Sir Rickard Fredrik Knut von Friesendorff, 11th Baronet 1937-2023

Sir Rickard von Friesendorff, 11th baronet, died 21 November, 2023.

The von Friesendorff baronetcy, of Hirdech, Sweden, is a title in the Baronetage of England. On 4 October 1661, Johan von Friesendorff, Swedish ambassador to the Court of St James, was created a baronet by King Charles II. In 1665 he was appointed Riksfriherre by the Emperor Leopold. Although the baronetcy was considered to have become dormant in 1669 after the death of the 1st Baronet due to his descendants living in Sweden, use of the title was maintained by the family; the 11th Baronet, Rickard Fredrik Knut von Friesendorff, was admitted to the Official Roll of the Baronetage in 2018.

The 11th baronet was born in 1937, and succeeded his father Baron Sir Claes Fredrik Wilhelm von Friesendorff, 10th Baronet (1903-74), in 1974 though he did not establish his claim (after the baronetcy had long been dormant) until 2018.  He married 1stly, 1965 (div 1972) Siv Monica Eriksson, and married 2ndly, 1986, Eva Birgitta Neilru.  His son from his first marriage, Johan Fredrik von Friesendorff, succeeds as 12th Baronet. 

-=-

Susan Elaine Beckwith-Smith (née Parkes) 1935-2023

 Susan Elaine Beckwith-Smith (née Parkes), who died 22 November, 2023, aged 88, was the widow of John Moore Beckwith-Smith (1929-2005), scion of that landed gentry family.

She was born Susan Elaine Parkes, 1 March, 1935, daughter of Sidney Edward Parkes, and married 30 September, 1954, John Moore Beckwith-Smith (born 30 June, 1929), son of Major-General Merton Beckwith-Smith, DSO, MC (1890-1942), &  his wife the former Honor Dorothy Blundell Leigh (1892-1982), a granddaughter maternally of the 1st Marquess of Abergavenny, &c.

By her husband, who died 29 April, 2005, she had issue, two sons, Rupert & John, and two daughters, Carolyn and Lucy. Her daughter Carolyn, who died 11 Oct, 1999, aged 43, was an Extra Lady-in-Waiting to Sarah Duchess of York, and wife of Henry Cotterell (now Sir Henry Cotterell, 7th Baronet).

-=-

The Baroness Joffe (died 2023)

 The Baroness Joffe (née Pretorius), who died 6 November, 2023, aged 85, was the widow of the life peer the Baron Joffe, CBE (1932-2017).

She was the former Vanetta Linda Pretorius, daughter of Francois Pretorius, of Port Elizabeth, South Africa, and married in 1962, Joel Goodman Joffe, a South African lawyer, created a life peer in 2000, as Baron Joffe, of Liddington in the County of Wiltshire.

She was widowed, 18 June, 2017, and leaves issue.

-=-

The Baron Darling of Roulanish, PC 1953-2023

The Baron Darling of Roulanish, PC, who died 30 November, 2023, aged 70, was, as Alistair Darling MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer in the administration of Gordon Brown 2007-2010.

He was Labour MP for Edinburgh South West until he stood down in 2015.

Darling was first appointed as Chief Secretary to the Treasury by Prime Minister Tony Blair in 1997, and was promoted to Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in 1998. After spending four years at that department, he spent a further four years as Secretary of State for Transport, while also becoming Secretary of State for Scotland in 2003. Blair moved Darling for a final time in 2006, making him President of the Board of Trade and Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, before new Prime Minister Gordon Brown promoted Darling to replace himself as Chancellor of the Exchequer in 2007, a position he remained in until 2010. He served as Chancellor during the financial crisis of 2007–2008 and the Great Recession.

Alistair Maclean Darling was born 28 Nov, 1953, son of Thomas Darling and his wife the former Anna Maclean, and was a great-nephew of Sir William Darling (1885-1962), the Unionist Member of Parliament for the Edinburgh South constituency from 1945 to 1957. 

 Lord Darling was twice married, and he leaves a widow, Margaret McQueen Vaughan, his wife since 1986, by whom he has a son and a daughter.

-=-

Sir Ian Kenneth Munro of Foulis, 17th Baronet 1940-2023

 Sir Ian Munro of Foulis, 17th Baronet, died 22 November, 2023, aged 83.

