Harold Dillon, 17th Viscount Dillon
Encyclopedia
Order of the Companions of Honour
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded by King George V in June 1917, as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion....
FBA
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
(24 January 1844–18 December 1932) was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
antiquary and a leading authority on the history of arms and armour and medieval costume.
The eldest son of the Arthur Dillon, 16th Viscount Dillon, he was born in Victoria Square, Westminster
Victoria Square, London
Victoria Square is a small residential square, located just to the south-west of Buckingham Palace, between Lower Grosvenor Place, Beeston Place, Grosvenor Gardens, and Buckingham Palace Road. It is on land forming part of the Grosvenor Estate....
, and educated at private school and at the University of Bonn
University of Bonn
The University of Bonn is a public research university located in Bonn, Germany. Founded in its present form in 1818, as the linear successor of earlier academic institutions, the University of Bonn is today one of the leading universities in Germany. The University of Bonn offers a large number...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. He purchased an Ensigncy
Ensign (rank)
Ensign is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries, normally in the infantry or navy. As the junior officer in an infantry regiment was traditionally the carrier of the ensign flag, the rank itself acquired the name....
in the Rifle Brigade in 1862 and a Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
cy in 1866. He served in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, but resigned his commission in 1874. He then joined the Oxfordshire Militia
Oxfordshire Militia
The Oxfordshire Militia was a militia regiment in the United Kingdom from 1759 to 1881, when it was amalgamated into The Oxfordshire Light Infantry....
(later the 4th (Militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
) Battalion, Oxfordshire Light Infantry) as a Captain
Captain (British Army and Royal Marines)
Captain is a junior officer rank of the British Army and Royal Marines. It ranks above Lieutenant and below Major and has a NATO ranking code of OF-2. The rank is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and to a Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force...
. He was promoted Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in 1885 and retired in 1891. He succeeded his father as 17th Viscount Dillon in 1892.
After leaving the regular army he devoted himself to antiquarian study, writing over fifty books and articles. He was chairman of the trustees of the National Portrait Gallery from 1894 to 1928. To them he bequeathed various portraits from Ditchley Park
Ditchley Foundation
The Ditchley Foundation is a British organisation based at Ditchley House near Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, which aims to promote international relations, especially Anglo-American relations, through a programme of around fifteen annual conferences on matters of international interest...
, Charlbury
Charlbury
Charlbury is a small town and civil parish in the Evenlode valley, about north of Witney in West Oxfordshire. It is on the edge of the Wychwood forest and the Cotswolds.-Place name:The origin of the town's toponym is obscure...
including the portrait of his ancestor Sir Henry Lee
Henry Lee of Ditchley
Sir Henry Lee KG , of Ditchley, was Master of the Ordnance under Queen Elizabeth I of England.-Life:Lee became Queen Elizabeth I’s champion in 1570 and was appointed Master of the Royal Armouries in 1580, an office which he held until his death...
by Antonio Moro. He served as Curator of the Royal Armouries
Royal Armouries
The Royal Armouries is the United Kingdom's National Museum of Arms and Armour. It is the United Kingdom's oldest museum, and one of the oldest museums in the world. It is also one of the largest collections of arms and armour in the world, comprising the UK's National Collection of Arms and...
from 1892 to 1913.
He was President of the Royal Archaeological Institute
Royal Archaeological Institute
The Royal Archaeological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland is a learned society, established in 1844, primarily devoted to the publication of the Archaeological Journal, a production of archaeological news that has been in print since 1844....
from 1892 to 1898 and President of the Society of Antiquaries of London
Society of Antiquaries of London
The Society of Antiquaries of London is a learned society "charged by its Royal Charter of 1751 with 'the encouragement, advancement and furtherance of the study and knowledge of the antiquities and history of this and other countries'." It is based at Burlington House, Piccadilly, London , and is...
from 1897 to 1904. He was the founding president of the Society for Army Historical Research
Society for Army Historical Research
The Society for Army Historical Research was founded in 1921 to foster "interest in the history and traditions of British and Commonwealth armies, and to encourage research in these fields." It is one of the oldest societies of its kind. Past members include notable British Field Marshals Wavell,...
holding the position until his death. He was elected a founding Fellow of the British Academy
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
in 1902. He was also appointed antiquary to the Royal Academy
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...
.
He was appointed to the Order of the Companions of Honour
Order of the Companions of Honour
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded by King George V in June 1917, as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion....
(CH) in the 1921 Birthday Honours for his work with the National Portrait Gallery.
His only son predeceased him and he was succeeded by his nephew, Arthur.
Ancestry
| Harold Arthur Dillon-Lee, 17th Viscount Dillon | Father: Arthur Edmund Dennis Dillon-Lee, 16th Viscount Dillon |
Paternal Grandfather: Henry Augustus Dillon-Lee, 13th Viscount Dillon Henry Dillon, 13th Viscount Dillon Henry Augustus Dillon-Lee, 13th Viscount Dillon was an Irish peer, writer and MP for Harwich and for County Mayo.His daughter Henrietta Maria married Edward John Stanley, 2nd Baron Stanley of Alderley.- Biography :... |
Paternal Great-grandfather: Charles Dillon-Lee, 12th Viscount Dillon Charles Dillon, 12th Viscount Dillon Charles Dillon-Lee, 12th Viscount Dillon, KP, PC was Member of Parliament for the English borough of Westbury .... |
| Paternal Great-grandmother: Henrietta Maria Phipps |
|||
| Paternal Grandmother: Henrietta Browne |
Paternal Great-grandfather: Dominick-Geoffrey Browne |
||
| Paternal Great-grandmother: Margaret Browne |
|||
| Mother: Ellen Adderly |
Maternal Grandfather: James Adderly |
Maternal Great-grandfather: ? |
|
| Maternal Great-grandmother: ? |
|||
| Maternal Grandmother: Ellen Williams |
Maternal Great-grandfather: John Williams of Hythe, co. Kent |
||
| Maternal Great-grandmother: ? |