Francis Richard Henry Penn Curzon, 5th Earl Howe, (1 May 1884 – 26 July 1964"Francis Curzon, 5th Earl Howe; Ex-Member of Parliament and Racing Driver Dies". ''

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 ...

'' (Monday, 27 July 1964), p. 30.), styled as Viscount Curzon from 1900 to 1929, was a British naval officer, Member of Parliament, and

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

and promoter. In the

1918 UK general election The 1918 United Kingdom general election was called immediately after the Armistice with Germany which ended the First World War, and was held on Saturday, 14 December 1918. The governing coalition, under Prime Minister David Lloyd George, sent ...

he won the Battersea South seat as the candidate of the Conservative Party, which he held until 1929. While in Parliament he took up motor racing, and later won the

1931 24 Hours of Le Mans The 1931 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 9th Grand Prix of Endurance that took place at the Circuit de la Sarthe on 13 and 14 June 1931. With the demise of Bentley, the favourite for an outright victory was split between the Bugatti and Alfa Romeo i ...

race. He ascended to the

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

in 1929, succeeding his father as the 5th

Earl Howe Earl Howe is a title that has been created twice in British history, for members of the Howe and Curzon-Howe family respectively. The first creation, in the Peerage of Great Britain, was in 1788 for Richard Howe, 4th Viscount Howe, but it ...

. Earl Howe co-founded the

British Racing Drivers' Club The British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC) is an exclusive invitation-only members club for racecar drivers who are judged to have achieved success in the upper levels of motor sport for a number of seasons. Except under exceptional circumstances, ...

with

Dudley Benjafield Joseph Dudley "Benjy" Benjafield, MD (6 August 1887 – 20 January 1957) was a British medical doctor and racing driver. Career Benjafield was born in Edmonton, London, UK. He attended the University of London and received his MD from Universit ...

in 1928, and served as its president until his death in 1964.

Early career

Francis,

Viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case of French viscounts, the title is ...

Curzon, joined the

Royal Naval Reserve The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original ...

after leaving school, following in a long family

tradition A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common e ...

. 28 October 1907, Lieutenant Viscount Curzon, RNVR, formerly of the London Division, was appointed Commanding Officer of the Sussex Division of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve in Hove, Sussex, with the rank of Commander RNVR. When

World War I 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 ...

started the RNVR was formed into the Royal Naval Division and they were to fight on land like infantrymen not sailors. Commander the Rt. Hon. Viscount Curzon served as Battalion Commander, Howe Battalion of the 2nd Brigade RND. Howe Battalion saw action at Gallipoli, April 1915 – January 1916; Mudros and Stavros, Salonica, January - May 1916; France and Belgium, May 1916 - February 1918, when the battalion was disbanded. During part of this period Curzon also served as aide-de-camp to

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

. During the First World War, as a keen film maker, he organised the cinematograph service for the Navy. (See: The Scotsman - Wednesday 24 May 1922 p 19 col 3). He took the cinematograph film of the surrender of the German fleet at Scapa Flow from the deck of H.M.S. Queen Elizabeth (The Bioscope - Thursday 28 November 1918 P 6 col 2 "Gossip and Opinions" and https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/news-photo/surrender-of-german-fleet-at-scapa-flow-in-the-orkneys-news-photo/3139960). Following the armistice Viscount Curzon moved into politics. In the 1918 General Election he won the Battersea South seat, standing for the Conservative Party. When the RNVR was reconstituted in 1921 Viscount Curzon resumed his position as the commanding officer of the Sussex division with the rank of Captain; he was to hold this appointment until the RNVR was mobilised again in September 1939 on the outbreak of World War II. Following his father's death in 1929 Francis Curzon ascended to the title Earl Howe, making him ineligible for parliamentary re-election. He was appointed a Privy Counsellor in the 1929 Dissolution Honours. However, during his later years as an MP Curzon had begun to become involved in motor racing. An associate of the

Bentley Boys The Bentley Boys were a group of wealthy British motorists who drove Bentley sports cars to victory in the 1920s and kept the marque's reputation for high performance alive. In 1925, as the marque floundered, Bentley Boy Woolf Barnato bought th ...

