Robert Dundas, 9th Viscount Melville

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Robert David Ross Dundas, 9th Viscount Melville (born May 28, 1937 in Melville Castle , Dalkeith , † July 21, 2011 in Wiltshire ) was a British peer , soldier and politician of the Conservative Party .

life and career

Dundas was born on May 28, 1937 to Robert Maldred St John Melville Dundas (1912-1940) and Margaret Connell Ross. His family can trace its origins back to the 18th century and to Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville , who was part of the government of William Pitt the Younger .

Dundas had close ties with Edinburgh , particularly Dalkeith , where his ancestors lived.

During the war he lived with his grandmother in Ayrshire . His mother remarried after the war. Dundas grew up in Keltie Castle in Perthshire .

He attended Cargilfield Preparatory School in Edinburgh and Wellington College in Berkshire . After graduating from school, he entered the military. In 1956 he became a member of the Scots Guards . There he reached the rank of captain . He served with the 2nd Battalion in West Germany and later with the L Company in Caterham . He remained connected to this through participation in various events.

In the following years he maintained a close relationship with the military, through his membership in the Territorial Army at the Ayrshire Yeomanry . In the Scots Guards he was Captain of the Reserve.

He did not return to Melville Castle after the war, but spent his youth in the nearby Esk Cottage .

Dundas was a member of the Midlothian County and District Council . He was president of the Lasswade Civic Society .

He was concerned with the welfare of the underprivileged and the elderly. He joined the Lasswade Civic Society when it was founded in 1971. He got involved in efforts to clean up the River Esk . Dundas was a member of the Poltonhall Community Association's trustee .

He suffered from several diseases. In 1990 he suffered from an abscess on the brain that almost became fatal.

Membership in the House of Lords

Dundas inherited the title of Viscount Melville in 1971 after the death of his uncle and the then associated seat in the House of Lords . He gave his inaugural address on September 28, 1976.

In the same year he spoke several times about social security. In 1977 he asked about Robert Scanlon's whereabouts. He spoke there again in 1985. Two years later, he last spoke up.

In his later years he worked in the City of London and attended meetings of the House of Lords regularly.

  • Session period 1997/1998: 12 days

With the House of Lords Act 1999 he lost his seat. For one of the remaining seats for Hereditary Peers he did not run for election. But it was listed in the Register Of Hereditary Peers .

Family and death

Dundas married Fiona Margaret Stilgoe, daughter of Roger Kirkpatrick Stilgoe, on July 23, 1982. They have two children together.

After his marriage he made the south his main residence, first in Gloucestershire and later in Wiltshire . He retained his interest in Scottish affairs.

He died on July 21, 2011 in Wiltshire at the age of 74. His eldest son, Robert Henry Kirkpatrick Dundas inherited the title. The funeral service took place in Lasswalde .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Robert David Ross Dundas, 9th Viscount Meville of Melville on thepeerage.com , accessed August 20, 2015.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Obituary: Captain Viscount Melville, soldier and aristocrat Obituary of Scotsman, August 10, 2011
  3. ↑ There is another account: Scotsman says 1940 and father
  4. ^ M Statistics on the House of Lords website ; Retrieved December 29, 2012
  5. ^ House of Lords Act: Hereditary Peers Elections Publication of Election Demon ; Retrieved December 29, 2012
  6. ^ Melville, Viscount (UK, 1802) Entry on Cracrofspeerage's website ; Retrieved December 29, 2012
predecessor Office successor
Henry Dundas Viscount Melville
1971-2011 		Robert Dundas
personal data
SURNAME Dundas, Robert, 9th Viscount Melville
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Dundas, Robert David Ross, 9th Viscount Melville (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British Conservative Party politician, soldier and peer
DATE OF BIRTH May 28, 1937
PLACE OF BIRTH Melville Castle , Dalkeith
DATE OF DEATH July 21, 2011
Place of death Wiltshire