David Somerset, 11th Duke of Beaufort

David Robert Somerset, 11th Duke of Beaufort

David Robert Somerset, 11th Duke of Beaufort ( February 23, 1928 - August 16, 2017 ), known as David Somerset until 1984 , was a British peer and politician of the Conservative Party . He was by inheritance from 1984 to 1999 a member of the House of Lords .

biography

Early life

He was the son of Henry Robert Somers Fitzroy de Vere Somerset and Bettine Violet Malcolm and attended Eton College . His father was the grandson of Lord Henry Somerset , second son of Henry Somerset, 8th Duke of Beaufort and the activist of the abstinence movement Lady Isabella Somers-Cocks . He and his family are descended from Edward III in the male line . from; the first Somerset was a legitimate son of Henry Beaufort, Duke of Somerset , whose grandfather was a legitimate son of John of Gaunt . He was a 6th cousin of Queen Elizabeth II through their common ancestor William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire .

military service

He joined the Coldstream Guards on September 6, 1946 as a Second Lieutenant . On January 1, 1949, he was promoted to lieutenant .

Functions and possessions

He was the Hereditary Keeper of Raglan Castle , President of the British Horse Society from 1988 to 1990 and Chairman ( Chairman ) of Marlborough Fine Art . He was ranked 581st on the 2008 Sunday Times Rich List with an estimated net worth of £ 135 million. His membership in the House of Lords ended with the House of Lords Act 1999 . He did not run for one of the remaining seats.

River Tawe footbridge affair

The Duke of Beaufort came under fire in January 2009 when a Councilor in Swansea , Ioan Richard, discovered through the Freedom of Information Act that the Duke was paying £ 281,431 for a 70-foot bridge to be built over the River Tawe near Swansea should have been paid. The Dukes of Beaufort were granted hereditary ownership of the river bed 400 years earlier, so the council had to pay the duke for the building rights.

Richard said he was angry that public funds were being used to pay for one of the UK's richest estates. "For centuries Swansea residents have paid dues to the Duke of Beaufort and we owe nothing to this powerful and wealthy family." A spokesman for the Badminton House ducal estate replied, "We do not want to comment on a private transaction."

family

His first marriage was Lady Caroline Jane Thynne (August 28, 1928 - April 22, 1995), daughter of Henry Thynne, 6th Marquess of Bath , and they were married on July 5, 1950. The wedding took place at St Peter's Church , Eaton Square , in the presence of George VI. and Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon , as well as other members of the royal family.

They had four children:

• Henry Somerset , 12th Duke of Beaufort, courtesy title until 2017 Marquess of Worcester (born May 22, 1952), married to Tracy Louise Ward (a granddaughter of the 3rd Earl of Dudley , former actress and environmental activist)
  • Robert Somerset, courtesy title Earl of Glamorgan (* 1989)
  • Lady Isabella Somerset (* 1991)
  • Lord Alexander Somerset (born November 19, 1993)
• Lady Anne Somerset , historian (born January 21, 1955), married to Matthew Carr (deceased), one daughter.
• Lord Edward Alexander Somerset (born May 1, 1958), marriage 1982 (divorce 2014) Hon. (Georgiana) Caroline Davidson (2nd daughter of John Davidson, 2nd Viscount Davidson)
  • Francesca Somerset
  • Rose Somerset
• Lord John Robert Somerset (born November 5, 1964) also known as Lord Johnson Somerset, divorced from Lady Cosima Vane-Tempest-Stewart (daughter of Alexander Vane-Tempest-Stewart, 9th Marquess of Londonderry)
  • Lyle Somerset
  • Romy Somerset

David Somerset married Miranda Elisabeth Morley (* 1947) on June 2, 2000. She is a daughter of Brigadier General Michael Frederick Morley . Beaufort was nominated for the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1988 .

Web links

Commons : David Somerset, 11th Duke of Beaufort  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• David Somerset at Hansard (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ David Somerset, 11th Duke of Beaufort dies, aged 89
2. ^ London Gazette  (Supplement). No. 37753, HMSO, London, 8 October 1946, p. 5028 ( PDF , accessed on 24 August 2010, English).
3. ^ London Gazette  (Supplement). No. 38618, HMSO, London, 24 May 1949, p. 2554 ( PDF , accessed on 24 August 2010, English).
4. ^ House of Lords Act: Hereditary Peers Elections website Election Demon , accessed April 18, 2014
5. ^ Duke gets £ 280,000 of public funds for bridge over his river
6. ↑ Their Majesties at society wedding 1950 . British Pathe. Retrieved June 25, 2014.
7. ↑ Vanity Fair ( Memento of the original from June 1, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  

predecessor	Office	successor
Henry Somerset	Duke of Beaufort 1984-2017	Henry John Fitzroy Somerset