Lord Rupert Charles Montecute Nevill (29 January 1923 – 19 July 1982) was Chairman of the

British Olympic Association The British Olympic Association (BOA; ) is the National Olympic Committee for the United Kingdom. It represents the four constituent countries of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), but also incorporate represen ...

from 1966 to 1977 and then its President until his death. As a

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the officia ...

, he was treasurer and later private secretary to

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

, between 1970 and 1982. He was a close confidant, friend and associate to

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. ...

and the Duke of Edinburgh.

Early life

Nevill was born on 29 January 1923, the younger son of Guy Larnach-Nevill, 4th Marquess of Abergavenny, and his wife Isabel Nellie LarnachSusan Morris
"Abergavenny, Marquess of"
'' Debrett's Peerage 2019 (Debrett's, 2020), pp. 78–81 and was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

Career

During the Second World War, Lord Rupert Nevill gained the rank of captain in the Life Guards. He served as aide-de-camp to Lieutenant-General

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 ...

Brian Horrocks Lieutenant-General Sir Brian Gwynne Horrocks, (7 September 1895 – 4 January 1985) was a British Army officer, chiefly remembered as the commander of XXX Corps in Operation Market Garden and other operations during the Second World ...

during the allied advance in 1945 and continued as aide-de-camp after the war until 1947. Nevill served as Chairman of the

from 1966 to 1977 and as its President from 1977 until his death in 1982, being succeeded in this role by

Anne, Princess Royal Anne, Princess Royal (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise; born 15 August 1950) is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the only sister of King ...

. He was President of the British Show Jumping Association between 1973 and 1976. Nevill was also President of the Metropolitan Union of the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...

from 1956, a member of the World Council of the YMCA from 1956, vice-chairman of the National YMCA 1963-1966, and president from 1966. He was president of the East Grinstead and Uckfield branch of the

RSPCA The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales which promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest a ...

. He was also an ardent defender of

fox hunting Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase and, if caught, the killing of a fox, normally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds. A group of unarmed followers, led by a "master of foxhounds" (or "master of hounds" ...

and member of the Eridge Hunt. In 1959, he resigned after a decision by the branch to offer a free service for gassing foxes by a qualified pest controller. The Council of the RSPCA responded by claiming the decision of the branch had not been made with any authority or prior consultation. He was a member of the Uckfield Rural District Council (1949–1967) and of

East Sussex County Council East Sussex County Council is the upper tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of East Sussex in England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county; the latter additionally includes Brighton and Hove. East ...

(1954–1967), a Justice of the Peace of

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

from 1953, and a Deputy Lieutenant of Sussex from 1960. He was

High Sheriff of Sussex The office of Sheriff of Sussex was established before the Norman Conquest. The Office of sheriff remained first in precedence in the counties until the reign of Edward VII when an Order in Council in 1908 gave the Lord-Lieutenant the prime office ...

for 1952–1953. He was a member of the Sussex St John's Council from 1952 and chairman from 1966. Nevill was treasurer to the

from 1970 to 1982 and his private secretary from 1976 to 1982. He was one of the godfathers of

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. ...

’s son

David Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon David Albert Charles Armstrong-Jones, 2nd Earl of Snowdon (born 3 November 1961), styled as Viscount Linley until 2017 and known professionally as David Linley, is a member of the extended British royal family, an English furniture maker, and h ...

Personal life

On 22 April 1944, Nevill married Lady Anne Camilla Evelyn "Micky" Wallop (12 July 1925 – 25 January 2023; aged 97) a daughter of Gerard Vernon Wallop, 9th Earl of Portsmouth and Mary Lawrence Post. Both Nevill and his wife were childhood friends of

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. ...

. They lived at Horsted Place and were sometimes referred to at

court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

as ‘the little people’ because of their small stature. The Nevills had four children: * Guy Rupert Gerard Nevill (29 March 1945 – 5 February 1993; aged 47), godson of Elizabeth II; he married Lady Beatrix Mary Lambton, daughter of

Antony Lambton Antony Claud Frederick Lambton (10 July 1922 – 30 December 2006), also known as Lord Lambton or Tony Lambton, was a British aristocrat who served as a Conservative Member of Parliament from 1951 to 1973. Styled as Viscount Lambton from 1941 t ...

, 6th Earl of Durham. * Lady Angela Isabel Mary Nevill (born 2 January 1948), a bridesmaid at the

wedding of Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones The wedding of Princess Margaret and Antony Armstrong-Jones took place on Friday, 6 May 1960 at Westminster Abbey in London. Princess Margaret was the younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II, while Antony Armstrong-Jones was a noted society photog ...

; married William Keating (died 4 November 1998) on 12 March 1994. * Christopher George Charles Nevill, 6th Marquess of Abergavenny (born 23 April 1955), married Venetia V. Maynard and had twins. * Lady Henrietta Emily Charlotte Nevill (born 21 June 1964), goddaughter of

; married Lt. Col. Timothy Purbrick. They have four children. Lord Rupert Nevill died on 19 July 1982, aged 59. A memorial service was held at St Margaret's Westminster, and he was buried at Holy Trinity Church, Eridge.

Honours

He was vested as a Knight of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem (K.St.J.) in 1972, and he was appointed a Commander 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 ...

(C.V.O.) in 1978.Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 106th edition, 2 volumes. Crans, Switzerland: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 1999

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nevill, Lord Rupert 1923 births 1982 deaths British Army personnel of World War II British Life Guards officers Burials in East Sussex Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Deputy lieutenants of Sussex English justices of the peace Heirs presumptive High sheriffs of Sussex Knights of the Order of St John Rupert People educated at Eton College RSPCA workers YMCA leaders Younger sons of marquesses