Colonel Sir John Edward Gilmour, 3rd Baronet, DSO, TD, DL (24 October 1912 – 1 June 2007) was a British Conservative Party politician. He was Member of Parliament for East Fife for 18 years, from 1961 to 1979. He was also a soldier, farmer and landowner, and a company director and

building society A building society is a financial institution owned by its members as a mutual organization, which offers banking institution, banking and related financial services, especially savings and mortgage loan, mortgage lending. They exist in the Unit ...

vice-president.

Biography

Gilmour was born in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

. His mother died when he was seven. His grandfather,

Sir John Gilmour, 1st Baronet Colonel Sir John Gilmour, 1st Baronet, (1845–1920) was chairman of the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, and was created a baronet in 1897. Life He was the son of Allan Gilmour, owner of a large shipping company based in Renfrew, and A ...

was chairman of the (Scottish) Unionist party, and was created a baronet in 1897. His father, Colonel

Sir John Gilmour, 2nd Baronet Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Gilmour, 2nd Baronet (27 May 1876 – 30 March 1940) was a Scottish Unionist politician. He notably served as Home Secretary from 1932 to 1935. Early life Gilmour was the son of Sir John Gilmour, 1st Baronet, ch ...

, DSO, was an MP for 30 years, serving in several ministerial positions, including

Secretary of State for Scotland The secretary of state for Scotland (; ), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Scotland Office. The incum ...

and

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, more commonly known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom and the head of the Home Office. The position is a Great Office of State, maki ...

. His father died in office in 1940, while serving as

Minister of Shipping The Minister of Shipping was a British government post created in the First World War and again in the Second World War. In 1941 it was merged into the position of Minister of Transport which was then renamed Minister of War Transport. History S ...

, and Gilmour succeeded him as

baronet 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 ...

. Gilmour was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

, where he was captain of

boats A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size or capacity, its shape, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically used on inland waterways s ...

. He read law at

Trinity Hall, Cambridge Trinity Hall (formally The College or Hall of the Holy Trinity in the University of Cambridge, colloquially "Tit Hall" ) is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1350, it is th ...

, and rowed for

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in the 1933

Boat Race The Boat Race is an annual set of rowing races between the Cambridge University Boat Club and the Oxford University Boat Club, traditionally rowed between open-weight eights on the River Thames in London, England. It is also known as the Uni ...

; he missed out the following year due to a bout of

appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the Appendix (anatomy), appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, fever and anorexia (symptom), decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these t ...

shortly before the race. He also studied at Dundee School of Economics. After completing his studies, he helped to run the family estate at Montrave, near

Leven, Fife Leven (Pictish language, Pictish; ) is a seaside town in Fife, set in the east Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on the coast of the Firth of Forth at the mouth of the River Leven, Fife, River Leven, north-east of the town of Kirkcaldy and ...

from 1934. Gilmour joined the 2nd Fife and Forfar Yeomanry in 1939, part of the

Royal Armoured Corps The Royal Armoured Corps is the armoured arm of the British Army, that together with the Household Cavalry provides its armour capability, with vehicles such as the Challenger 2 and the Warrior tracked armoured vehicle. It includes most of the Ar ...

. He served in

Fife Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...

and then

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, before landing in

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

in June 1944 shortly after

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

. As a major, he led a squadron of

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

s that was in the thick of the fighting in

Operation Goodwood Operation Goodwood was a British offensive during the Second World War, which took place between 18 and 20 July 1944 as part of the larger battle for Caen in Normandy, France. The objective of the operation was a limited attack to the south, ...

, as one of the leading units of the

11th Armoured Division The 11th Armoured Division was an armoured division of the British Army which was created in March 1941 during the Second World War. The division was formed in response to the unanticipated success of the German panzer divisions. The 11th Armour ...

in its attack on Bourguebus Ridge. Three tanks were destroyed under him, and he ended up commanding the regiment from a

bulldozer A bulldozer or dozer (also called a crawler) is a large tractor equipped with a metal #Blade, blade at the front for pushing material (soil, sand, snow, rubble, or rock) during construction work. It travels most commonly on continuous tracks, ...

