William Mabane, 1st Baron Mabane (12 January 1895 – 16 November 1969), known as Sir William Mabane between 1954 and 1962, was a British businessman and Liberal/ National Liberal politician.

Background and education

The son of Joseph Greenwood Mabane and Margaret (née Steele) of

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

, he was educated at Woodhouse Grove School and at

Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge Gonville and Caius College, commonly known as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348 by Edmund Gonville, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and ...

. He was commissioned in 1914 and served in the Near East and France in

World War I 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 ...

as a captain with the East Yorkshire Regiment; he was wounded and

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

. He later became a businessman and merchant.

Political career

Mabane was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confl ...

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

and lost his seat in

1945 1945 marked the end of World War II, the fall of Nazi Germany, and the Empire of Japan. It is also the year concentration camps were liberated and the only year in which atomic weapons have been used in combat. Events World War II will be ...

. Mabane's exact party label was confused for much of his time in the Commons. His local Liberal association was affiliated to the official Liberals until 1939, but Mabane was frequently listed as being a National Liberal, which he repeatedly sought to deny, despite supporting the National Government when the official Liberals had ceased to. He lost his seat to Labour in

, when he was opposed by an official Liberal candidate, Roy Harrod. The standard authoritative work by F.W.S. Craig indicates he was a National Liberal throughout his tenure, as does the contemporary Times Guide to the House of Commons. The town remained an area of strength for liberals and at the 1950 general election, the Liberal Donald Wade won Huddersfield West in a straight fight against Labour. He entered the government as Assistant Postmaster-General under

Neville Chamberlain Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from ...

in September 1939, an office he only held until October, when he was made Minister for Home Security. When

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

succeeded Chamberlain as Prime Minister in May 1940, Mabane was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Home Department, a post he held jointly with Ellen Wilkinson from October of that year. He later served under Churchill as

Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food Control, later the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Food was a junior Ministerial post in the Government of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1921 and then from 1939 to 1954. The post supp ...

from 1942 to 1945 and as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs between May and July 1945. He was sworn of the Privy Council in the 1944 New Year Honours and a Knight 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 ...

(KBE) in 1954. In 1962 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Mabane, of

Rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...

in the County of Sussex. He was tenant of Lamb House, the National Trust property in

Rye, East Sussex Rye is a town and civil parish in the Rother District, Rother district of East Sussex, England, from the sea at the confluence of three rivers: the River Rother (Eastern), Rother, the River Tillingham, Tillingham and the River Brede, Brede. An ...

.''The Age''
10 January 1963 Apart from his political career he was also chairman (1960–1963) and president (1964–1966) of the British Travel Association.

Personal life

Lord Mabane was twice married. He married firstly Louise, daughter of E. Tanton, in 1918. They were divorced in 1926. He married secondly Stella Jane, daughter of J. Duggan, in 1944. He died in November 1969, aged 74. As he was childless, the barony became extinct upon his death.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mabane, William 1895 births 1969 deaths Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge British Army personnel of World War I East Yorkshire Regiment officers Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Ministers in the Churchill wartime government, 1940–1945 National Liberal Party (UK, 1931) politicians People educated at Woodhouse Grove School UK MPs 1931–1935 UK MPs 1935–1945 Ministers in the Churchill caretaker government, 1945 Ministers in the Chamberlain wartime government, 1939–1940 Ministers in the Chamberlain peacetime government, 1937–1939 Hereditary barons created by Elizabeth II