Arthur Somers-Cocks, 6th Baron Somers

Arthur Herbert Tennyson Somers-Cocks , 6th Baron Somers (born March 20, 1887 in Freshwater on the Isle of Wight , England - † July 14, 1944 at Eastnor Castle , Hereford ) was a British officer during the First World War and later Governor of the Australian state of Victoria .

Life

Somers grew up as an orphan with relatives after the death of his parents in 1896 . He attended the traditional New College in Oxford . In his youth he was very athletic and played golf and royal tennis , among other things . In 1899 he inherited the nobility title Baron Somers from his late great-uncle Philip Cocks, 5th Baron Somers . In 1906 he joined the army ( 1st Life Guards Cavalry Regiment ). He later took time off and traveled to Canada and ran a farm there. However, when the First World War broke out in 1914, he reported back to his unit. He was subsequently wounded near Ypres . In 1918 he commanded the 6th Battalion of the Royal Tank Corps .

After the war, Somers campaigned for the boy scout movement . In 1922 he resigned from the army with the rank of lieutenant colonel and took the seat associated with his title in the House of Lords . There he took over the post of government spokesman and lord-in-waiting . In 1926 he was appointed governor of Victoria and remained so until June 1931. During his tenure, he organized several scout camps at his own expense.

From October 1930 to January 1931 Somers also represented the incumbent Governor General of Australia Lord Stonehaven . During the 1930s he held several positions within the Boy Scout Movement, most recently as Chief Scout of the entire Commonwealth . From 1940 to 1941 Somers was in Egypt as the ambassador of the Red Cross .

Somers succumbed to prolonged cancer on July 14, 1944. He left behind his wife Daisy Finola, whom he married in 1921, and a daughter. Since he had no sons, his title fell to his uncle Arthur Cocks .

Awards

• Military Cross
• Distinguished Service Order
• Member of the Legion of Honor
• Knight Commander of the Order of St. Michael and St. George (1926)

literature

• Alan Gregory: Somers, Arthur Herbert Tennyson (1887–1944) . In: Douglas Pike (Ed.): Australian Dictionary of Biography . Melbourne University Press, Carlton (Victoria) 1966–2012 (English).

predecessor	Office	successor
Philip Cocks	Baron Somers 1899-1944	Arthur Cocks