Sir Sydney Frank Markham (19 October 1897 – 13 October 1975) was a British politician who represented three constituencies, each on behalf of a different party, in

Parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

. He was elected as the Labour member for Chatham from 1929, and defected to the

National Labour Organisation The National Labour Organisation, also known simply as National Labour, was formed in 1931 by supporters of the National Government in Britain who had come from the Labour Party. Its leaders were Ramsay MacDonald (1931–1937) and his son Mal ...

by the 1931 election, at which he was returned as the member for Nottingham South. He served until his defeat in 1945. He then joined the Conservative Party, and was the MP for

Buckingham Buckingham ( ) is a market town in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which had a population of 12,890 at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 Census. The town lies approximately west of ...

from 1951 to 1964.

Background

Born in

Stony Stratford Stony Stratford is a market town in Buckinghamshire and a constituent town of Milton Keynes, England. It is located on Watling Street, historically the Roman road from London to Chester. It is also a civil parish with a town council in the Cit ...

, he left school at the age of fourteen. Following service in France, Greece and Mesopotamia during the

First World War 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 ...

, he was awarded a commission, and left the Army in 1921. He studied at

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street, Oxford, Broad Street and Parks Road ...

and then became an assistant to Sir Sidney Lee with his work on

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

. He later became Secretary, then President, of the

Museums Association The Museums Association (MA) is a professional membership organisation based in London for museum, gallery and heritage professionals and organisations of the United Kingdom. It also offers international membership. History The association w ...

Political career

Having fought

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, England, around south-west of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The nam ...

for Labour in

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 ...

, he was elected for that party at the 1929 general election as MP for Chatham, and defected with

Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British statesman and politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The first two of his governments belonged to the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, where he led ...

to become a National Labour MP just before standing down at the 1931 general election. It was under these colours that he was elected for Nottingham South in

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * January 12 – Amelia Earhart ...

. He lost this seat standing as a 'National Independent' in the 1945 general election, following the official dissolution of National Labour. At the 1950 general election, he stood as the Conservative candidate in the Buckingham constituency, but failed to unseat the sitting Labour Member of Parliament,

Aidan Crawley Aidan Merivale Crawley (10 April 1908 – 3 November 1993) was a British journalist, television executive and editor, and politician. He was a member of both of Britain's major political parties: the Labour Party and Conservative Party, and w ...

. However, at the 1951 general election, he beat Crawley by a majority of only 54 votes. He held the seat with narrow majorities at the 1955 election and at the 1959 election and stood down before the 1964 general election.

Personal life

In 1928, Markham married Frances Lawman from Newport Pagnel , and they had five children Three boys and two girls. He was conferred the honour of

Knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

by 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. ...

on 30 June 1953 in the

1953 Coronation Honours The 1953 Coronation Honours were appointments by Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours on the occasion of her coronation on 2 June 1953. The honours were published in '' The London Gazette'' on 1 June 1953.New Zealand list: The rec ...

. He was a Fellow of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

, the

Royal Meteorological Society The Royal Meteorological Society is an organization that promotes academic and public engagement in weather and climate science. Fellows of the Society must possess relevant qualifications, but Members can be lay enthusiasts. It publishes vari ...

and the

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

. In retirement, he was best noted for his ''A History of Milton Keynes and District'' (two volumes) (see

History of Milton Keynes This history of Milton Keynes details its development from the earliest human settlements, through the plans for a 'new city' for 250,000 people in northern Southeast England, its subsequent urban design and development, to the present day. Mil ...

). A secondary school in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire - now replaced - was named after him. He died at his home in

Leighton Buzzard Leighton Buzzard ( ) is a market town in Bedfordshire, England, in the southwest of the county and close to the Buckinghamshire border. It lies between Aylesbury, Tring, Luton/ Dunstable and Milton Keynes, near the Chiltern Hills. It is nor ...

, Bedfordshire, on 13 October 1975, and is buried in Calverton Road cemetery,

in Milton Keynes, along with his wife Frances.

References

UK General Elections since 1832
at Keele University *

External links

Frank Markham's headstone
*
The Monuments Men: Maj. S. F. Markham

national archives

National Portrait Gallery

Credited books in worldcat.org/identities

serving alongside John Worthington and Ralph Glyn {{DEFAULTSORT:Markham, Frank 1897 births 1975 deaths Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Knights Bachelor Labour Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies History of Milton Keynes National Labour (UK) politicians UK MPs 1929–1931 UK MPs 1935–1945 UK MPs 1951–1955 UK MPs 1955–1959 UK MPs 1959–1964 Parliamentary private secretaries to the prime minister 20th-century English historians British Army personnel of World War I