Sir Robert Chapman, 1st Baronet (3 March 1880 – 31 July 1963) was a British soldier and Conservative Party politician.

Early life

Chapman was the son of Henry Chapman, a Chartered Accountant and prominent businessman in South Shields, and Dora Gibson. He was educated at South Shields High School, Robert was one of seven brothers who went to the school, and came to be School Captain in 1896. He left to go to London University, where he gained a BA. When he finished at university he joined the family's accountancy firm.

Military service

Chapman commissioned into the 3rd Durham Royal Garrison Artillery in 1902, becoming a Captain in 1904. In 1908, upon the creation of the

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry in ...

his unit was transferred to the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It was created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of the regiment, the ...

, becoming the 4th Durham (Howitzer) Brigade, after which he was promoted to the rank of Major in December 1908 (with authority dated 1 April 1908), thus taking command of his unit. He served in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, reaching the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and being awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

in 1916. In 1917 he was awarded the Legion 'd'Honneur. He was appointed a

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George I ...

in 1918. He was awarded a

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 ...

in 1919,. He became a Brevet Colonel in 1924 and substantive Colonel in 1925. He became the Honorary Colonel of his former regiment in 1935, retiring from the army in 1937. He was awarded the

Efficiency Decoration The Efficiency Decoration, post-nominal letters TD for recipients serving in the Army Reserve (United Kingdom), Territorial Army of the United Kingdom or ED for those serving in the British Colonial Auxiliary Forces, Auxiliary Military Forces, ...

in 1955.

Political career

In 1921, Chapman was elected to be one of the first Councillors for the new Harton Ward, in the same year he was appointed Deputy Lieutenant for County Durham. In 1931 he became Mayor of South Shields. He was elected at the 1931 general election as Member of Parliament (MP) for the Houghton-le-Spring constituency in

County Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...

. It was usually a

safe seat A safe seat is an electoral district which is regarded as fully secure, for either a certain political party, or the incumbent representative personally or a combination of both. With such seats, there is very little chance of a seat changing h ...

for the Labour, but fell to the Conservatives as one of their many gains that year, when Labour split over budgetary policy and

Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British statesman and politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The first two of his governments belonged to the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, where he led ...

formed a National Government. Chapman was defeated by the Labour candidate at the 1935 general election, and did not stand for

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

again. He was

High Sheriff of Durham This is a list of the high sheriffs of County Durham, England. In most counties the high sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. In the Palatinate of Durham the officeholder was appointed by and was accountable to the Bishop of ...

in 1940. On 8 June 1944 he was appointed a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregi ...

, and on 1 January 1945 he was created a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

. In 1949, he was created Vice-Lieutenant of County Durham. On 14 March 1950 he was appointed

knight bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of St John on 23 June 1950. On 30 January 1958 he was created 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 ...

, of

Cleadon Cleadon is a suburban village in South Tyneside in the North East England, North East of England. Prior to the creation of Tyne and Wear in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, the village was part of the County Durham#History, historic Coun ...

in the

County of Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...

Personal life

Chapman married Hélène Paris (1894–1980), daughter of James George MacGowan, in 1909. He died on 31 July 1963, aged 83, and was succeeded in the baronetcy by his eldest son Robert.

Honours

*30 January 1958:

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 ...

, 1st Baronet Chapman of Cleadon *23 June 1950: Officer of the Order of St John *14 March 1950:

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

*1 January 1945:

*8 June 1944:

*1 January 1918:

*1 May 1917: Chevalier de Légion d'honneur (France) *11 January 1916:

*4 November 1919:

*1 January 1955:

Honorary Military Appointments

*1935 – 1950: Honorary Colonel, 74th (Northumbrian) Field Regiment Royal Artillery

Arms

References

* * * *Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990.
www.thepeerage.com

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chapman, Robert 1880 births 1963 deaths Royal Field Artillery officers British Army personnel of World War I Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1931–1935 Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Companions of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Knights Bachelor Deputy lieutenants of Durham High sheriffs of Durham Royal Garrison Artillery officers Chapman baronets