Guy Greville Wilson
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant-Colonel Guy Greville Wilson DSO
, CMG (19 May 1877 – 1 February 1943) was a British
soldier, company director, and Liberal Party
politician from Kingston upon Hull
. His family owned Thomas Wilson Sons & Co.
, which was once the largest private shipowning concern in the world.
) and his wife Florence Jane Helen Wellesley. He was educated at Eton
, and in February 1895 he was commissioned in the British Army
as a second Lieutenant in the 3rd Battalion of the East Yorkshire Regiment
. He served in South Africa
as a Lieutenant with the 11th Hussars
during the Second Boer War
, where he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
in October 1902. He retired from the full-time army service in 1903, but later became Lieutenant-Colonel of the 1st battalion of the East Riding of Yorkshire Yeomanry and served in the army during World War I
from 1915 to 1916.
Wilson was married twice, firstly on 23 June 1904 to Lady Isabel Ines-Ker (1879–1905), daughter of the 7th Duke of Roxburghe
. She died in childbirth on 12 October 1905 (the year after their marriage). He married again in May 1911, to Avery Fowell Buxton (born 1889), daughter of Lt.-Col. Geoffrey Fowell Buxton (1852–1929), of Dunston Hall
in Norfolk
, a Deputy Lieutenant
of Norfolk and a Director of Barclays Bank.
(MP) for over 30 years, and when he retired from the House of Commons in 1906 before being awarded a peerage, Charles's older son Charles H. W. Wilson
was elected at the 1906 general election
to succeed him as MP for Hull West
. However, their father died the following year, and Charles Jr succeeded to his peerage, thereby gaining a seat in the House of Lords
and automatically vacating his seat in the Commons. At the resulting by-election in November 1907
, Guy was elected to succeed him, with a narrow majority of 241 votes (1.5% of the total) over his Conservative Party
opponent.
He was re-elected at both the January 1910 and December 1910 elections and held the seat until the constituency was abolished at the 1918
. He then stood in the new North Western division of Hull, where he was one of 159 Liberal candidates to receive the "coalition coupon
", which signified the endorsement of the Conservative-dominated Coalition Government led by David Lloyd George
. However, Wilson repudiated the coupon, and was overwhelmingly defeated by the Conservative Party candidate Lambert Ward
; Wilson took only 21.0% of the votes.
After his defeat in 1918, Wilson did not stand for Parliament
again.
He was later made a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG).
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, CMG (19 May 1877 – 1 February 1943) was a British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
soldier, company director, and Liberal Party
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
politician from Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull
Kingston upon Hull , usually referred to as Hull, is a city and unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands on the River Hull at its junction with the Humber estuary, 25 miles inland from the North Sea. Hull has a resident population of...
. His family owned Thomas Wilson Sons & Co.
Thomas Wilson Sons & Co.
Thomas Wilson Sons & Co. was founded in 1822 as a joint venture by merchants Thomas Wilson, his partner John Beckinton and two unrelated men both surnamed Hudson. None came from shipping backgrounds but were quick to see the opportunity of becoming involved in the industry. They acquired their...
, which was once the largest private shipowning concern in the world.
Family and military service
Wilson was the second son of Charles Henry Wilson (later the first Baron NunburnholmeBaron Nunburnholme
Baron Nunburnholme, of the City of Kingston-upon-Hull, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1906 for the former Liberal Member of Parliament for Hull and Hull West, Charles Wilson. His son, the second Baron, also represented Hull West in Parliament as a Liberal and...
) and his wife Florence Jane Helen Wellesley. He was educated at Eton
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
, and in February 1895 he was commissioned in the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
as a second Lieutenant in the 3rd Battalion of the East Yorkshire Regiment
East Yorkshire Regiment
The East Yorkshire Regiment was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army, first raised in 1685 as Sir William Clifton's Regiment of Foot. It saw service for three centuries, before being amalgamated with the West Yorkshire Regiment , becoming The Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of...
. He served in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
as a Lieutenant with the 11th Hussars
11th Hussars
The 11th Hussars was a cavalry regiment of the British Army.-History:The regiment was founded in 1715 as Colonel Philip Honeywood's Regiment of Dragoons and was known by the name of its Colonel until 1751 when it became the 11th Regiment of Dragoons...
during the Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
, where he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
in October 1902. He retired from the full-time army service in 1903, but later became Lieutenant-Colonel of the 1st battalion of the East Riding of Yorkshire Yeomanry and served in the army during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
from 1915 to 1916.
Wilson was married twice, firstly on 23 June 1904 to Lady Isabel Ines-Ker (1879–1905), daughter of the 7th Duke of Roxburghe
James Innes-Ker, 7th Duke of Roxburghe
James Henry Robert Innes-Ker, 7th Duke of Roxburghe , became Duke of Roxburghe on the death of his father, James Henry Robert Innes-Ker, 6th Duke of Roxburghe, his mother was Susanna Dalbiac....
. She died in childbirth on 12 October 1905 (the year after their marriage). He married again in May 1911, to Avery Fowell Buxton (born 1889), daughter of Lt.-Col. Geoffrey Fowell Buxton (1852–1929), of Dunston Hall
Dunston, Norfolk
Dunston is a small village which lies approximately 3 miles south of Norwich. It is located in the valley of the River Tas between Stoke Holy Cross and Caistor St. Edmund. It has a common which is popular with walkers....
in Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, a Deputy Lieutenant
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
of Norfolk and a Director of Barclays Bank.
Political career
His father Charles had been a Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for over 30 years, and when he retired from the House of Commons in 1906 before being awarded a peerage, Charles's older son Charles H. W. Wilson
Charles Wilson, 2nd Baron Nunburnholme
Charles Henry Wellesley Wilson, 2nd Baron Nunburnholme, CB, DSO, , was a British peer, and one of the heirs to the Thomas Wilson Sons & Co., a Hull-based shipping company that built a near-monopoly over affordable travel packages from Scandinavia and the Baltic.He was the eldest son of Charles...
was elected at the 1906 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1906
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1906*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
to succeed him as MP for Hull West
Hull West (UK Parliament constituency)
Hull West was a borough constituency in Kingston upon Hull which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 until it was abolished for the 1918 general election....
. However, their father died the following year, and Charles Jr succeeded to his peerage, thereby gaining a seat in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
and automatically vacating his seat in the Commons. At the resulting by-election in November 1907
Hull West by-election, 1907
The Hull by-election, 1907 was a parliamentary by-election held in England for the House of Commons constituency of Hull West on 11 November 1907....
, Guy was elected to succeed him, with a narrow majority of 241 votes (1.5% of the total) over his Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
opponent.
He was re-elected at both the January 1910 and December 1910 elections and held the seat until the constituency was abolished at the 1918
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...
. He then stood in the new North Western division of Hull, where he was one of 159 Liberal candidates to receive the "coalition coupon
Coalition Coupon
The ‘Coalition Coupon’, often referred to as ‘the coupon’, refers to the letter sent to parliamentary candidates at the United Kingdom general election, 1918 endorsing them as official representatives of the Coalition Government. The 1918 election took place in the heady atmosphere of victory in...
", which signified the endorsement of the Conservative-dominated Coalition Government led by David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM, PC was a British Liberal politician and statesman...
. However, Wilson repudiated the coupon, and was overwhelmingly defeated by the Conservative Party candidate Lambert Ward
Sir Lambert Ward, 1st Baronet
Sir Lambert Ward, 1st Baronet CVO DSO TD was a volunteer soldier in the Territorial Army and a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom....
; Wilson took only 21.0% of the votes.
After his defeat in 1918, Wilson did not stand for Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
again.
He was later made a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG).