Walter John Montagu Douglas Scott, 8th Duke of Buccleuch and 10th Duke of Queensberry, (30 December 1894 – 4 October 1973) was a British peer and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

politician.

Early life and education

Walter John Montagu Douglas Scott was born on 30 December 1894 the son of

John Montagu Douglas Scott, 7th Duke of Buccleuch John Charles Montagu Douglas Scott, 7th Duke of Buccleuch and 9th Duke of Queensberry, (30 March 1864 – 19 October 1935), styled The Honourable John Montagu Douglas Scott until 1884, Lord John Montagu Douglas Scott between 1884 and 1886 ...

and Lady Margaret Alice "Molly" Bridgeman. His sister,

Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

, married Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (one of the paternal uncles of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

) in 1935, becoming a member of the British Royal Family. Montagu Douglas Scott was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniq ...

, and had a military career commanding the 4th

King's Own Scottish Borderers The King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSBs) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. On 28 March 2006 the regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Scots, the Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Margaret's O ...

. He was also Captain-General of the

Royal Company of Archers The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a per ...

Political activity

Earl of Dalkeith Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant " chieftain", particula ...

, Scott was Scottish Unionist Party

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

(MP) for Roxburghshire and Selkirkshire from 1923 until 1935, when he succeeded as Duke of Buccleuch and Duke of Queensberry. He was succeeded as MP for the constituency by his brother, Lord William Scott. According to Cowling, he met German ambassador

Joachim von Ribbentrop Ulrich Friedrich Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (; 30 April 1893 – 16 October 1946) was a German politician and diplomat who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1945. Ribbentrop first came to Adolf Hitler's not ...

in London. Seen as pro-German, he was compelled to 'resign' as

Lord Steward The Lord Steward or Lord Steward of the Household is an official of the Royal Household in England. He is always a peer. Until 1924, he was always a member of the Government. Until 1782, the office was one of considerable political importance a ...

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of In ...

. He had attended

Hitler's 50th birthday celebration The 50th birthday of Adolf Hitler on 20 April 1939 was celebrated as a national holiday throughout Nazi Germany. Minister of Propaganda Joseph Goebbels made sure the events organised in Berlin were a lavish spectacle focusing on Hitler. The ...

in 1939 and he opposed war with Germany; once war broke out, he campaigned for a truce which allowed Hitler to keep all his conquered territory. Scott inaugurated a racist campaign against workers in the

British Honduran Forestry Unit The British Honduran Forestry Unit (BHFU) was a civilian body of forestry workers who came from British Honduras to Scotland in two contingents to help support the war effort during the Second World War. 900 workers came, the first 500 arriving ...

who had come to

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

to help in the

war effort In politics and military planning, a war effort is a coordinated mobilization of society's resources—both industrial and human—towards the support of a military force. Depending on the militarization of the culture, the relative si ...

. He complained that not only were the workers lazy but was also concerned that some had married local women.

Harold Macmillan Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, (10 February 1894 – 29 December 1986) was a British Conservative statesman and politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1957 to 1963. Caricatured as " Supermac", ...

Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies The Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies was a junior Ministerial post in the United Kingdom government, subordinate to the Secretary of State for the Colonies and, from 1948, also to a Minister of State. Under-Secretaries of State for the ...

replied to his complaints suggesting that the problem was more the extreme cold the Hondurans encountered – quite different from their tropical homeland.

Personal life

He married Vreda Esther Mary Lascelles, granddaughter of

William Beauclerk, 10th Duke of St Albans William Amelius Aubrey de Vere Beauclerk, 10th Duke of St Albans, PC DL (15 April 1840 – 10 May 1898), styled Earl of Burford until 1849, was a British Liberal parliamentarian of the Victorian era. The Duke served in William Gladstone's ...

, on 21 April 1921. They had three children, sixteen grandchildren, forty-four great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren: * Lady Elizabeth Diana Montagu Douglas Scott (20 January 1922 – 19 September 2012) she married Hugh Percy, 10th Duke of Northumberland on 12 June 1946. They have seven children and seventeen grandchildren. * Walter Francis John Montagu Douglas Scott, 9th Duke of Buccleuch (28 September 1923 – 4 September 2007) he married Jane McNeill on 10 January 1953. They have four children, ten grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. *Lady Caroline Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott (7 November 1927 – 17 October 2004) she married Sir

Ian Gilmour Ian Hedworth John Little Gilmour, Baron Gilmour of Craigmillar, (8 July 1926 – 21 September 2007) was a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. He was styled Sir Ian Gilmour, 3rd Baronet from 1977, having succeeded to his fat ...

, 3rd Baronet on 10 July 1951. They have five children- including Sir David Robert Gilmour, 4th Bt- and seventeen grandchildren. He died on 4 October 1973 and was buried among the ruins of

Melrose Abbey St Mary's Abbey, Melrose is a partly ruined monastery of the Cistercian order in Melrose, Roxburghshire, in the Scottish Borders. It was founded in 1136 by Cistercian monks at the request of King David I of Scotland and was the chief house of th ...

Ancestry

Sources

Maurice Cowling Maurice John Cowling (6 September 1926 – 24 August 2005) was a British historian and a Fellow of Peterhouse, Cambridge. Early life Cowling was born in West Norwood, South London, son of Reginald Frederick Cowling (1901–1962), a patent agen ...

, ''The Impact of Hitler - British Politics & Policy 1933–1940'',

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambridge University Pr ...

, 1975, p. 403,

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Buccleuch, Walter Montagu-Douglas-Scott, 8th Duke of 1894 births 1973 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford King's Own Scottish Borderers officers 110 208 Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Knights of the Thistle Lord-Lieutenants of Roxburghshire Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Dalkeith, Walter Montagu-Douglas-Scott, Earl of Dalkeith, Walter Montagu-Douglas-Scott, Earl of Dalkeith, Walter Montagu-Douglas-Scott, Earl of Dalkeith, Walter Montagu-Douglas-Scott, Earl of Dalkeith, Walter Montagu-Douglas-Scott, Earl of Dalkeith, Walter Montagu-Douglas-Scott, Earl of Buccleuch, D8 W Members of the Royal Company of Archers Scottish landowners Burials at Melrose Abbey 20th-century Scottish businesspeople