Julian Edward George Asquith, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Asquith, (22 April 1916 – 16 January 2011) was a British

colonial administrator Colonialism is the control of another territory, natural resources and people by a foreign group. Colonizers control the political and tribal power of the colonised territory. While frequently an Imperialism, imperialist project, colonialism c ...

and

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of April 2025, there are 800 hereditary peers: 30 dukes (including six royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 189 earls, 108 viscounts, and 439 barons (not counting subsidiary ...

Background and education

Asquith was the only son of Katharine (née Horner) and

Raymond Asquith Raymond Herbert Asquith (6 November 1878 – 15 September 1916) was an English barrister and eldest son of British prime minister H. H. Asquith. A distinguished Oxford scholar, he was a member of the fashionable group of intellectuals known as ...

, a barrister. He was the grandson of H. H. Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith,

British Prime Minister The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet, and selects its ministers. Modern pri ...

from 1908 until 1916. Lord Oxford's two older sisters both predeceased him; the younger of these was Lady Perdita Rose Mary Asquith, later Lady Hylton (1910–1996), who was married to

William Jolliffe, 4th Baron Hylton William George Hervey Jolliffe, 4th Baron Hylton (2 December 1898 – 14 November 1967), was a British peer and soldier. Hylton was the son of Hylton Jolliffe, 3rd Baron Hylton, and Lady Alice Adeliza Hervey. He achieved the rank of Li ...

and became the grandmother of the actress

Anna Chancellor Anna Theodora Chancellor (born 27 April 1965) is an English actress who has appeared widely on TV, film and in the theatre. She received a nomination for BAFTA TV Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Lix Storm in '' The Hour'' (201 ...

. He inherited the earldom in 1928 on the death of his grandfather, since his father had been killed 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 ...

. He was raised as a Roman Catholic after his mother's

conversion Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''The Convert'', a 2023 film produced by Jump Film & Television and Brouhaha Entertainment * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * ...

to Catholicism in 1923. He was educated at

St Ronan's School Saint Ronan's School is an independent co-educational preparatory school for boys and girls from 3 to 13 years located in Hawkhurst in Kent, England. It currently has about 440 pupils, the majority of them day pupils, although boarding is ava ...

and

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 ...

, going on to study at

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...

, where he graduated with Bachelor of Arts and

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degrees. In 1936, he attended the opening of the new building of

Campion Hall Campion Hall is one of the four permanent private halls of the University of Oxford in England. A Catholic hall, it is run by the Society of Jesus and named after Edmund Campion, a martyr and fellow of St John's College, Oxford. The hall is lo ...

, a Catholic institution within the University, with the Duke of Alba, Spanish ambassador to London, and Alban Goodier S.J., the former

Archbishop of Bombay The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bombay is a particular church celebrating the Latin Rite of worship, centred in the Bombay (Mumbai) city of the northern Konkan division of Maharashtra, India. The archdiocese has been a Metropolitan see since i ...

. In 1940, Asquith was commissioned in the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

and served with 3 Field Squadron in Egypt. From 1942 to 1948 he was an Assistant District Commissioner in

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

Career

After the war, Lord Oxford pursued a career in the

Colonial Service The Colonial Service, also known as His/Her Majesty's Colonial Service and replaced in 1954 by Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS), was the British government service that administered most of Britain's overseas possessions, under the aut ...

. He was Deputy chairman Secretary of the British Administration

Tripolitania Tripolitania (), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province of Libya. The region had been settled since antiquity, first coming to prominence as part of the Carthaginian empire. Following the defeat ...

from 1949 to 1950, Director of Interior Tripolitania in 1951 and Advisor to the Prime Minister of

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

in 1952. In 1955 he was Administrative Secretary of

Zanzibar Zanzibar is a Tanzanian archipelago off the coast of East Africa. It is located in the Indian Ocean, and consists of many small Island, islands and two large ones: Unguja (the main island, referred to informally as Zanzibar) and Pemba Island. ...

and from 1958 to 1962 was the

Administrator Administrator or admin may refer to: Job roles Computing and internet * Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database * Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum * N ...

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. Part of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines), Saint Vincent ...

. He was appointed

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George I ...

in 1961.