, he was instrumental in forming the ideas which led Dudley Benjafield to set up the British Racing Drivers' Club in 1928. The newly ennobled Earl Howe was elected its president at the BRDC's first

Annual General Meeting An annual general meeting (AGM, also known as the annual meeting) is a meeting of the general membership of an organization. These organizations include membership associations and companies with shareholders. These meetings may be required ...

in 1929.

Motor racing career

Francis Curzon made his race debut at the comparatively old age of 44, in the 1928 Irish TT with a Bugatti Type 43. After leaving 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 ...

he pursued his driving career with increasing vigour. During the 1930s he became a well known driver, competing in many national and international races, most notably the

24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...

. He entered the endurance classic six times between

1929 This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholic ...

and

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * January 12 – Amelia Earhart ...

, only missing the

1933 Events January * January 11 – Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independen ...

event. For the first year he was entered as a part of the

Bentley Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of Luxury vehicle, luxury cars and Sport utility vehicle, SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Crickle ...

factory team; but he later entered his own cars, as Bentley was taken over by Rolls-Royce in 1931 and withdrew from motor racing. Driving his own

Alfa Romeo 6C The Alfa Romeo 6C name was used on road, race, and sports cars produced between 1927 and 1954 by Alfa Romeo; the "6C" name refers to the six cylinders of the car's straight-six engine. Bodies for these cars were made by coachbuilders such as Jam ...

with co-driver Leslie Callingham he won the 2-litre class at the 1930 race. He upgraded to an

Alfa Romeo 8C The Alfa Romeo 8C was a range of Alfa Romeo road, Auto racing, race and sports cars of the 1930s. The 8C designates 8 cylinders, and originally a straight-8, straight 8-cylinder engine. The Vittorio Jano designed 8C was Alfa Romeo's primary raci ...

for the

, and won the race outright driving in partnership with

Henry Birkin Sir Henry Ralph Stanley Birkin, 3rd Baronet (26 July 1896 – 22 June 1933), known as Tim Birkin, was a British racing driver, one of the " Bentley Boys" of the 1920s. Background and family Birkin was born into a wealthy Nottingham family in ...

Birkin and Howe at the 1931 24 Hours of Le Mans

Away from La Sarthe, Earl Howe (as he was most commonly entered following his father's death) drove in a variety of automobiles. Indeed, in the mid-1930s he was credited by ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' magazine as having "Europe's most elaborate" collection of racing cars. Although patriotic, he was often forced to buy and run cars built outside the UK, as once Bentley had withdrawn from motor sport there were no realistically competitive British-built machines available. He favored the

Bugatti Automobiles Ettore Bugatti was a German then French automotive industry, manufacturer of high performance vehicle, high-performance automobiles. The company was founded in 1909 in the then-German Empire, German city of Molsheim, Alsace, by the ...

marque, owning and campaigning several Bugattis. He won the

Donington Park Donington Park is a motorsport Race track, circuit located near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England. The circuit business is now owned by Jonathan Palmer's MotorSport Vision organisation, and the surrounding Donington Park Estate, sti ...

Trophy race in 1933, and added to his victory haul with a win in the 1938 Grosvenor Grand Prix, at Cape Town in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. In addition to these two victories he also took podium finishes in eleven other major races between 1933 and 1939, and became one of only two men to have competed in every running of the

RAC Tourist Trophy The RAC Tourist Trophy (sometimes called the International Tourist Trophy) is a motor racing award presented by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) to the overall victor of a motor race in the United Kingdom. Established in 1905, it is the world's o ...

on the Ards Circuit, the other being Edward Ramsden Hall. In 1937, Howe was seriously injured in an accident driving his pale blue and silver – Howe's personal racing colours –

English Racing Automobiles English Racing Automobiles (ERA) was a British racing car manufacturer active from 1933 to 1954. Prewar history ERA was founded by Humphrey Cook, Raymond Mays, and Peter Berthon in November 1933 and established in Bourne, Lincolnshire, next t ...

R8B, while challenging the Thai royal family competitor

Prince Bira Prince Birabongse Bhanudej Bhanubandh (; ; 15 July 191423 December 1985), commonly known as Prince Bira of Siam or simply Prince Bira, was a member of the Thai royal family. Bira was also a racing driver, sailor and pilot, who competed in Formul ...

for the lead in the Campbell Trophy at the

Brooklands Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England, United Kingdom. It opened in 1907 and was the world's first purpose-built 'banked' motor racing circuit as well as one of Britain's first airfields, ...

circuit. Aside from assuming the presidency of the BRDC, Earl Howe also served as vice-president of the FIA's

Commission Sportive Internationale In-Commission or commissioning may refer to: Business and contracting * Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered ** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...