He was born 4 April, 1940, son of Sir Kenneth Arnold William Munro of Foulis, 16th Baronet (1910-2004), & his wife the former Olive Freda Broome, and succeeded to the baronetcy (cr NS, 1634), on his father's death, 3 April, 2004. He was unmarried. The baronetcy now passes to his cousin, Godfrey Roland Munro, who was born 1 July, 1938.

-=-

The Baron Selkirk of Douglas, PC 1942-2023

The Baron Selkirk of Douglas, PC, who died 28 November, 2023, aged 81, was the Conservative MP for Edinburgh West for 23 years, a Scottish Office minister under Margaret Thatcher and John Major, and finally a front-bench spokesman in the Scottish Parliament. He was the 11th Earl of Selkirk in the Peerage of Scotland, but disclaimed his hereditary peerage for life.

Lord James Alexander Douglas-Hamilton was born 31 July, 1942, the second son of the 14th Duke of Hamilton and 11th Duke of Brandon, KT, GCVO, PC (1903-1973), and his wife the former Lady Elizabeth Ivy Percy, OBE (1916-2008), daughter of the 8th Duke of Northumberland, KG, CBE, MVO (1880-1930).

He succeeded to the earldom of Selkirk on the death of his uncle, the 10th Earl, 24 Nov, 1994, but disclaimed his peerage for life, 28 Nov 1994, and successfully proved his claim, 14 March, 1996. He was sworn of the Privy Council in 1996.

Lord James was MP (Conservative) for Edinburgh West 1974-97; Assistant Government Whip 1977; a Lord of the Treasury 1979-81; Parliamentary Private Secretary to Foreign & Commonwealth Office Minister 1983-86 and to Secretary of State for Scotland 1986-87; Parliamentary Under-Secretary Home Affairs and Environment 1987-92 and Scottish Office (Education and Housing) 1992-95; Minister of State, Home Office and Scottish Office (Health) 1995-97; Privy Councillor 1996; as he was a sitting Member of Parliament when his uncle died, he disclaimed the Earldom of Selkirk on 28 Nov 1994 so as to continue to serve his constituents.  However, his first cousin, Alasdair Malcolm Douglas-Hamilton, 1st son of the late W/Cdr Lord Malcolm Douglas-Hamilton OBE DFC MP, next younger brother of the 10th Earl of Selkirk, also claimed the Earldom, and it was not until 14 Mar 1996 that the Lyon Court, following the precedent set in the case of the 7th Earl of Selkirk, decided that Lord James Alexander Douglas-Hamilton was entitled to the dignity of Earl of Selkirk. On 29 Sep 1997 Lord James was created Baron Selkirk of Douglas, of Cramond in the City of Edinburgh (Life Peerage).

He married 24 August, 1974, the Hon (Priscilla) Susan Buchan, 1st daughter of the 2nd Baron Tweedsmuir, CBE, TD (1911-1996), and his wife the Baroness Tweedsmuir of Belhelvie (life peer) (she died 11 March, 1978); by whom he had issue, four sons, (1) (John) Andrew (born 1978), (2) the Hon Charles Douglas (born 1979), (3) the Hon James Robert (born 1981), and (4) the Hon Harry Alexander (born 1991). The Earldom of Selkirk now devolves upon his eldest son, John Andrew, styled Lord Daer and Shortcleuch (who was born 8 Feb, 1978).

-=-

William Richard Inge Crewdson 1932-2023

 William Richard Inge Crewdson, who died 23 November, 2023, aged 91, was a scion of that landed gentry family.

He was born in 1932 son of Brigadier Henry Alastair Fergusson Crewdson (1897-1987), and his first wife the former Caroline Mary Inge (1905-1989), scion of that landed gentry family; and married in 1959, Geraldine Sarah Hayward, daughter of Gerald Hayward, MBE, of Athens, by whom he had issue, two sons, William (born 1960), and Philip (born 1962), and a daughter, Katharine (born 1962).

