Captain Sir Alastair Sturgis Aird (14 January 1931 – 30 September 2009) was a British royal courtier.

Biography

Aird was the second son of Colonel Malcolm Henry Aird

O.B.E. The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(1899–1965), of the 9th Lancers, who, as son of Malcolm Rucker Aird, was a grandson of

Sir John Aird, 1st Baronet Sir John Aird, 1st Baronet (3 December 1833 – 6 January 1911) was an English civil engineering contractor of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He also served as Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for Paddington North from 1887 t ...

, and his wife Joan Meredith, ''née'' Sturgis. He was educated at

Lockers Park School Lockers Park School is a day and boarding preparatory and pre-preparatory school for boys, situated in 23 acres of countryside in Boxmoor, Hertfordshire. Its headmaster is Gavin Taylor. History Lockers Park was founded in 1872 by Henry Monta ...

in Hertfordshire,

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England *Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States *Éton, a commune in the Meuse depa ...

and the

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academy, military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial Commissioned officer, officer train ...

before joining The

9th Queen's Royal Lancers The 9th Queen's Royal Lancers was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1715. It saw service for three centuries, including the First and Second World Wars. The regiment survived the immediate post-war reduction in forces, ...

in 1951. From 1960 to 1964, he was a Temporary

Equerry An equerry (; from French language, French 'stable', and related to 'squire') is an officer of honour. Historically, it was a senior attendant with responsibilities for the horses of a person of rank. In contemporary use, it is a personal attend ...

to the

Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was al ...

and then her Assistant Private Secretary and Extra Equerry from 1964 to 1973, Comptroller from 1974 to 2002 and Private Secretary and Equerry from 1993 to 2002. After the Queen Mother's death in 2002, Sir Alastair was made an Extra Equerry to

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

in 2003. On 22 July 1963, he married Fiona Violet, Lady Aird (née Myddelton) LVO, who was an Extra

Lady-in-Waiting A lady-in-waiting (alternatively written lady in waiting) or court lady is a female personal assistant at a Royal court, court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking nobility, noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was o ...

Princess Margaret Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon (Margaret Rose; 21 August 1930 – 9 February 2002) was the younger daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. She was the younger sister and only sibling of Queen Elizabeth II. ...

from 1960 to 2002. The couple lived in

Dorset Dorset ( ; Archaism, archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north and the north-east, Hampshire to the east, t ...

and had two daughters. The elder, Caroline, is a god-child of

Honours

* He was appointed as a Member (4th Class) of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

(MVO) in the 1969 Queen's Birthday Honours List. * He was upgraded to Commander of the

(CVO) in the 1977 New Years Honours List.United Kingdom: * He received the UK Version of the

Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal () is a commemorative medal created in 1977 to mark the 25th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The medal is physically identical in all realms where it was awarded, save for Canada ...

in 1977. * He was upgraded to Knight Commander of the

(KCVO) in the 1984 Queen's Birthday Honours List. This allowed him to be called "

Sir ''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 "" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as part ...

Alastair Aird". * He was upgraded to Knight Grand Cross of the

(GCVO) in the 1997 New Years Honours List. * He received the UK Version of the

Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal () or the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2002 to mark the 50th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal was ...

in 2002.

References

External links

Sir Alastair Aird
- Daily Telegraph obituary {{DEFAULTSORT:Aird, Alastair 1931 births 2009 deaths 9th Queen's Royal Lancers officers Equerries Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order People educated at Eton College Graduates of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst 20th-century British Army personnel