. He was awarded the DSO for his actions in Normandy and the subsequent advance to

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

. He was returned home after being wounded near Belsen, and went on to command the regiment when it was reconstituted as a Territorial Army unit in 1947. He retired from the Army in 1950. He remained involved with the Territorial Army, becoming Honorary Colonel of the Highland Yeomanry in 1971. He was later as one of the four Captains of the

Royal Company of Archers The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland, is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a pers ...

. Gilmour contested Clackmannan and Eastern Stirlingshire in the 1945 general election, losing to the incumbent MP,

Arthur Woodburn Arthur Woodburn (25 October 1890 – 1 June 1978) was a Scottish Labour Party politician who was Secretary of State for Scotland from 1947 to 1950. Born in Edinburgh, he was educated at Heriot-Watt College. Imprisoned as a conscientious obje ...

. He served as a councillor on

County Council A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Australia In the Australian state of New South Wales, county councils are special purpose ...

from 1955 to 1961. He won the by-election in 1961 for East Fife following the death of Sir James Henderson-Stewart, defeating John Smith while the future leader of the Labour Party was a law student at

Glasgow University The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in post-nominals; ) is a public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ...

. He was dubbed "Sir John Sugar-Beet" during the campaign; he took the intended insult as a compliment, noting that the

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and that is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together with ...

grown on his estate and processed at a local mill supported many jobs in the constituency. He was chairman of the Scottish Unionist Party from 1965 to 1967, having been vice-chairman from 1963. He held the seat until the 1979 general election, when he stood down and was succeeded by

Barry Henderson James Stewart Barry Henderson (born 29 April 1936) is a former British Conservative Party politician who served in the House of Commons on two occasions, February–October 1974 and 1979–87, both for Scottish constituencies. Early life Hend ...

. He was joint Master of the Fife Hunt from 1953 to 1972. He was a deputy lieutenant of Fife from 1953, and

Lord Lieutenant A lord-lieutenant ( ) is the British monarch's personal representative in each lieutenancy area of the United Kingdom. Historically, each lieutenant was responsible for organising the county's militia. In 1871, the lieutenant's responsibility ov ...

from 1980 to 1987. He was also Lord High Commissioner to the

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...

of the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

in 1982 and 1983 (a post that his father had held in 1938 and 1939). He married Ursula Wills in 1941. They had two sons together. His wife died in 2004. He died in

Cupar Cupar ( ; ) is a town, former royal burgh and parish in Fife, Scotland. It lies between Dundee and Glenrothes. According to a 2011 population estimate, Cupar had a population around 9,000, making it the ninth-largest settlement in Fife, and the ...

, in his former constituency, in June 2007.

Legacy

His elder son

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, born 1944, succeeded him in the

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 ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gilmour, John, 3rd Baronet 1912 births 2007 deaths Nobility from Fife Scottish Conservative MPs UK MPs 1959–1964 UK MPs 1964–1966 UK MPs 1966–1970 UK MPs 1970–1974 UK MPs 1974 UK MPs 1974–1979 Unionist Party (Scotland) councillors Unionist Party (Scotland) MPs Councillors in Fife People educated at Eton College British Army personnel of World War II Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Alumni of Trinity Hall, Cambridge Alumni of the University of Dundee

303 __NOTOC__ Year 303 ( CCCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. It was known in the Roman Empire as the Year of the Consulship of Diocletian and Maximian (or, less frequently, year 1056 ''Ab urbe condita''). The deno ...

Lord-lieutenants of Fife Fife and Forfar Yeomanry officers Lords High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland Members of the Royal Company of Archers Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Fife constituencies Royal Armoured Corps officers

Biography

Legacy

References

Further reading

External links