Colonel Sir John Archibald Ruggles-Brise, 2nd Baronet (13 June 1908 – 20 February 2007) was

Lord Lieutenant of Essex This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Essex. Since 1688, all the Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Essex. * John Petre, 1st Baron Petre * John de Vere, 16th Earl of Oxford 1558–? * Robert Dudley, 1st ...

from 1958 to 1978, and was the first pro-chancellor of

Essex University The University of Essex is a public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, it is one of the original plate glass universities. The university comprises three campuses in the county, in Southend-on-Sea and ...

from 1964 to 1979. He was also a president of the

Country Landowners' Association The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) is a membership organisation representing landowners, property owners and businesses owners in England and Wales. Until 2000, the organisation was known as the Country Landowners Association. The ...

(now the Country Land and Business Association) from 1957 to 1959, and was a co-founder of the CLA's annual Game Fair in 1958. Ruggles-Brise was born at Brent Hall in

Finchingfield Finchingfield is a village in the Braintree district of North Essex, England, a primarily rural area. It is approximately from Thaxted, with the nearest larger towns being Saffron Walden and Braintree. Nearby villages include Great Bardfie ...

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

. His family have deep roots in Essex, having been based at

Spains Hall Spains Hall is an Elizabethan era, Elizabethan English country house, country house near Finchingfield in Essex, England. The building has been Grade I listed since 1953. The hall is named after Hervey de Ispania, who held the manorialism, mano ...

in Finchingfield since the house was bought by Samuel Ruggles, a clothier, in 1760. His father, Sir Edward Ruggles-Brise, 1st Baronet, was MP for

Maldon Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the Blackwater Estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea Salt which is prod ...

from 1922 to his death in 1942 (with a short intermission in 1923–4), and became a

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 ...

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

Silver Jubilee Silver Jubilee marks a 25th anniversary. The anniversary celebrations can be of a wedding anniversary, the 25th year of a monarch's reign or anything that has completed or is entering a 25-year mark. Royal Silver Jubilees since 1750 Note: This ...

honours list Crown Honours Lists are lists of honours conferred upon citizens of the Commonwealth realms. The awards are presented by or in the name of the reigning monarch, currently King Charles III, or his vice-regal representative. New Year Honours Hon ...

in 1935. Ruggles-Brise was educated at

Wellesley House School Wellesley Haddon Dene School is a private day preparatory school in the coastal town of Broadstairs in the English county of Kent. Founded in 1866, it educates boys and girls aged 3 to 11. The merger of Haddon Dene School with Wellesley House ...

Broadstairs Broadstairs () is a coastal town on the Isle of Thanet in the Thanet district of east Kent, England, about east of London. It is part of the civil parish of Broadstairs and St Peter's, which includes St Peter's, and had a population in 2011 ...

and

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 became captain of his house, and then worked on a family farm in

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. He worked at Employers Liability Assurance, rising to manage its branches 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 ...

and the

West End of London The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, Central London, England, in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden and the City of Westminster. It is west of the City of London an ...

. He joined the Territorial Army (TA) in 1938 (his father commanded the 104th Essex Yeomanry Field Brigade R.A.). When the

Second World War 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 ...

broke out, he enlisted as a gunner in the 54th Anti-Aircraft Regiment. He was commissioned, and commanded a

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

anti-aircraft battery near

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

during

the Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...

. He inherited the baronetcy on his father's death in 1942. The same year, he took command of the 180th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment in 1942, based in Scotland. He took his unit to join the air defences of Plymouth before

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 ...

in 1944. He received a military OBE. He continued to serve with the Territorial Army after the war, being awarded the

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer O ...

and the rank of honorary colonel. He continued to work in insurance for a short period after the war, but then returned to manage the neglected family estates in Essex, which he had inherited in 1942. He was president of the

from 1957 to 1959, and was a co-founder of the CLA's annual Game Fair in 1958. He was Deputy Lieutenant of Essex from 1945, vice-lieutenant from 1945, and then

from 1958 to 1978. He became a Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

in 1958, and served as a

Church Commissioner The Church Commissioners is a body which administers the property assets of the Church of England. It was established in 1948 and combined the assets of Queen Anne's Bounty, a fund dating from 1704 for the relief of poor clergy, and of the Eccl ...

from 1959 to 1964, and as chairman of the Council of the Baronetage from 1958 to 1963. He was also a Knight of the

Order of St John The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there u ...

, and played a leading role in the foundation of

Wivenhoe Park Wivenhoe Park is a landscaped green space of more than at the eastern edge of Colchester, England. It is the site of Wivenhoe House, a four-star hotel, based in an eighteenth-century Grade II listed house. Wivenhoe House is also home to the Ed ...

in 1961. He was the university's first pro-chancellor from 1964 to 1979. He was a governor of

Felsted School Felsted School is a co-educational independent school, independent boarding school, boarding and Day school, day school, situated in Felsted in Essex, England. It is in the British Public school (UK), public school tradition, and was founded i ...

and

Chigwell School Chigwell School is a co-educational independent boarding and day school. It is a private school in Chigwell, in the Epping Forest district of Essex. It consists of a Pre Prep (ages 4–7), Prep School (ages 7–11), Senior School (ages 11–16 ...

from 1950 to 1975. He never married. He was succeeded by his nephew, Sir Timothy Edward Ruggles-Brise, 3rd Baronet.

Honours

UK Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon

* He was awarded the Freedom of the Borough of

Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Colchester and Southend-on-Sea. It is located north-east of London ...

in 1967. * He served as a deputy lieutenant of

from 1945. This gave him the

Post Nominal Letters Post-nominal letters, also called post-nominal initials, post-nominal titles, designatory letters, or simply post-nominals, are letters placed after a person's name to indicate that the individual holds a position, an academic degree, accreditation ...

"DL" for life. * He served as the Vice Lord Lieutenant from 1948 to 1958. * He served as the

from 6 September 1958 – 1978. At which time he reverted to a DL on the retired list. * He served as a justice of the peace in Essex. This gave him the

"JP" for Life.

References

Obituary
''

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 found ...

'', 24 March 2007
Obituary, ''The Times'', 25 June 2007

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruggles-Brise, John 1908 births 2007 deaths British Army colonels Military personnel from Essex Royal Artillery officers British Army personnel of World War II Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Companions of the Order of the Bath English justices of the peace Officers of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Eton College Knights of the Order of St John Lord-lieutenants of Essex Deputy lieutenants of Essex People associated with the University of Essex People from Finchingfield