David Guy Blomfield (11 July 1934 – 12 July 2016) was leader of the Liberal Party group on Richmond upon Thames Council, a writer, a book editor and a local historian.

Early life and education

David Blomfield was born in Camberley, Surrey. His parents were Valentine Blomfield, a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

officer, and his wife, Gladys (''née'' Lang), who had been a

Voluntary Aid Detachment The Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) was a voluntary unit of civilians providing nursing care for military personnel in the United Kingdom and various other countries in the British Empire. The most important periods of operation for these units we ...

nurse at Richmond's

Star and Garter Home The Royal Star and Garter Home on Richmond Hill, in Richmond, London, was built between 1921 and 1924 to a design by Sir Edwin Cooper, based on a plan produced by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in 1915, to provide accommodation and nursing facilitie ...

in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...

. His father's family was descended from the Anglican bishops

Charles James Blomfield Charles James Blomfield (29 May 1786 – 5 August 1857) was a British divine and classicist, and a Church of England bishop for 32 years. Early life and education Charles James Blomfield was born in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, the eldest son ...

and

Alfred Blomfield The Right Reverend Alfred Blomfield D.D. (31 August 18335 November 1894) was an Anglican bishop in the last decades of the 19th century. Alfred was the youngest son of Charles James Blomfield, Bishop of London, and brother of architect Art ...

and the architect Sir Reginald Blomfield. He was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire and served 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 the

Oxfordshire Yeomanry The Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars (QOOH) was a Yeomanry Cavalry regiment of the British Army's auxiliary forces, formed in 1798. It saw service in the Second Boer War with 40 and 59 Companies of the Imperial Yeomanry and was the first Yeomanry ...

. He studied classics at Hertford College, Oxford University and graduated in 1955.

Career

Blomfield worked in the condensed books department of ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his w ...

'' from 1959 to 1987 and subsequently became a freelance book editor. He was elected to represent Kew ward on Richmond upon Thames Council from 1971 to 1978 and then from 1979 to 1986. As leader of the Liberal group he was Leader of the Opposition on Richmond upon Thames Council in 1978. Blomfield, who researched, wrote and published books on the history of Kew, chaired the Richmond Local History Society from 2003 to 2013, edited its annual journal ''Richmond History'' and succeeded John Cloake in 2015 as the Society's President. He was also a patron of the

Kew Society Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is a ...

and a past chairman of the Orange Tree Theatre in Richmond.

Honours and awards

He was appointed

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in 2000.

Personal life

He lived in Kew, London with his wife Caroline, with whom he had three children (two sons and a daughter). He died on 12 July 2016, a day after celebrating his 82nd birthday.

Publications

Books

* Blomfield, David (ed.) (1992). ''Lahore to Lucknow: The Indian Mutiny Journal of Arthur Moffat Lang''. Pen & Sword Books Ltd. * Blomfield, David (1994), ''Kew Past''.

Chichester, Sussex Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...

: Phillimore & Co. Ltd. * * * * *

Articles

* * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blomfield, David 1934 births 2016 deaths Military personnel from Surrey Burials in England 20th-century English historians 21st-century English historians Alumni of Hertford College, Oxford Blomfield family Councillors in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames English book editors English military historians Historians of London Liberal Democrats (UK) councillors Liberal Party (UK) councillors Members of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire People from Camberley People from Kew, London Reader's Digest Royal Artillery personnel Churchwardens Ghostwriters