Geoffrey Noel Waldegrave, 12th Earl Waldegrave, (21 November 1905 – 23 May 1995), known as Viscount Chewton from 1933 to 1936, was a

British peer A Peerage is a form of crown distinction, with Peerages in the United Kingdom comprising both hereditary and lifetime titled appointments of various ranks, which form both a constituent part of the legislative process and the British hono ...

and agriculturist.

Background and education

Waldegrave was the only son of Rev. Henry Waldegrave, 11th Earl Waldegrave and was educated at

Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...

and graduated from

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

in 1928.

Political career

In 1936, he succeeded to his father's titles and became a member of

Somerset County Council Somerset ( , ), archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to ...

in 1937. During

World War II 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 ...

, he served with the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

( Territorial Army) and was afterwards awarded the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a Awards and decorations of the United States military, military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievemen ...

and the

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer O ...

. Lord Waldegrave's career thereafter was as: chairman of the Agricultural Executive Council 1948–51; a member of the Prince's Council of the

Duchy of Cornwall A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between "sovereign ...

1951–58; and 1965–76; a Liaison Officer of the

Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

to Somerset,

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

and

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

1952–57; a

Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food The Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries was a junior ministerial office in the British government, serving under the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries. The title changed to Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry o ...

1958–62; chairman of the

Forestry Commission The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England. The Forestry Commission was previously also respons ...

1963–65; a member of the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

General Advisory Council 1963–66; a director of

Lloyds Bank Lloyds Bank plc is a major British retail banking, retail and commercial bank with a significant presence across England and Wales. It has traditionally been regarded one of the "Big Four (banking)#England and Wales, Big Four" clearing house ...

1964–76;

Lord Warden of the Stannaries The Lord Warden of the Stannaries (from for Tin, Tin, Sn) used to exercise judicial and military functions in Cornwall, England, UK, and is still the official who, upon the commission of the British monarchy, monarch or Duke of Cornwall for the ...

1965–76; chairman of the Advisory Committee on Meat Research 1969–73 and President of Somerset Trust Nature Conservation 1964–80. In 1976, he was made an Honorary

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

by the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...

and was appointed a

Knight Companion of the Order of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. The most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, it is outranked in precedence only by the decorations of the Victoria Cr ...

and a

Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the ...

in 1971 and 1976, respectively.

Family

In 1930, he married Mary Hermione Grenfell. The couple had two sons –

James Waldegrave, 13th Earl Waldegrave James "Jamie" Sherbrooke Waldegrave, 13th Earl Waldegrave (born 8 December 1940), styled Viscount Chewton until 1995, is a British Peerage, British peer and businessman. Waldegrave is the son of Geoffrey Noel Waldegrave, 12th Earl Waldegrave (190 ...

and

William Waldegrave, Baron Waldegrave of North Hill William Arthur Waldegrave, Baron Waldegrave of North Hill (; born 15 August 1946) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who served as a Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabinet minister from 1990 until 1997, and is a ...

– and five daughters, including

Lady Susan Hussey Susan Katharine Hussey, Baroness Hussey of North Bradley, (''née'' Waldegrave; born 1 May 1939), known as Lady Susan Hussey, is a British noblewoman who served as a Woman of the Bedchamber to Queen Elizabeth II and is a Lady of the Househol ...

Arms

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Waldegrave, Geoffrey, 12th Earl Waldegrave 1905 births 1995 deaths Earls Waldegrave Foreign recipients of the Legion of Merit Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Knights of the Garter Members of Somerset County Council Ministers in the Macmillan and Douglas-Home governments, 1957–1964 People from Mendip District Politicians from Somerset

Geoffrey Geoffrey, Geoffroy, Geoff, etc., may refer to: People * Geoffrey (given name), including a list of people with the name Geoffrey or Geoffroy * Geoffroy (surname), including a list of people with the name * Geoffroy (musician) (born 1987), Canadian ...

British Army personnel of World War II Royal Artillery officers