, the governing body of international motorsport at the time. He also kept motorsport issues on the political landscape, with numerous speeches 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 ...

Post-war career

The Royal Navy during the Second World War A11744

The start of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

effectively ended Earl Howe's front line driving career, and he returned to the Navy with the rank of

commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (India), in India ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ' ...

. At the end of the conflict he moved into race organising, although he continued to prepare and enter cars for other drivers, including

Tazio Nuvolari Tazio Giorgio Nuvolari (; 16 November 1892 – 11 August 1953) was an Italian racing driver. He first raced motorcycles and then concentrated on sports cars and Grand Prix racing. Originally of Mantua, he was nicknamed ("the Flying Mantuan") ...

. As President of the BRDC and Patron of the newly formed 500 Club, he was instrumental in the resumption of motor racing and applied political pressure to allow airfields to be used for motor sport. He was involved with his friend and associate Peter Fulke Greville organising the first

British Grand Prix The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor racing event organised in the United Kingdom by Motorsport UK. First held by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) in 1926 British Grand Prix, 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 ...

, at

Silverstone Silverstone is a village and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England. The village is about south-southwest of Towcester and northeast of Brackley, both accessed via the A43 road, A43 main ...

1948 Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The current Constitutions of Constitution of Italy, Italy and of Constitution of New Jersey, New Jersey (both later subject to amendment) ...

, which gained full

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

World Championship status at the Championship's inception in 1950. He also instituted the annual

BRDC International Trophy The International Trophy is a prize awarded annually by the British Racing Drivers' Club to the winner of a motor race held at the Silverstone Circuit, England. For many years it formed the premier non-championship Formula One event in Britain, ...

meeting at the same circuit. Under Earl Howe's 35-year stewardship, the BRDC went from private dining club to one of the most successful and high-profile motor sport associations in the world.

The Earl Howe Trophy

Today the BRDC maintains a highly prestigious award in his memory: ''The Earl Howe Trophy''. Until 2018 this was awarded annually "to the highest placed British Driver in the

Indy 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly shortened to Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indian ...

race or to the British driver who has established the most meritorious performance of the year in North America". The winning criteria were subjective and were determined at the discretion of the awarding panel. In 2016 the winner was Ed Jones, the Dubai-born driver who won the 2016 Indy Lights series, while no British driver finished within the top ten of the

2016 Indianapolis 500 The 2016 Indianapolis 500 (branded as the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil for sponsorship reasons) took place on Sunday, May 29, 2016, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. It was the pr ...

. In 2017, the Earl Howe Trophy winner was

Sam Bird Sam Jamie Bird (born 9 January 1987) is a British people, British professional racing driver who is currently driving for McLaren#Formula E, NEOM McLaren in Formula E. He won the LMP2 title at the 2015 FIA World Endurance Championship, and was ...

, who won both races at the USA round of the

Formula E Formula E, officially the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, is an open-wheel single-seater motorsport championship for electric cars. The racing series is the highest class of competition for electrically powered single-seater racing cars ...

world championship: the

2017 New York City ePrix The 2017 New York City ePrix (formally the 2017 FIA Formula E Qualcomm New York City ePrix) were a pair of Formula E Electric motorsport, electric car races held on July 15 and 16, 2017 at Brooklyn Street Circuit in Red Hook, Brooklyn before a ...

. In contrast to the previous year, two British drivers had finished in the top ten at Indianapolis – Jones (third) and

Max Chilton Maximilian Alexander Chilton (born 21 April 1991) is a British former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Born and raised in Redhill, Surrey, Chilton is the younger brother of racing driver Tom Chilton. He competed in the GP ...

(fourth) – with Chilton also leading the most laps during the race. Previously, Justin Wilson won the 2013 award having finished in fifth place at that year's Indianapolis 500 event. From 2019, the award has been made to "the most outstanding performance of the year in Historic racing". The inaugural winners under the new criteria were Philip Walker and

Gordon Shedden Gordon William Shedden (born 15 February 1979) is a British racing driver currently competing in the British Touring Car Championship for Speedworks Motorsport, Toyota Gazoo Racing UK with IAA. He has previously won the series on three occasion ...

who, together with co-driver Miles Griffiths, won the 2019 Spa Six Hours historic endurance race.