-=-

Egerton/Littleboy engagement

 The engagement was announced 29 November, 2023, between Harry Christopher Egerton (born 10 August, 1984), scion of the Egerton landed family of Mountfield, son of Mark Philip Egerton (born 23 September, 1947), of North Yorkshire, and his wife the former Cara Marilyn Farnes, & Alice Polveir Littleboy (born 1990), scion of that landed family, daughter of Peregrine Aldan Eldon Littleboy (born 1961), of Cambridgeshire, and his former wife the former (Mary) Louise Benson (now Ferrand), of North Yorkshire.

-=-

The Dowager Baroness Westbury, CBE 1924-2023

The Dowager Baroness Westbury, CBE, who has died aged 99, was a former Superintendent-in-chief of the St John's Ambulance Brigade, and widow of the 5th Baron Westbury, CBE, DL.

She was born Ursula Mary-Rose James, 6 May, 1924, scion of the Barons Northbourne, daughter of the Hon Robert James (1873-1960), and his second wife the former Lady Serena Mary Barbara Lumley (1901-2000), only child of the 10th Earl of Scarbrough, KG, GBE, KCB, TD (1857-1945); and she married 21 October, 1947, Capt the Hon David Alan Bethell, Scots Guards (born 16 July, 1922), ADC to HRH The Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (1900-74).

Her husband was the second son of the Hon Richard Bethell (1883-1929), and his wife the former Evelyn Lucia Millicent Hutton (1884-1956). David's father, a keen Egyptologist who was with Howard Carter at the opening of Tutankhamen's tomb in 1922. Those who believed in the "curse" which attended people who disturbed the tombs of the Pharaohs were interested to note that Richard Bethell died seven years later, and that three months after that his father - the 3rd Baron Westbury - also died suddenly. David's elder brother, Richard (born 9 Oct, 1914), succeeded as the fourth Baron Westbury, and died 26 June, 1961, when David succeeded to the peerage (created in 1861).

In 1990 Ursula (Lady Westbury from 1961), was appointed CBE for her work as superintendent-in-chief of the St John's Ambulance Brigade. The family home from 1952 was Knapton Hall, near Malton, North Yorkshire, where her husband was Master of Foxhounds. The 5th Baron Westbury was appointed public relations officer for Moet et Chandon in Britain, a job at which he excelled; no one seemed to mind that he referred to his boss as "Le Petit Grenouille". He also handled the PR for several London hotels - the Ritz, the Stafford and Dukes - for 10 years.

Lord Westbury was active in the House of Lords and was disappointed to be, as he put it, "ethnically cleansed" from the Upper House as a result of the reforms in 1999. But his main interest in later life was as a highly successful charity fund raiser. He helped to raise more than £10 million for various charities, among them St John Ambulance - for whom he was director of fund-raising - the Army Benevolent Fund, the Griffin Trust and Toynbee Hall. For this work he was appointed CBE in 1994.

She was widowed 12 Oct, 2001. Lady Westbury lraves issue, two sons, Maj Richard Nicholas Bethell, 6th Baron Westbury, MBE (born 29 May, 1950), and the Hon James David William Bethell (born 22 Feb, 1952), and a daughter, the Hon Celia Mary Holliday (born 5 March, 1955).

-=-

Aria Evelyn Knatchbull Cooke (born 2023)

 Kelly Louise Doreen Cooke (nee Knatchbull), wife of Alexander Leon Geldard Cooke (born at Leeds, West Yorkshire, circa Dec. 1984), gave birth to a daughter, Aria Evelyn Knatchbull Cooke, circa November, 2023.

Alexander is a son of Stephen N. Cooke and his wife the former Dianne Dixon.

Kelly [born 30 March, 1988], is a scion of the Earls Mountbatten of Burma, the daughter of the Hon Michael-John Ulick Knatchbull [born 24 May, 1950], and his first wife the former Melissa Clare Owen [born 12 November, 1960], daughter of His Honour Sir John Owen [1925-2010].

Kelly Knatchbull, named in honour of her great-grandfather's ship, HMS Kelly, is a goddaughter of HRH The Princess Royal, and is is the granddaughter of the late [2nd] Countess Mountbatten of Burma [1924-2017], and the 7th Baron Brabourne [1924-2005]. Kelly's father is a second cousin of HM The King.

See: Royal Musings (royalmusingsblogspotcom.blogspot.com)

-==-

Lady Arbuthnot 1919-2023

 Lady Arbuthnot, who died 13 November, 2023, aged 104, was the widow of Sir John Arbuthnot, 1st Baronet.

