Randal Hugh Vivian Smith, 2nd Baron Bicester (9 January 1898 – 15 January 1968), was an English

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 ...

and merchant banker in the

City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...

Biography

Early life

Smith was born on 9 January 1898 in London. He was the eldest son of the banker Vivian Smith (later created first Baron Bicester) and his wife Lady Sybil Mary McDonnell, a daughter of

William McDonnell, 6th Earl of Antrim William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is ...

, and a nephew of Admiral Sir Aubrey Smith. He was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England *Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States *Éton, a commune in the Meuse depa ...

and the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC) was a United Kingdom, British military academy for training infantry and cavalry Officer (armed forces), officers of the British Army, British and British Indian Army, Indian Armies. It was founded in 1801 at Gre ...

Career

He served with the

17th Lancers The 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1759 and notable for its participation in the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War. The regim ...

, rising to the rank of lieutenant. During his business years, he served as a director of Morgan, Grenfell & Co.,

Shell Transport and Trading Shell plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational petroleum, oil and natural gas, gas company, headquartered in London, England. Shell is a public limited company with a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and second ...

Vickers Vickers was a British engineering company that existed from 1828 until 1999. It was formed in Sheffield as a steel foundry by Edward Vickers and his father-in-law, and soon became famous for casting church bells. The company went public in 18 ...

and the

Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the Kingdom of England, English Government's banker and debt manager, and still one ...

. He was

High Sheriff of Oxfordshire The High Sheriff of Oxfordshire, in common with other counties, was originally the King's representative on taxation upholding the law in Saxon times. The word Sheriff evolved from 'shire-reeve'. The title of High Sheriff is therefore much older ...

in 1945 and succeeded to his father's title of Baron Bicester in 1956.

Personal life and death

On 29 November 1922, he married Dorothea Gwenllian James, a daughter of

Walter James, 3rd Baron Northbourne Walter John James, 3rd Baron Northbourne (2 September 1869 – 22 December 1932), was an English painter, etcher, and hereditary peer. Biography James was born on 2 September 1869. He is the son of Walter James, 2nd Baron Northbourne, and his ...

. They had two daughters. He was killed in 1968, aged 70, in a motor accident. Without male issue, his title passed to his nephew, Angus Smith.

Ancestry

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bicester, Randal Smith, 2nd Baron 1898 births 1968 deaths 2 High sheriffs of Oxfordshire Officers of the Order of St John Road incident deaths in the United Kingdom People educated at Eton College 17th Lancers officers Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Randal