The Bonham Baronetcy, of

Malmesbury Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the upp ...

in the

County of Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

is a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 27 November 1852 for the colonial administrator

George Bonham Sir Samuel George Bonham, 1st Baronet (Chinese Translated Name 般咸, 文咸 or 文翰) (7 September 1803 – 8 October 1863) was a British colonial governor, who became the 4th Governor of the Straits Settlements and the 3rd Governor of Hong ...

. He was

Governor of Hong Kong The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the British Crown in Hong Kong from 1843 to 1997. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council and commander-in-chief of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kong. ...

from 1848 to 1854. He was succeeded by his son, the second Baronet. He was a diplomat and served as Envoy Extraordinary and

Minister Plenipotentiary An envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, usually known as a minister, was a diplomatic head of mission who was ranked below ambassador. A diplomatic mission headed by an envoy was known as a legation rather than an embassy. Under the ...

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

between 1900 and 1903 and to Switzerland between 1905 and 1909. His eldest surviving son, the third Baronet, was a Major in the

Scots Greys The Royal Scots Greys was a cavalry regiment of the British Army from 1707 until 1971, when they amalgamated with the 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Wales's Dragoon Guards) to form the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards. The regiment's history began in 167 ...

and also held several offices within the Royal Household. His son, the fourth Baronet, who succeeded in 1937, was also a Major in the Scots Greys and served as a deputy lieutenant of

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

. He died in 2009 and was succeeded by his eldest son, who currently serves as Clerk to the

Worshipful Company of Firefighters The Worshipful Company of Firefighters is one of the 110 livery companies of the City of London. The Company's aim is to promote the development and advancement of the science, art and the practice of firefighting, fire prevention and life safe ...

Bonham, of Malmesbury, baronets (1852)

Sir Samuel George Bonham ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...

, KCB, 1st Baronet (1803–1863) * Sir George Francis Bonham, 2nd Baronet (1847–1927) *Sir Eric Henry Bonham, CVO, 3rd Baronet (1875–1937) *Sir Antony Lionel Thomas Bonham, 4th Baronet (1916–2009) *Sir George Martin Anthony Bonham, 5th Baronet (born 1945) The

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

to the baronetcy is Michael Francis Bonham (born 1980), only son of the 5th Baronet.

References

{{reflist Bonham