The former Margaret Jean Duff was born 29 September, 1919, scion of that landed gentry family, daughter of Alexander Gordon Duff (1884-1978), and his wife the former Janet Macfie Blaikie (1879-1972); and married 3 July, 1943, Maj John Sinclair-Wemyss Arbuthnot, MBE, TD (born 11 Feb, 1912), Conservative MP for Dover 1950-64,  and Parliamentary Private Secretary for the Minister of Pensions from 1952 to 1955 and for the Minister of Health from 1956 to 1957, a member of the Public Accounts Committee from 1955 to 1964. He also served as Second Church Estates Commissioner, the spokesman for the Church of England in the House of Commons, and as a Deputy Speaker. Arbuthnot was created a baronet in 1964 (one of the last to be created), and he died 13 June, 1992.

Lady Arbuthnot was the mother of two sons, Sir William, 2nd Bt (1950-2021), and James, Baron Arbuthnot of Edrom (life peer, former Conservative politician) (born 4 Aug, 1952), and three daughters, Elizabeth (born 1947), Louise (born 1954), and Alison (born 1957).

-=-

The 8th Earl Castle Stewart 1928-2023

 The 8th Earl Castle Stewart died 21 November, 2023, aged 95.

Arthur Patrick Avondale Stewart was the 8th Earl in the Peerage of Ireland (created in 1800), also Viscount Stuart (1793), Baron (1619), and a baronet (created 1628). The Old Etonian was commissioned into the Scots Guards in 1949. His home was Stuart Hall, Stewartstown, County Tyrone.

He was born 18 August, 1928, the third son of the 7th Earl Castle Stewart, MC (1889-1961), and his wife the former Eleanor May Guggenheim (died 1992), daughter of Solomon Robert Guggenheim (1861-1949), of Trillora Court, Port Washington, Long Island, USA, the wealthy businessman and art collector, best known for establishing the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City. 

The 8th Earl's elder brothers were David, Viscount Stuart, killed in action in Egypt in 1942 aged 21, and Robert, also styled Viscount Stuart, who died in Italy in 1944, aged 20, from wounds received in action.

Arthur Stuart was styled Viscount Stuart from 1944 until his father's death, 5 November, 1961, when he succeeded to the earldom.

The 8th Earl was twice married, firstly, 20 Dec, 1952, to Edna Fowler (born circa 1920, died 5 July, 2003), daughter of William Edward Fowler, of Harborne, Birmingham, by whom he had one son and one daughter; married 2ndly, 10 Nov, 2004, as her third husband, Mrs Gillian Fitzwilliams (nee Savill, born 16 Aug, 1938).

Lord Castle Stewart leaves a son, Andrew Richard Charles Stewart, styled Viscount Stuart (born 7 Oct, 1953), who now succeeds as 9th Earl Castle Stewart, and a daughter, Lady Bridget Wadey (born 12 Feb, 1957).

-=-

Judd/Henderson engagement

 The engagement was announced 25 November, 2023, between George William Judd (born 2 January, 1994), younger son of (George) Nicholas Judd (born 1964), of Kersey, Suffolk, and his wife the former Philippa Fiona Wilmoth (born 1967), & Atalanta Mary Rose Henderson (born 5 July, 1994), scion of the Barons Faringdon, eldest daughter of James Brodie Henderson (born 30 Dec, 1964), of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and his former wife the former Alexandra Fisher (born 1965), of Wandsworth, London.

-=-

Major General Thomas Anthony Boam, CB, CBE 1932-2023

Major General Thomas Anthony Boam, CB, CBE, died 20 November, 2023, aged 91.

He was born 14 February, 1932, son of Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Sydney Boam, OBE (1905-1979), of Tadworth, Surrey, of the Royal Leicesteshire Regiment, and his wife the former Nancy Mabel Philips (1906-1986); and married 18 March, 1961, Penelope Christine Mary Roberts (1937-2016), daughter of Cyril Alfred Roberts (1908-1988), and his wife the former Christine  Annabel Kitson (1908-1996), a granddaughter of the 1st Baron Airedale (1835-1911); by whom he had issue, a son, Thomas (born 15 June, 1964), and two daughters, Caroline (born 20 May, 1962), and Katharine (born 19 June, 1968).

