William Lygon, 8th Earl Beauchamp
Encyclopedia
William Lygon, 8th Earl Beauchamp (3 July 1903 – 3 January 1979) was a politician in the United Kingdom
.
He was the eldest son of the controversial William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
, sometime leader of the Liberals in the House of Lords. Standing as a Liberal
, he was elected as Member of Parliament
(MP) for East Norfolk
at the 1929 general election
. At the 1931 general election
, when the Liberal Party
split over participation in Ramsay MacDonald
's National Government
, he stood and was elected in the interest of the breakaway Liberal National grouping (known as National Liberal after 1948), which aligned itself with the National Government even after the official Liberals (called "Samuelites" after their leader Herbert Samuel) crossed the floor into opposition in 1933, and eventually (in 1968) merged with the Conservative Party
. Lygon, known while an MP by his courtesy title, Viscount Elmley, retained his seat as a Liberal National in the 1935 general election
. He succeeded to the peerage as the 8th Earl Beauchamp
on his father's death in 1938. On his own death without male issue in 1979, the peerage became extinct.
He is sometimes said to be the model for the character of Lord Brideshead ("Bridey"), eldest son of the Marquess of Marchmain, in Evelyn Waugh
's novel 'Brideshead Revisited
', presumably because his father is often cited as the model for "Bridey"'s father Lord Marchmain.
in Winterton-on-Sea
, Norfolk, a village in his parliamentary constituency; after succeeding his father as the 8th Earl Beauchamp in 1938, he and Countess Beauchamp made their home at Madresfield Court
, Worcestershire, the ancestral seat of the Earls Beauchamp.
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...
.
He was the eldest son of the controversial William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp KG, KCMG, PC , styled Viscount Elmley until 1891, was a British Liberal politician. He was Governor of New South Wales between 1899 and 1901, a member of the Liberal administrations of Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman and H. H...
, sometime leader of the Liberals in the House of Lords. Standing as a Liberal
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...
, he was elected as 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) for East Norfolk
East Norfolk (UK Parliament constituency)
East Norfolk was a parliamentary constituency in the county of Norfolk. It returned two Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until 1868. Another Eastern division was created in 1885, when its representation was reduced to one member...
at the 1929 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1929
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...
. At the 1931 general 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...
, when the 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...
split over participation in Ramsay MacDonald
Ramsay MacDonald
James Ramsay MacDonald, PC, FRS was a British politician who was the first ever Labour Prime Minister, leading a minority government for two terms....
's National Government
National Government 1931-1935
See also First National MinistryThe United Kingdom's National Government was composed of members of the following parties:*National Labour*Conservative Party*Liberal Party*Liberal Nationals...
, he stood and was elected in the interest of the breakaway Liberal National grouping (known as National Liberal after 1948), which aligned itself with the National Government even after the official Liberals (called "Samuelites" after their leader Herbert Samuel) crossed the floor into opposition in 1933, and eventually (in 1968) merged with the 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...
. Lygon, known while an MP by his courtesy title, Viscount Elmley, retained his seat as a Liberal National in the 1935 general 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...
. He succeeded to the peerage as the 8th Earl Beauchamp
Earl Beauchamp
Earl Beauchamp was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1815 for William Lygon, 1st Baron Beauchamp, along with the subsidiary title Viscount Elmley, in the County of Worcester. He had already been created Baron Beauchamp of Powyke in the County of Worcester, in 1806,...
on his father's death in 1938. On his own death without male issue in 1979, the peerage became extinct.
He is sometimes said to be the model for the character of Lord Brideshead ("Bridey"), eldest son of the Marquess of Marchmain, in Evelyn Waugh
Evelyn Waugh
Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh , known as Evelyn Waugh, was an English writer of novels, travel books and biographies. He was also a prolific journalist and reviewer...
's novel 'Brideshead Revisited
Brideshead Revisited
Brideshead Revisited, The Sacred & Profane Memories of Captain Charles Ryder is a novel by English writer Evelyn Waugh, first published in 1945. Waugh wrote that the novel "deals with what is theologically termed 'the operation of Grace', that is to say, the unmerited and unilateral act of love by...
', presumably because his father is often cited as the model for "Bridey"'s father Lord Marchmain.
Marriage
On 16 June 1936, Beauchamp married Else Schiwe (1895–1989), daughter of Viggo Schiwe (a Danish character actor of distinction) and former wife of Peter Christian Blicher Dornonville de la Cour (d.1924). By this marriage, Beauchamp had no issue of his own but did have a stepdaughter, Agnete Regitze Dornonville de la Cour (born 1916, died 2010).Home
At one time Lygon lived in the disused Winterton LighthouseWinterton Lighthouse
Winterton Lighthouse is located in Winterton-on-Sea in the English county of Norfolk.-History:A Lighthouse has been known to have stood in this location since the 17th century...
in Winterton-on-Sea
Winterton-on-Sea
Winterton-on-Sea is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. As its name suggests, it is situated on the coast some north of the town of Great Yarmouth and east of the city of Norwich.Ordnance Survey . OS Explorer Map 252 - Norfolk Coast East...
, Norfolk, a village in his parliamentary constituency; after succeeding his father as the 8th Earl Beauchamp in 1938, he and Countess Beauchamp made their home at Madresfield Court
Madresfield Court
Madresfield Court is a country house in England, in the village of Madresfield near Malvern in Worcestershire. The stately home, near the village centre has been the ancestral home for several centuries of the Lygon family, whose eldest sons took the title of Earl Beauchamp from 1815 until 1979,...
, Worcestershire, the ancestral seat of the Earls Beauchamp.