Oxford was the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

and Commander-in-Chief of the

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...

from 1962 to 1967, and the Commissioner of the

British Indian Ocean Territory The British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) is an British Overseas Territories, Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom situated in the Indian Ocean, halfway between Tanzania and Indonesia. The territory comprises the seven atolls of the Chago ...

from 1965 to 1967. In 1964, he was advanced as

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

. He also held the posts of Constitutional Commander of the

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...

in 1971, and

Turks and Caicos Islands The Turks and Caicos Islands (abbreviated TCI; and ) are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and no ...

from 1973 to 1974.

Marriage and children

On 28 August 1947, Lord Oxford married Anne Mary Celestine Palairet, daughter of Mary de Vere Studd and Sir Michael Palairet (1882–1956) at the

Brompton Oratory Brompton Oratory, also known as the London Oratory, is a neo-classical late-Victorian Catholic parish church in the Brompton area of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, neighbouring Knightsbridge, London. Its name stems from Oratorian ...

. Anne Oxford was also a Roman Catholic via her parents' conversions. Lord and Lady Oxford had five children: three daughters (the second of which is married to a diplomat) and two sons, both diplomats: * Lady (Mary) Annunziata Asquith (born 28 July 1948), partner of

Patrick Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield Thomas Patrick John Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield (25 April 1939 – 11 November 2005), was an English photographer from the Anson family. He inherited the Earldom of Lichfield in 1960 from his paternal grandfather. In his professional practi ...

* Lady Katharine Rose Celestine Asquith (born 1 October 1949), in 1970 married

Adam Ridley Sir Adam Nicholas Ridley (born 14 May 1942) is a British economist, civil servant, and banker. After working at the Foreign Office and the Department of Economic Affairs, he was Director of the Conservative Research Department. With Chris Patte ...

, divorced 1976; married secondly 1985 Nathaniel Page, son of Sir John Page. * Raymond Benedict Bartholomew Asquith, 3rd Earl of Oxford and Asquith (born 24 August 1952) * Lady Clare Perpetua Frances Asquith (born 28 March 1955) * Sir Dominic Antony Gerard Asquith (born 7 February 1957), a former British Ambassador to Iraq, Egypt and Libya. Lord Oxford inherited the estate of

Mells Manor Mells Manor at Mells, Somerset, England, was built in the 16th century for Edward Horner, altered in the 17th century, partially demolished around 1780, and restored by Sir Edwin Lutyens in the 20th century. The house, along with the garden walls ...

from his mother Katharine Asquith, the younger daughter of Frances Jane (née Graham) and Sir John Francis Fortescue Horner. The Countess of Oxford and Asquith died in 1998. The Earl died, aged 94, on 16 January 2011. He was succeeded in his peerage titles, which he had held for over 80 years, by his elder son,

Raymond Raymond is a male given name of Germanic origin. It was borrowed into English from French (older French spellings were Reimund and Raimund, whereas the modern English and French spellings are identical). It originated as the Germanic ᚱᚨᚷ� ...

(b. 1952), a former British diplomat and elected hereditary 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 ...

References

Sources

* ''Who's Who'' 2007 "Oxford and Asquith, The Earl of" and "Asquith, Dominic" * "Obituary: The Countess of Oxford and Asquith", ''

Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was foun ...

'', 1998. * John Joliffe. "Obituary: The Countess of Oxford and Asquith" ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 7 September 1998, available online.
Burke's Peerage & Landed Gentry: Oxford and Asquith
full article only by subscription.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oxford And Asquith, Julian Asquith, 2nd Earl of 1916 births 2011 deaths

Julian Asquith, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Asquith Julian Edward George Asquith, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Asquith, (22 April 1916 – 16 January 2011) was a British colonial administrator and hereditary peer. Background and education Asquith was the only son of Katharine Asquith, Katharine (né ...

People from Somerset English Roman Catholics People educated at Ampleforth College Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Military personnel from Somerset British Army personnel of World War II Royal Engineers officers Earls of Oxford and Asquith Governors of British Seychelles Governors of British Saint Lucia British colonial governors and administrators in Africa Commissioners of the British Indian Ocean Territory Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Sultanate of Zanzibar people Turks and Caicos Islands people Caymanian people Oxford and Asquith