Personal life

Francis Curzon was the son of

Richard Curzon, 4th Earl Howe Richard George Penn Curzon, 4th Earl Howe, (28 April 1861 – 10 January 1929), styled Viscount Curzon between 1876 and 1900, was a British courtier and Conservative politician. He served as Treasurer of the Household between 1896 and 1900 and ...

, and his wife Lady Georgiana Elizabeth Spencer-Churchill. On 28 October 1907 he married his first cousin Mary Curzon (30 October 1887 – 1 September 1962), daughter of the Hon. Montagu Curzon and wife Esmé FitzRoy. They divorced in 1937. A daughter (by Mary Curzon), Lady Georgiana Curzon, married Home Kidston, a Royal Navy officer, farmer and racing driver. He married Joyce Mary Mclean Jack in 1937 with whom he had one daughter, the Lady Frances Curzon. Another daughter (by Sybil Boyter Johnson), Lady Sarah Curzon (born 25 January 1945), married Formula One driver

Piers Courage Piers Raymond Courage (27 May 1942 – 21 June 1970) was a British racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Courage participated in 29 World Championship Formula One Grands Prix for Lotus, Parnell and Frank Williams, debuting a ...

. After Courage's death in the

1970 Dutch Grand Prix The 1970 Dutch Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort on June 21, 1970. It was race 5 of 13 in both the 1970 World Championship of Drivers and the 1970 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. This rac ...

, she married John Aspinall. The Earl Howe died in July 1964. He was succeeded by his eldest son,

Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

Motorsports career results

European Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

24 Hours of Le Mans results

Awards and honours

*Commander of the

Order of the British Empire 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 ...

(CBE) *

British War Medal The British War Medal is a campaign medal of the United Kingdom which was awarded to officers and men and women of British and Imperial forces for service in the First World War. Two versions of the medal were produced. About 6.5 million were st ...

* Victory Medal *

1939–1945 Star The 1939–1945 Star is a military campaign medal instituted by the United Kingdom on 8 July 1943 for award to British and Commonwealth forces for service in the Second World War. Two clasps were instituted to be worn on the medal ribbon, Battl ...

* Defense Medal *

War Medal 1939–1945 The War Medal 1939–1945 is a campaign medal which was instituted by the United Kingdom on 16 August 1945, for award to citizens of the British Commonwealth who had served full-time in the Armed Forces or the Merchant Navy for at least 28 days ...

* King George V Coronation Medal *

King George V Silver Jubilee Medal The King George V Silver Jubilee Medal is a commemorative medal, instituted to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the accession of King George V. Issue This medal was awarded as a personal souvenir by King George V to commemorate his Silver Ju ...

King George VI Coronation Medal The King George VI Coronation Medal was a commemorative medal, instituted to celebrate the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. Issue This medal was awarded as a personal souvenir of King George VI's coronation. It was awarded to th ...

Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal () is a commemorative medal instituted to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953. Award This medal was awarded as a personal souvenir from the Queen to members of the Royal Family ...

Reserve Decoration The Decoration for Officers of the Royal Naval Reserve, commonly known as the Reserve Decoration (RD) was a medal awarded to officers with at least fifteen years service in the Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) of the United Kingdom. The medal was instit ...

References

Footnotes

Other sources

* * *
Francis Curzon profile at The 500 Owners Association

External links

*
Portraits of Earl Howe held at The National Portrait Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howe, Francis Curzon, 5th Earl 1884 births 1964 deaths 5 Royal Navy officers of World War II English racing drivers Grand Prix drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans winning drivers Brighton Speed Trials people Curzon, Francis Curzon, Francis Curzon, Francis Curzon, Francis Curzon, Francis Howe, E5 BRDC Gold Star winners Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Royal Navy officers of World War I

Francis Francis may refer to: People and characters *Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church (2013–2025) *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) * Francis, a character played by YouTuber Boogie2 ...

Presidents of international sport federations Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War I Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II British sportsperson-politicians European Championship drivers Royal Naval Reserve personnel Royal Navy commodores