Edward Turnour, 6th Earl Winterton,
PC (4 April 1883 – 26 August 1962), styled Viscount Turnour until 1907, was an Irish peer and British politician who served as a
Member of Parliament for 47 years, attaining the rare distinction of serving as both
Baby of the House and
Father of the House at the opposite ends of his career in the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
.
Background
Turnour was the son of
Edward Turnour, 5th Earl Winterton, and Lady Georgiana Susan Hamilton (1841–1913), daughter of
James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn.
Turnour 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 ...
.
Political career
Turnour was first elected for
Horsham
Horsham () is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
in
a by-election in 1904 at the age of just 21, the youngest
Member of Parliament (MP) in the Commons, and remained an MP for the next 47 years. In 1907 he succeeded his father, becoming 6th Earl Winterton. This was an
Irish peerage
The peerage of Ireland consists of those Peerage, titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lordship of Ireland, Lord or Monarchy of Ireland, King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great B ...
and did not disqualify him from remaining a member of the House of Commons. Sitting as a
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 ...
, Winterton slowly rose through the ranks, later achieving ministerial office as
Under-Secretary of State for India in 1922, a post he held until 1924. In 1924 he was sworn of the
Privy Council and once again served as Under-Secretary of State for India from 1924 to 1929.
Winterton did not hold office in the National Governments headed by firstly
Ramsay MacDonald
James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British statesman and politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The first two of his governments belonged to the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, where he led ...
and then
Stanley Baldwin. However, when
Neville Chamberlain
Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from ...
became
Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
in May 1937, Winterton was appointed
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. In March 1938 he was promoted to the Cabinet and given the job of speaking in the House of Commons on behalf of the
Secretary of State for Air Viscount Swinton, a member of 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 this role he proved a noted failure, especially in a heated debate in May 1938 which led to Chamberlain concluding that the Secretary of State for Air must be an MP. In July 1938 he led the British delegation to the
Evian Conference at which the problem of the Jewish refugees was debated. Thereafter, Winterton was increasingly sidelined. The following year he was dropped from the Cabinet and served in the marginal post of
Paymaster General
His Majesty's Paymaster General or HM Paymaster General is a ministerial position in the Cabinet Office of the United Kingdom. The position is currently held by Nick Thomas-Symonds of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party.
History
The post was ...
before leaving the government altogether.
Winterton remained a Member of Parliament until 1951, by which time he was the MP with the longest continuous service. In 1952 he was created Baron Turnour, of
Shillinglee in the County of Sussex, in the
Peerage of the United Kingdom, which gave him a seat in the House of Lords. The Patent creating this peerage is currently in the possession of
Mark Lindley-Highfield of Ballumbie Castle.
Personal life
In September 1910 the mother of
Ivy Gordon-Lennox acted to contradict a rumour that her daughter was engaged to marry Winterton, going so far as to place a notice in ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' to say that there was no engagement. Winterton married the Honourable Cecilia Monica Wilson, daughter of
Charles Wilson, 2nd Baron Nunburnholme, in 1924. The marriage was childless.
Winterton died in August 1962, aged 79, when the barony of Turnour became extinct. He was succeeded in his Irish titles by his kinsman, Ronald Chard Turnour, 7th Earl Winterton.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Winterton, Edward Turnour, 6th Earl
1883 births
1962 deaths
Chancellors of the Duchy of Lancaster
Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies
Hereditary peers elected to the House of Commons
Earls Winterton
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Ministers in the Chamberlain peacetime government, 1937–1939
Ministers in the Chamberlain wartime government, 1939–1940
Barons created by George VI
People educated at Eton College
Turnour, Edward
UK MPs 1906–1910
UK MPs 1910
UK MPs 1910–1918
UK MPs 1918–1922
UK MPs 1922–1923
UK MPs 1923–1924
UK MPs 1924–1929
UK MPs 1929–1931
UK MPs 1931–1935
UK MPs 1935–1945
UK MPs 1945–1950
UK MPs 1950–1951
UK MPs who inherited peerages
UK MPs who were granted peerages
Deputy lieutenants of Sussex