Patrick Donner
Encyclopedia
Sir Patrick William Donner (4 December 1904 – 19 August 1988) was a British
Member of Parliament
(MP) and a member of the influential Finland-Swedish
Donner family
.
His family moved from Helsinki
, Finland
to London
, England
in 1919. His mother was Violet McHutchen of Edinburgh
and his father Ossian Donner
, headed Finland
's first Diplomatic Mission in London 1919-1925. The family later settled in England
for good and his father became a British
citizen.
Donner studied English literature
at Exeter College, Oxford
and later entered business. He was elected at the 1931 election
as Conservative
MP for Islington West
. This seat being marginal, Donner was selected for the safe Conservative seat of Basingstoke for the 1935 election
, against the wishes of Conservative Central Office who preferred Sir Francis Lindley
.The papers of Sir Henry Maxence Cavendish Drummond Wolff appear to indicate that Sir Oswald Mosley interviewed Patrick Donner to decide upon his suitability to serve as MP for the Basingstoke constituency, which had previously been held by two committed Fascists in Sir Henry MC Drummond Wolff and Viscount Lymington.2
In Parliament, Donner was active on British Empire
and India
n policy, playing an important part in the India Defence League
. He served in the Royal Air Force
during World War II
and was knighted in 1953. He served as Basingstoke's MP for 20 years, stepping down at the 1955 election
.
Donner's memoirs, Crusade: A Life Against the Calamitous Twentieth Century, were released in 1984.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Member of Parliament
Member 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) and a member of the influential Finland-Swedish
Finland-Swedish
Finland Swedish is a general term for the closely related cluster of dialects of Swedish spoken in Finland by Swedish-speaking Finns as their mother tongue...
Donner family
Donner family
The Donner family is one of the renowned and wealthy Finland-Swedish families that grew in importance during the times of the Grand Duchy of Finland...
.
His family moved from Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
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...
in 1919. His mother was Violet McHutchen of Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and his father Ossian Donner
Ossian Donner
Ossian Donner was a Finnish industrialist, engineer, senator and diplomat. He was the son of professor Otto Donner and grandson of shipowner Anders Donner from Kokkola....
, headed Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
's first Diplomatic Mission in London 1919-1925. The family later settled in England
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...
for good and his father became a British
British nationality law
British nationality law is the law of the United Kingdom that concerns citizenship and other categories of British nationality. The law is complex because of the United Kingdom's former status as an imperial power.-History:...
citizen.
Donner studied English literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
at Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College, Oxford
Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth oldest college of the University. The main entrance is on the east side of Turl Street...
and later entered business. He was elected at the 1931 election
United Kingdom general election, 1931
The United Kingdom general election on Tuesday 27 October 1931 was the last in the United Kingdom not held on a Thursday. It was also the last election, and the only one under universal suffrage, where one party received an absolute majority of the votes cast.The 1931 general election was the...
as Conservative
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...
MP for Islington West
Islington West (UK Parliament constituency)
Islington West was a borough constituency in the Metropolitan Borough of Islington, in North London.It 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 1950 general election...
. This seat being marginal, Donner was selected for the safe Conservative seat of Basingstoke for the 1935 election
United Kingdom general election, 1935
The United Kingdom general election held on 14 November 1935 resulted in a large, though reduced, majority for the National Government now led by Conservative Stanley Baldwin. The greatest number of MPs, as before, were Conservative, while the National Liberal vote held steady...
, against the wishes of Conservative Central Office who preferred Sir Francis Lindley
Francis Oswald Lindley
Sir Francis Oswald Lindley CB, CBE, PC, KCMG was a British diplomat, HM Consul-General in Russia, 1919, British High Commissioner in Vienna, 1919 to 1920, Ambassador to Austria, 1920 to 1921, Ambassador to Greece, 1922 to 1923, Minister in Oslo, 1923 to 1929; Ambassador to Portugal, 1929 to 1931,...
.The papers of Sir Henry Maxence Cavendish Drummond Wolff appear to indicate that Sir Oswald Mosley interviewed Patrick Donner to decide upon his suitability to serve as MP for the Basingstoke constituency, which had previously been held by two committed Fascists in Sir Henry MC Drummond Wolff and Viscount Lymington.2
In Parliament, Donner was active on British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
and 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...
n policy, playing an important part in the India Defence League
India Defence League
The India Defence League was a British pressure group founded in June 1933 dedicated to keeping India within the British Empire.It grew from the parliamentary India Defence Committee and was founded with the support of 10 Privy Councillors, 28 peers, 57 MPs, 2 former Governors and 3 former...
. He served in the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and was knighted in 1953. He served as Basingstoke's MP for 20 years, stepping down at the 1955 election
United Kingdom general election, 1955
The 1955 United Kingdom general election was held on 26 May 1955, four years after the previous general election. It resulted in a substantially increased majority of 60 for the Conservative government under new leader and prime minister Sir Anthony Eden against Labour Party, now in their 20th year...
.
Donner's memoirs, Crusade: A Life Against the Calamitous Twentieth Century, were released in 1984.