Edward Langton Iliffe, 2nd Baron Iliffe (25 January 1908 – 15 February 1996), generally known as Langton Iliffe, was a British peer and newspaper businessman.

Biography

Lord Iliffe was the son of

Edward Iliffe, 1st Baron Iliffe Edward Mauger Iliffe, 1st Baron Iliffe, (17 May 1877 – 25 July 1960) was a British newspaper magnate, public servant and Conservative Member of Parliament. Biography Iliffe was the son of William Isaac Iliffe (1843–1917), a printer and ...

and Charlotte Gilding. Iliffe married Renée Merandon du Plessis, a

Mauritian Mauritians (singular Mauritian; ; Creole: ''Morisien'') are nationals or natives of the Republic of Mauritius and their descendants. Mauritius is a melting pot of multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-religious peoples. Mauritian is made up ...

of French descent, on 8 December 1938. His

best man A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be selected. From his groomsmen, the groom usuall ...

at the wedding was the architect,

Winton Aldridge Rowland De Winton Aldridge (1906–1997) was a British architect, architectural historian and artist. He was born in Kent and named in honour of his great grandmother, Catherine Rebecca de Winton, a member of the Parry de Winton engineering fami ...

. Iliffe succeeded his father, as The 2nd Baron Iliffe, in 1960. As the Iliffe's marriage was childless, on Langton Iliffe's death, in 1996, the title passed to his nephew, Robert Peter Richard Iliffe, 3rd Baron Iliffe (b. 1944). 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 ...

, Iliffe served as an RAF intelligence officer. After the cessation of hostilities, he returned to the family business. The family owned the controlling interests in newspapers in

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

and

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

, including the ''

Birmingham Post The ''Birmingham Post'' is a weekly printed newspaper based in Birmingham, England, with distribution throughout the West Midlands. First published under the name the ''Birmingham Daily Post'' in 1857, it has had a succession of distinguished ...

'', the ''

Birmingham Mail The ''Birmingham Mail'' (branded the ''Black Country Mail'' in the Black Country and ''Birmingham Live'' online) is a tabloid newspaper based in Birmingham, England, but distributed around Birmingham, the Black Country, and Solihull and parts ...

'' and the ''

Coventry Evening Telegraph The ''Coventry Telegraph'' is a local English tabloid newspaper. It is published by Coventry Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Reach PLC Midlands Ltd, along with a number of other local publications. Publication history It was founded as ' ...

.'' The Iliffes were also part owners of the British national newspaper, the ''

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 ...

''. In 1957, Iliffe served as The High Sheriff of Berkshire. In 1953, Lord Iliffe and his wife purchased

Basildon Park Basildon Park is a English country houses, country house situated 2 miles (3 kilometres) south of Goring-on-Thames and Streatley in Berkshire, between the villages of Upper Basildon and Lower Basildon. It is owned by the National Trust and is a ...

, a

Palladian Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...

mansion near

Reading, Berkshire Reading ( ) is a town and borough in Berkshire, England, and the county town of Berkshire. It is the United Kingdom's largest town, with a combined population of 355,596. Most of Reading built-up area, its built-up area lies within the Borough ...

with views over the

Thames Valley The Thames Valley is an area in South East England that extends along the River Thames west of London towards Oxford. The area is a major tourist destination and economic hub on the M4 corridor, with a high concentration of technology companies ...

. They dedicated their lives to the restoration of the estate; over the following 25 years the couple fully restored the interior and exterior of the derelict mansion. Lord Iliffe was deeply interested in the arts and architecture, and their restoration of Basildon Park drew inspiration from a wide circle of friends including Winton Aldridge, Ronald Tree and

Graham Sutherland Graham Vivian Sutherland (24 August 1903 – 17 February 1980) was a prolific English artist. Notable for his paintings of abstract landscapes and for his portraits of public figures, Sutherland also worked in other media, including printmakin ...

. On the completion of the restoration, Iliffe presented the house with a large endowment, for its future upkeep, to the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

. Following the donation of Basildon Park to the National Trust, Lord and Lady Iliffe remained as tenants, eventually converting the mansion's former laundry wing into a self-contained house. Lord Iliffe died on 15 February 1996. His wife died at Basildon in 2007 at the age of 90.Obituary of Renee, Lady Iliffe

Notes

References

*
Obituary of Renee, Lady Iliffe
Published in the Daily Telegraph 15 Sep 2007. Accessed 1 July 2010. 1908 births 1996 deaths Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom People from Basildon, Berkshire 20th-century English philanthropists High sheriffs of Berkshire 20th-century British newspaper publishers (people) Langton 20th-century British philanthropists Military personnel from Berkshire Royal Air Force personnel of World War II Royal Air Force officers {{UK-Baron-stub

Biography

See also

Notes

References