Edward Algernon FitzRoy (24 July 1869 – 3 March 1943) was a British

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

politician who served as

Speaker of the House of Commons Speaker of the House of Commons is a political leadership position found in countries that have a House of Commons, where the membership of the body elects a speaker to lead its proceedings. Systems that have such a position include: * Speaker of ...

from 1928 until his death in 1943.

Early life

FitzRoy was the second son of the 3rd Baron Southampton and his second wife, Ismania Catherine Nugent, a granddaughter of Sir Charles Jenkinson, 10th Baronet. He came from a family with a long line of public service and was a descendant of Charles II's illegitimate son

Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton (28 September 1663 – 9 October 1690) was an illegitimate son of King Charles II of England and his mistress Barbara Villiers. A military commander, Henry FitzRoy was appointed colonel of the Grenadier Guar ...

. Through ancestor Anne Warren, the daughter of Admiral Peter Warren, he was a descendant of the

Schuyler family The Schuyler family (Help:IPA/English, /ˈskaɪlər/; Dutch pronunciation: Help:IPA/Dutch, xœylər was a prominent Dutch family in New York and New Jersey in the 18th and 19th centuries, whose descendants played a critical role in the forma ...

, the Van Cortlandt family, and the Delancey family, all from British North America. His mother was

Lady of the Bedchamber Lady of the Bedchamber is the title of a lady-in-waiting holding the official position of personal attendant on a British queen regnant or queen consort. The position is traditionally held by the wife of a peer. A lady of the bedchamber would gi ...

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

and young FitzRoy was a

Page of Honour A Page of Honour is a ceremonial position in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. It requires attendance on state occasions, but does not now involve the daily duties which were once attached to the office of page. The only ...

to the Queen.

Political career

A member of

Northamptonshire County Council Northamptonshire County Council was the county council for Northamptonshire in England from 1889 to 2021. It was originally created in 1889, reformed in 1974, and abolished in 2021. The headquarters of the council was County Hall, Northampton, ...

from 1896 to 1921, FitzRoy first entered Parliament in 1900 general election as Member of Parliament (MP) for Northamptonshire South. He was appointed a deputy lieutenant of

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

in 1901. He was re-elected during the

January 1910 general election The January 1910 UK general election was held from 15 January to 10 February 1910. Called amid a constitutional crisis after the Conservative-dominated House of Lords rejected the People's Budget, the Liberal government, seeking a mandate, los ...

for Northamptonshire South. He held the seat in the December 1910 general election. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, whilst still an MP, he served in the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

as a captain of the

1st Regiment of Life Guards The 1st Regiment of Life Guards was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment in the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. It was formed in 1788 by the union of the 1st Troop of Horse Guards and 1st Troop of Horse Grenadi ...

, was wounded at the

First Battle of Ypres The First Battle of Ypres (, , – was a battle of the First World War, fought on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front around Ypres, in West Flanders, Belgium. The battle was part of the First Battle of Flanders, in which German A ...

and commanded the mounted troops of the

Guards Division The Guards Division was an administrative unit of the British Army responsible for the training and administration of the regiments of Foot Guards and the London Guards reserve battalion. The Guards Division was responsible for providing tw ...

from 1915–16. In the 1918 general election, he was elected for the seat of

Daventry Daventry ( , ) is a market town and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England, close to the border with Warwickshire. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census, Daventry had a populati ...

. He held the seat in the

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...

1923 In Greece, this year contained only 352 days as 13 days was skipped to achieve the calendrical switch from Julian to Gregorian Calendar. It happened there that Wednesday, 15 February ''(Julian Calendar)'' was followed by Thursday, 1 March ' ...

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20–January 30, 30 – Kuomintang in Ch ...

1929 This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholic ...

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

and 1935 general elections. He served as deputy chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means, briefly during 1923 and from 1924 to 1928. He was made a Privy Councillor in February 1924. He was elected

on 20 June 1928. In 1931, he was awarded a

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

degree from the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

and an honorary

Doctor of Civil Law Doctor of Civil Law (DCL; ) is a degree offered by some universities, such as the University of Oxford, instead of the more common Doctor of Laws (LLD) degrees. At Oxford, the degree is a higher doctorate usually awarded on the basis of except ...

degree from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

in 1934. In 1935, there was considerable controversy when the Labour Party decided to stand a candidate against him in the general election. According to ''The Times'' obituary, "In addition to his former party Mr.

Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. A Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, he was known for leadi ...

and the Liberal leaders came out strongly in defence of his position. Even on the lowest ground of party interest Labour made a grave mistake, for Captain FitzRoy was returned by a resounding majority." Fitzroy died in office, aged 73 in

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

in 1943. He was succeeded by Douglas Clifton-Brown. In 1983, Labour MP and then

Father of the House Father of the House is a title that has been traditionally bestowed, unofficially, on certain members of some legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the title refers to the longest continuously ...

John Parker paid a humorous tribute to him: "I remember the first Speaker in my time, Captain Fitzroy. He was definitely a bit of a tartar. He disliked new young Members. When he was in the Chair, if someone spoke for too long he banged his hand on the side of his Chair. The longer the Member continued to speak, the more vigorously he hit the Chair. Everyone saw that except, unfortunately, the Member who was speaking, who was not deterred. Captain Fitzroy took a firm revenge and did not call that Member for a long time." Parker also reported, "Captain Fitzroy once told me that, as a descendant of

Nell Gwyn Eleanor Gwyn (also spelled Gwynn, Gwynne; 2 February 1650 – 14 November 1687) was an English people, English stage actress and celebrity figure of the Stuart Restoration, Restoration period. Praised by Samuel Pepys for her comic performances ...

and Charles II, the most embarrassing thing that he had had to do in the House was to announce the

abdication of Edward VIII In early December 1936, a constitutional crisis in the British Empire arose when King Edward VIII proposed to marry Wallis Simpson, an American socialite who was divorced from her first husband and was in the process of divorcing her second. ...

. He found that awkward and embarrassing".

Personal life

FitzRoy married Muriel Douglas-Pennant on 19 November 1891. She was appointed a CBE in 1918. Upon his death she was given a Viscountcy, the customary retirement honour for Speakers, as Viscountess Daventry. Fitzroy and Lady Daventry had four children: *

Robert Oliver Fitzroy, 2nd Viscount Daventry The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, praise, reno ...

(10 January 1893 – 1986) * Hon. Nancy Jean Fitzroy (31 May 1894 – 23 November 1983) *

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Michael Algernon Fitzroy (27 June 1895 15 April 1915) *

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

Hon. John Maurice FitzRoy Newdegate (20 March 1897 – 7 May 1976), father of

Francis FitzRoy Newdegate, 3rd Viscount Daventry Francis Humphrey Maurice FitzRoy Newdegate, 3rd Viscount Daventry (17 December 1921 – 15 February 2000), was a British peer who was High Sheriff of Warwickshire during 1970 and Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire from 1990 to 1997. Biography Lord ...

Arms

Fitzroy's arms, as displayed in Speaker's House were the same as those of the Dukes of Grafton.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fitztoy, Edward 1869 births 1943 deaths Deputy lieutenants of Northamptonshire Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Pages of Honour British Army personnel of World War I British Life Guards officers Speakers of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1910 UK MPs 1910–1918 UK MPs 1918–1922 UK MPs 1922–1923 UK MPs 1923–1924 UK MPs 1924–1929 UK MPs 1929–1931 UK MPs 1931–1935 UK MPs 1935–1945 Younger sons of barons

Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

Schuyler family English people of Dutch descent People educated at Eton College Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Members of Northamptonshire County Council English justices of the peace National Council of Social Service presidents