-=-

Hon Michael Charles Johnston 1942-2023

 The Hon Michael Charles Johnston, who died 16 November, 2023, aged 81, was a son of the life peer the Baron Johnston of Rockport (1915-2002) and his 1st wife the former Audrey Boyes Monk (who died 1999); and married in 1972, Victoria Moreton White (who died in 2018), by whom he had two sons, Nicholas and Benjamin.

His father Charles Johnston was a Conservative politician and businessman.

-=-

Hon Richard Thomas Godber, MBE, DL 1938-2023

The Hon Richard Thomas Godber, who died 18 November, 2023, aged 85, was a son of the life peer the Baron Godber of Willington, PC (1914-1980), and his wife the former Miriam Sanders (1910-1996).

He married 1962, Candida Mary Parrish, by whom he had a son, James, and two daughters, Amanda and Victoria.

 His father, Joseph Godber, was the Member of Parliament for Grantham from 1951 to 1979 and held ministerial posts in the governments of Harold Macmillan, Sir Alec Douglas-Home, and Edward Heath.

-=-

Baroness Russell of Killowen 1929-2023

 The Baroness Russell of Killowen, who died 16 November, 2023, aged 94, was the second wife and widow of the life peer the Baron Russell of Killowen, PC (1908-1986).

She was the former Elizabeth Cecilia Macneece Foster, daughter of Air-Vijce Marshal William Macneece Foster, CB, CBE, DSO, DFC (1889-1978), and his wife the former Jean Bruce (1905-1982), a descendant of the Viscounts later Earls of Stair; and married 1stly, 1952, Edward Hay Laughton-Scott (1926-1978); and married 2ndly, 1979, as his second wife, the Lord Russell of Killowen, PC (born 12 January, 1908), son of Francis Xavier Joseph Russell, also a life peer as Baron Russell of Killowen, PC (1867-1946), a Lord Justice of Appeal, and his wife the Hon Mary Emily Ritchie (1870-1956), daughter of the 1st Baron Ritchie of Dundee (1838-1906), &c. Her husband, a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary, from 1975 to 1982, died 23 June, 1986.

-=-

The Baron Walker of Gestingthorpe, GBS, PC 1938-2023

 Lord Walker of Gestingthorpe, GBS, PC, who died 16 November, 2023, aged 85, was a former judge and justice of the Supreme Court.

Robert Walker was born 17 March, 1938. The barrister was appointed  a High Court Judge in the Chancery Division in 1994, and as is customary was then made a Knight Bachelor, before appointment as a Lord Justice of Appeal in 1997. He succeeded Lord Slynn of Hadley GBE as a Lord of Appeal in Ordinary in 2002 and was created a Life Peer as Baron Walker of Gestingthorpe, of Gestingthorpe in the County of Essex. He and nine other Lords of Appeal in Ordinary became Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom upon its inauguration on 1 October 2009. He sat as a crossbench peer in the Lords until his retirement from the upper house in 2021.

He served as a Non-Permanent Judge of the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal between 2009 and 2023.

-=-

Furness/Nazarian engagement

 The engagement was announced 23 November, 2023, between Christopher John W. Furness (born 1990), scion of the Furness baronets,  son of John Wilson Furness (born 7 October, 1952), of Kirby Knowle, North Yorkshire, and his wife the former Grania Patricia Jane Booth (born 11 March, 1956), scion of that landed gentry family, & Stefeni J. Nazarian, daughter of Mr and Mrs Edmond Nazarian, of Hampstead, London.

-=-

Lorne Robin Stormonth Darling 1963-2023

 Lorne Robin Stormonth Darling, who died 16 November, 2023, aged 60, was a scion of that Scottish landed gentry family, who married the actress Honeysuckle Weeks.

He was born 21 July, 1963, the second son of Robin Andrew Stormonth Darling (1926-2009), and the first of his three wives, Susan Marion Clifford-Turner (1937-2020); and married 14 July, 2007, Honeysuckle Hero Susan Weeks, (born 1 Aug, 1979), the actress, daughter of Robin Loring Weeks (born 1957), and his wife the former Susan Eileen Wade (born 1957); by whom he had issue, a son, Wade Mycroft (who was born 9 Aug, 2011).

-=-