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Edward FitzRoy

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The Right Honourable
Edward FitzRoy
JPDL
Speaker of the House of Commons
of the United Kingdom
In office
20 June 1928 – 3 March 1943
MonarchsGeorge V
Edward VIII
George VI
Prime MinisterStanley Baldwin
Ramsay MacDonald
Neville Chamberlain
Winston Churchill
Preceded byJohn Henry Whitley
Succeeded byDouglas Clifton Brown
Member of Parliament
forDaventry
In office
14 December 1918 – 3 March 1943
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byReginald Manningham-Buller
Member of Parliament
forSouth Northamptonshire
In office
15 January 1910 – 14 December 1918
Preceded byArchibald Grove
Succeeded byConstituency abolished
In office
24 October 1900 – 12 January 1906
Preceded byEdward Douglas-Pennant
Succeeded byArchibald Grove
Personal details
Born
Edward Algernon FitzRoy

(1869-07-24)24 July 1869
London,England[1]
Died3 March 1943(1943-03-03)(aged 73)
Westminster,London, England
Political partyConservative
SpouseViscountess Daventry

Edward Algernon FitzRoyJPDL(24 July 1869 – 3 March 1943) was a BritishConservativepolitician who served asSpeaker of the House of Commonsfrom 1928 until his death in 1943.[2]

Early life[edit]

FitzRoy was the second son of the3rd Baron Southamptonand his second wife, Ismania Catherine Nugent, a granddaughter ofSir Charles Jenkinson, 10th Baronet.He came from a family with a long line of public service and was a descendant ofCharles II'sillegitimate sonHenry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton.[3]Through ancestor Anne Warren, the daughter of AdmiralPeter Warren,he was a descendant of theSchuyler family,the Van Cortlandt family, and the Delancey family, all from British North America.[2][4]

His mother wasLady of the BedchambertoQueen Victoriaand young FitzRoy was aPage of Honourto the Queen.[2]

Political career[edit]

A member ofNorthamptonshire County Councilfrom 1896 to 1921, FitzRoy first entered Parliament in1900 general electionasMember of Parliament(MP) forNorthamptonshire South.[5]He was appointed adeputy lieutenantofNorthamptonshirein 1901.[6]He was re-elected during theJanuary 1910 general electionfor Northamptonshire South.[7]He held the seat in theDecember 1910 general election.[8]

DuringWorld War I,whilst still an MP, he served in theBritish Armyas a captain of the1st Regiment of Life Guards,was wounded at theFirst Battle of Ypresand commanded the mounted troops of theGuards Divisionfrom 1915–16.[2]

In the1918 general election,he was elected for the seat ofDaventry.[9]He held the seat in the1922,[10]1923,[11]1924,[12]1929,[13]1931and1935 general elections.[14]

He served as deputy chairman of theCommittee of Ways and Means,briefly during 1923 and from 1924 to 1928. He was made aPrivy CouncillorinFebruary 1924.[15]He was electedSpeaker of the House of Commonson 20 June 1928.[16]In 1931, he was awarded aDoctor of Lawsdegree from theUniversity of Cambridgeand an honoraryDoctor of Civil Lawdegree from theUniversity of Oxfordin 1934. In 1935, there was considerable controversy when theLabour Partydecided to stand a candidate against him in the general election. According toThe Times'obituary, "In addition to his former party Mr.Lloyd Georgeand the Liberal leaders came out strongly in defence of his position. Even on the lowest ground of party interest Labour made a grave mistake, for Captain FitzRoy was returned by a resounding majority. "[2]

Fitzroy died in office, aged 73 inWestminsterin 1943.[2]He was succeeded byDouglas Clifton-Brown.In 1983,LabourMP and thenFather of the HouseJohn Parkerpaid a humorous tribute to him: "I remember the first Speaker in my time, Captain Fitzroy. He was definitely a bit of a tartar. He disliked new young Members. When he was in the Chair, if someone spoke for too long he banged his hand on the side of his Chair. The longer the Member continued to speak, the more vigorously he hit the Chair. Everyone saw that except, unfortunately, the Member who was speaking, who was not deterred. Captain Fitzroy took a firm revenge and did not call that Member for a long time." Parker also reported, "Captain Fitzroy once told me that, as a descendant ofNell GwynandCharles II,the most embarrassing thing that he had had to do in the House was to announce theabdication of Edward VIII.He found that awkward and embarrassing ".[17]

Personal life[edit]

FitzRoy marriedMuriel Douglas-Pennanton 19 November 1891. She was appointed a CBE in 1918. Upon his death she was given a Viscountcy, the customary retirement honour for Speakers, asViscountess Daventry.

Fitzroy and Lady Daventry had four children:[18]

Arms[edit]

Fitzroy's arms, as displayed in Speaker's House[19]were the same as those of the Dukes of Grafton.

Coat of arms of Edward FitzRoy
Escutcheon
The Royal Arms of Charles II, viz. Quarterly: 1st and 4th, France and England quarterly; 2nd, Scotland; 3rd, Ireland; the whole debruised by a Baton sinister compony of six pieces Argent and Azure.

References[edit]

  1. ^1901 England Census
  2. ^abcdef"Right Hon. Edward FitzRoy".The Times.
  3. ^Rose, Kenneth (1894).King George V.Alfred A. Knopf. p. 369.ISBN978-0333372241.while standing only a few feet from the place where his own ancestor,Charles I,had been tried for his life and found guilty.
  4. ^Mosley, Charles,ed. (2003).Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knighthood(107 ed.). Burke's Peerage & Gentry. p. 3687.ISBN0-9711966-2-1.
  5. ^"No. 27244".The London Gazette.6 November 1900. p. 6772.
  6. ^"No. 27313".The London Gazette.14 May 1901. p. 3292.
  7. ^"No. 28338".The London Gazette.11 February 1910. p. 1034.
  8. ^"No. 28449".The London Gazette.23 December 1910. p. 9554.
  9. ^"No. 31147".The London Gazette.28 January 1919. p. 1361.
  10. ^"No. 32775".The London Gazette.8 December 1922. p. 8708.
  11. ^"No. 32897".The London Gazette.11 January 1924. p. 364.
  12. ^"No. 32996".The London Gazette.25 November 1924. p. 8530.
  13. ^"No. 33508".The London Gazette.21 June 1929. p. 4112.
  14. ^"No. 34223".The London Gazette.26 November 1935. p. 7502.
  15. ^"No. 32906".The London Gazette(Supplement). 8 February 1924. p. 1261.
  16. ^"Election of Speaker".Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).House of Commons. 20 June 1928. col. 1719–1728.
  17. ^"Mr. Speaker (Retirement) (Hansard, 12 May 1983)".Parliamentary Debates (Hansard).12 May 1983.Retrieved9 September2019.
  18. ^Mosley 2003,p. 1046
  19. ^"The Speaker's Chamber in the Palace of Westminster in the Houses of Parliament, London, Britain. | Workers' Photos Archive".workersphotos.photoshelter.Retrieved9 September2019.

External links[edit]

Court offices
Preceded by Page of Honour
1883–1886 		Succeeded by
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Member of Parliament
forNorthamptonshire South
1900–1906 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of Parliament
forNorthamptonshire South
1910–1918 		Constituency abolished
New constituency Member of Parliament
forDaventry
1918–1943 		Succeeded by
Preceded by DeputyChairman of Ways and Means
1924–1928 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Speaker of the House of Commons
1928–1943 		Succeeded by
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