George Joseph Horatio Nelson, 8th Earl Nelson (20 April 1905 – 21 September 1981), was a British peer and businessman. He inherited the title in 1972 on the death of his older brother Henry Nelson, 7th Earl Nelson. Lord Nelson was born in

Appleby Magna Appleby Magna is a village and civil parish in the North West Leicestershire district, in the county of Leicestershire, England. It includes the small hamlets of Appleby Parva and Little Wigston. Location The parish has a total collective po ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

, the fourth son of Edward Nelson, 5th Earl Nelson, and Geraldine (''née'' Cave). He was the younger brother of both The 6th Earl Nelson and The 7th Earl Nelson. George Nelson was educated at

Ampleforth College Ampleforth College is a co-educational Private schools in the United Kingdom, fee-charging boarding and day school in the English Public school (United Kingdom), public school tradition. It opened in 1803 as a boys' school. It is near the villa ...

in England and was registered as a Member of the

Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) is a professional membership organisation that promotes, develops and supports chartered accountants and students around the world. As of December 2024, it has over 210,000 memb ...

(A.C.A.). In 1973 he was a pub landlord when he was invited 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 ...

to visit his ancestor's flagship HMS ''Victory'' at

Portsmouth Harbour Portsmouth Harbour is a / biological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Portsmouth and Gosport in Hampshire. It is a Ramsar site and a Special Protection Area. It is a large natural harbour in Hampshire, England. Geographically it ...

. On hearing he had never been aboard a battleship the Navy took him down

the Solent The Solent ( ) is a strait between the Isle of Wight and mainland Great Britain; the major historic ports of Southampton and Portsmouth lie inland of its shores. It is about long and varies in width between , although the Hurst Spit whic ...

on one. He married Winifred Mary Bevan, Countess Nelson, in 1945. Their daughter Lady Sarah Mary Josephine Nelson was born in 1947. She could not succeed to the title on the death of her father in 1981 aged 76,England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916–2007 for George Joseph Horatio Nelson (1981) so it passed to her cousin, Peter Nelson.

References

1905 births 1981 deaths Earls Nelson People educated at Ampleforth College English accountants 20th-century English businesspeople {{UK-earl-stub