Donald Kaberry, Baron Kaberry of Adel, MC, TD (18 August 1907 – 13 March 1991), known as Sir Donald Kaberry, 1st Baronet, from 1960 to 1983, was a Conservative Party politician in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. He served as a

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 33 years and was later a life peer.

Biography

Donald Kaberry was the son of Abraham Kaberry. He was educated at

Leeds Grammar School Leeds Grammar School was an independent school founded 1552 in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Originally a male-only school, in August 2005 it merged with Leeds Girls' High School to form The Grammar School at Leeds. The two schools physicall ...

and became a solicitor (a partner in Ford and Warren, Leeds) and company director, becoming chairman of W.H. Baxter Ltd and E. Walker & Co Ltd. He served as a councillor on

Leeds City Council Leeds City Council is the local authority of the City of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It is a metropolitan district council, one of five in West Yorkshire and one of 36 in the metropolitan counties of England, and provides the majority of l ...

1930–50, except for his period of army service during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. He was eventually made an honorary Alderman of the City Council. He also served from 1974 as special trustee of the Leeds Teaching Hospitals and in 1976 was made a Deputy Lieutenant of the

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

metropolitan county. Kaberry enlisted in the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

and commanded a battery at Dunkirk, receiving a

Mention in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

. The citation at National Archives indicates that the decoration was a

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

for "... a courageous example of calm leadership to all ranks." After the war he was, as lieutenant-colonel, president of the military governing board at

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

. In 1947 he was awarded the

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer Officer's Decoration when the Te ...

(TD). Kaberry was

(MP) for Leeds North West from 1950 to 1983, preceding Dr. Keith Hampson. He was a member of the

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

's panel of chairmen in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

and an assistant government whip from 1952 to 1955 and parliamentary secretary at the Board of Trade 1955. He served as Conservative Party Vice-Chairman Organisation, 1955–61, and chairman of the Association of Conservative Clubs in 1961. During his time as vice-chairman, he was in position to receive a note from future British Prime Minister

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

following the birth of her twin children informing him that Thatcher was interested in a "return to active politics."

Personal life

He was created a baronet, of Adel cum Eccup in the City of Leeds, in 1960, and on his retirement from the House of Commons in 1983 he was made a life peer as Baron Kaberry of Adel, of Adel in the City of

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...

. Kaberry married in 1940 Lily, daughter of Edmund Scott of Morley, West Yorkshire, by whom he had three sons. Lord Kaberry of Adel was injured in the IRA bombing of London's

Carlton Club The Carlton Club is a private members' club in St James's, London. It was the original home of the Conservative Party before the creation of Conservative Central Office. Membership of the club is by nomination and election only. History The ...

in June 1990 and died in March 1991, aged 83. The life barony became extinct on his death while he was succeeded in the baronetcy by his son Christopher.

Legacy

Kaberry appears as a character in ''

The Long Walk to Finchley ''Margaret Thatcher: The Long Walk to Finchley'', subtitled in the initial credits ''How Maggie Might Have Done It'', is a 2008 BBC Four television drama based on the early political career of the young Margaret Thatcher (née Roberts), from her ...

'', on Margaret Thatcher's early career – he is played by

Oliver Ford Davies Oliver Robert Ford Davies (born 12 August 1939) is an English actor and writer, best known for his extensive theatre work, and to a broader audience for his role as Sio Bibble in ''Star Wars'' Episodes I to III. He is also known for his role ...

References

*''Times Guide to the House of Commons'', 1950, 1966 and 1979 * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaberry, Donald 1907 births 1991 deaths 20th-century British lawyers Assassinated English politicians Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom British Army personnel of World War II Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Kaberry of Adel Councillors in Leeds Deaths by improvised explosive device in England English solicitors English terrorism victims Ministers in the Eden government, 1955–1957 Parliamentary Secretaries to the Board of Trade People educated at Leeds Grammar School People killed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Artillery officers Terrorism deaths in England UK MPs 1950–1951 UK MPs 1951–1955 UK MPs 1955–1959 UK MPs 1959–1964 UK MPs 1964–1966 UK MPs 1966–1970 UK MPs 1970–1974 UK MPs 1974 UK MPs 1974–1979 UK MPs 1979–1983 20th-century English lawyers Life peers created by Elizabeth II