Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Charles Bingham Lowther, 4th Baronet (22 July 1880 – 22 January 1949), was a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer and English

noble A noble is a member of the nobility. Noble may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Noble Glacier, King George Island * Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Noble Peak, Wiencke Island * Noble Rocks, Graham Land Australia * Noble Island, Gr ...

in the 19th and 20th centuries. He was a prominent figure in

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

Biography

Charles Lowther was the grandson of

Sir Charles Lowther, 3rd Baronet, of Swillington Sir Charles Hugh Lowther, 3rd Baronet (26 September 1803 – 6 November 1894) was an English landowner, the third son of Sir John Lowther, 1st Baronet and Lady Elizabeth Fane. Lowther was blind from infancy due to an attack of scarlet fever. Hi ...

and succeeded to his

baronetcy A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

in 1894. He was educated at Sandhurst, and gazetted a second lieutenant in the

21st Lancers The 21st Lancers (Empress of India's) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1858 and amalgamated with the 17th Lancers in 1922 to form the 17th/21st Lancers. Perhaps its most famous engagement was the Battle of Omdurman, wher ...

on 12 August 1899. He transferred to the

8th King's Royal Irish Hussars The 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment in the British Army, first raised in 1693. It saw service for three centuries including the World War I, First and World War II, Second World Wars. ...

and was promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

on 13 February 1900, reaching the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

before transferring into the Northamptonshire

Yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units and sub-units in the British Army Reserve which are descended from volunteer cavalry regiments that now serve in a variety of different roles. History Origins In the 1790s, following the ...

on 4 May 1911. Sir Charles' DSO came in 1917 and he was awarded the

Croce di Guerra The War Cross for Military Valor () is an Italian order for military valor. Established in 1922, the cross may be awarded only in time of war. Appearance The medal is a Greek cross made of copper. Inscribed on the horizontal arms is ''Al Val ...

17 May 1919, and made an Officer of the

Order of the Crown of Italy The Order of the Crown of Italy ( or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate Italian unification, the unification of Italy in 1861. It was awarded in five degrees for ...

on 2 March 1923. Lowther was Master of the Pytchley Hounds from 1914 to 1927. During this time, he sold the

Swillington Swillington is a village and civil parish near Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough. It is situated east from Leeds city centre, north of the River Aire, and is surrounded by streams including Fleaking ...

estate in 1920 and after living at Thornby House,

for some years he settled at Erbistock Hall,

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, Flintshire to the east, Wrexham to the southeast, Powys to the south, and Gwynedd and Conwy to the west. Rhyl is the largest town, and Ruthi ...

. He was also appointed the

High Sheriff of Northamptonshire This is a list of the High Sheriffs of Northamptonshire. The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the respon ...

in 1926 and deputy lieutenant of Northamptonshire 29 July 1922. He retired from the Territorial Army as a lieutenant colonel on 3 August 1935. On 19 June 1941, he was appointed an Officer of the

Venerable Order of St John The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (), commonly known as the Order of St John, and also known as St John International, is an order of chivalry constituted in 1888 by royal charter from Queen Victoria and dedica ...

, and was made a Commander of the Order on 2 July 1947. Lowther was appointed a deputy lieutenant of Denbighshire in the same year, on 21 March 1947 and resigned his Northamptonshire commission on 3 April 1947. He was made a CB on 10 June 1948 and died early in the following year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowther, Charles, 4th Baronet 1880 births 1949 deaths 21st Lancers officers 8th King's Royal Irish Hussars officers Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Northamptonshire Yeomanry officers Commanders of the Order of St John Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Companions of the Order of the Bath Deputy lieutenants of Denbighshire Deputy lieutenants of Northamptonshire British Army personnel of World War I High sheriffs of Northamptonshire

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...

Recipients of the Order of the Crown (Italy)