Sir George Peter Labouchere (2 December 1905 in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

– 14 June 1999 in Dudmaston Hall,

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

) was a British diplomat and collector of modern art.

Career

Labouchere was educated at

Charterhouse School Charterhouse is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Godalming, Surrey, England. Founded by Thomas Sutton in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian monastery in Charter ...

and the Sorbonne, and entered the Diplomatic Service in 1929. He was Deputy-Commissioner for

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

, 1951–53, Minister to Hungary 1953–55, Ambassador to Belgium 1955–60, and Ambassador to Spain 1960–66. He was a member of the Society of Dilettanti and was associated at various stages with the Tate Gallery,

, serving as president of the Friends of the Tate. He was an avid art collector, buying, at various stages, works by British artists including

Henry Moore Henry Spencer Moore (30 July 1898 – 31 August 1986) was an English artist. He is best known for his semi-abstract art, abstract monumental Bronze sculpture, bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art. Moore ...

, Barbara Hepworth, Lynn Chadwick and

Ben Nicholson Benjamin Lauder Nicholson, OM (10 April 1894 – 6 February 1982) was an English painter of abstract compositions (sometimes in low relief), landscapes, and still-life. He was one of the leading promoters of abstract art in England. Backg ...

. He also bought contemporary continental works, including Victor Vasarely, Antoni Tàpies, Pierre Soulages, Jean Dubuffet and

Max Ernst Max Ernst (; 2 April 1891 – 1 April 1976) was a German-born painter, sculptor, printmaker, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was a primary pioneer of the Dada movement and surrealism in Europe. He had no formal artistic trai ...

Family

Labouchere was a descendant of an old

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

merchant family exiled in the 17th century to England, which included prominent politicians such as Henry Labouchere, 1st Baron Taunton and Henry Du Pré Labouchere. His father was Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Anthony Labouchere, a banker and reserve officer, and his mother was Evelyn Stirling, only child of Sir Walter Stirling, 3rd Baronet of Faskine. His sister Lilah married Ailwyn Fellowes, 3rd Baron de Ramsey, a first cousin (once removed) of

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

. On 10 May 1943 he married Rachel Hamilton-Russell, granddaughter of the 8th Viscount Boyne. Dudmaston Hall, now run by the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

, was Rachel Hamilton-Russell's ancestral home, inherited from her maternal uncle Geoffrey Wolryche-Whitmore, and the couple settled there to restore it in their retirement. He was president of the Shropshire branch of the Council for the Protection of Rural England.

Honours

Labouchere was appointed in the 1951 New Year Honours, knighted KCMG in 1955 and given the additional, senior knighthood of GBE in the 1964 Birthday Honours.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Labouchere, George Peter 1905 births 1999 deaths People educated at Charterhouse School University of Paris alumni English art collectors English people of French descent Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Spain Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Belgium Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Hungary Fellows of the Royal Society of Arts