Sir William Bowyer-Smijth, 12th Baronet (1 September 1840 – 22 July 1916) was an English diplomat.

Early life

Bowyer-Smijth was born on 1 September 1840 and baptised on 21 September 1840 at 13

Lower Grosvenor Street Lower Grosvenor Street was a street in London, England, later renamed Grosvenor Street. It was at the south-eastern corner of Grosvenor Square, extending eastward towards Bond Street. Count de Melfort, in his ''Impressions of England'', describe ...

in London. He was the son of Sir William Bowyer-Smijth, 11th Baronet and Marianne Frances Meux. While still married to his mother, his father left her and, pretending to be a widower, courted and then married sixteen year old Eliza Fechnie Malcolm. They had twelve children, six sons and seven daughters while his mother was still alive. A week after his mother's death in 1875, his father remarried Eliza. Although legitimised under Scottish law by petition in 1918, the baronetcy and estates could not pass to the children of his father's second marriage. His paternal grandfather was the Rev. Sir Edward Bowyer-Smijth, 10th Baronet of Hill Hall, in 1839.Cokayne, George Edward, editor, ''The Complete Baronetage, 5 volumes''; Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 1983), volume III, page 237. His maternal grandparents were Sir Henry Meux, 1st Baronet and the former Elizabeth-Mary Smith. Among his extended family were first cousins, Sir Henry Bruce Meux, 3rd Baronet (who married socialite Valerie Langdon) and

George Capell, 7th Earl of Essex George Devereux de Vere Capell, 7th Earl of Essex (24 October 1857 – 25 September 1916), was a British aristocrat. He succeeded to the title Earl of Essex in 1892. Early life and background Capell was born on 24 October 1857 in London, the s ...

, who married American heiress Adele Beach Grant. Bowyer-Smijth 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 ...

Career

He joined the Diplomatic Service in 1858 and by 1863 was Third Secretary in 1863. He was Second Secretary to

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

between 1874 and 1881 Secretary of the British Legation to Yeddo (the former name of

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

) between 1881 and 1883 until his resignation. Upon the death of his father on 20 November 1883, he succeeded as the 12th Baronet Smith, of Hill Hall and was appointed

High Sheriff of Essex The High Sheriff of Essex was an ancient sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the invasion of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around a thousand years. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of th ...

in 1889.

Personal life

Sir William died, unmarried, on 22 July 1916 at Arundel House on Clarence Road in

Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells (formerly, until 1909, and still commonly Tunbridge Wells) is a town in Kent, England, southeast of Central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the High Weald, whose sandstone ...

. The baronetcy then reverted to his first cousin, Alfred John Bowyer-Smyth, eldest son of the Rev. Alfred John Edward Bowyer-Smijth, younger son of his grandfather, who thus became the 13th Baronet who changed the spelling of the family surname to Bowyer-Smyth.Mosley, Charles, editor. ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes.''

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003, volume 1, page 464. He also died childless in 1927 and was succeeded by his nephew,

Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male name derived from the Macedonian Old Koine language, Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominen ...

, the son of Clement Weyland Bowyer-Smijth.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowyer-Smijth, William 1840 births 1916 deaths Bowyer-Smijth, Sir William, 12th Baronet People educated at Eton College High sheriffs of Essex