketers 1844-1998'', pages 21, 48. In the

1906 General Election The following elections occurred in the year 1906. Asia * 1906 Persian legislative election Europe * 1906 Belgian general election * 1906 Croatian parliamentary election * Denmark ** 1906 Danish Folketing election ** 1906 Danish Landsting e ...

he unsuccessfully stood as

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

candidate for

South Monmouthshire South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...

, losing the seat to the Liberals in a national landslide for that party. One of Lord Tredegar's first acts after his succession was to purchase the steam yacht ''

Liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

,'' which almost immediately was requisitioned by the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

for use as a

hospital ship A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating healthcare, medical treatment facility or hospital. Most are operated by the military forces (mostly navy, navies) of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or ...

. He left his home and went back to serve in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, taking command of his yacht for the first part of the war. He was granted the temporary rank of lieutenant in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, soon promoted to temporary commander. After the end of hostilities, he embarked on a world cruise, eventually going around the world twice during which he visited every colony in the British Empire and every state in the Commonwealth of Australia. Tredegar was promoted to captain in the RNVR in 1921 and appointed a naval aide-de-camp to the King in 1925, but was placed on the retired list in 1926. In 1913, he succeeded to his grandfather's barony upon the death of his uncle, Godfrey Morgan, 1st Viscount Tredegar. In 1926 the viscountcy was revived when he was created Viscount Tredegar, of Tredegar in the County of Monmouth. He is not recorded as having spoken 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 ...

. In 1933 he was appointed

Lord Lieutenant of Monmouthshire This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Monmouthshire. Before the English Civil War, the lieutenancy of Monmouthshire was held by the Lord Lieutenant of Wales, except for the period from 1602 to 1629, when it formed a separate l ...

, a post he held until his death the following year.

Personal life

Lord Tredegar married Lady Katharine Agnes Blanche, daughter of James Carnegie, 9th Earl of Southesk, in 1890. He died in May 1934, aged 67, at the Ritz Hotel in

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

, London after his return from a health trip to Australia.thepeerage.com Courtenay Charles Evan Morgan, 1st Viscount Tredegar
/ref> He is buried in the Morgan family plot as the

Church of St Basil, Bassaleg St Basil's Church stands in the village of Bassaleg, to the west of the city of Newport, Wales. An active parish church, it is a Grade II* listed building. History Cadw dates the church to the 14th century, although it stands on the site of an ...

, near

Newport, Wales Newport ( ) is a city and Principal areas of Wales, county borough in Wales, situated on the River Usk close to its confluence with the Severn Estuary, northeast of Cardiff. The population grew considerably between the 2011 and the 2021 Unit ...

. He was succeeded in the viscountcy and ownership of

Tredegar House Tredegar House (Welsh language, Welsh: ''Tŷ Tredegar'') is a 17th-century Charles II of England, Charles II-era mansion in Coedkernew, on the southwestern edge of Newport, Wales. For over five hundred years it was home to the Morgan family, late ...

by his eccentric and bohemian son, Evan Morgan, 2nd Viscount Tredegar. His widow, Katharine, Viscountess Tredegar died in London in 1949, only a few months after her son Evan. The Hon. Gwyneth Ericka Morgan, only daughter of Courtenay and Katharine, died in mysterious circumstances. She went missing in December 1924 and is thought to have died then: her body was found floating in the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

in May 1925. She is believed to have overdosed in a

Limehouse Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains throu ...

opium den, whose proprietors then dumped her body.Channon, Henry “Henry ‘Chips’ Channon: The Diaries (Volume 3): 1943-57�
Online reference
/ref>

Election results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tredegar, Courtenay Morgan, 1st Viscount 1867 births 1934 deaths Viscounts in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Lord-lieutenants of Monmouthshire Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Royal Navy officers of World War I Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War I Royal Engineers officers Conservative Party (UK) hereditary peers Viscounts created by George V Conservative Party (UK) parliamentary candidates 19th-century British Army personnel 20th-century British Army personnel Military personnel from Caerphilly County Borough