Reginald Francis Orlando Bridgeman CMG, MVO (14 October 1884 – 11 December 1968) was a British diplomat and politician associated with a number of left wing causes including British-Soviet friendship and nuclear disarmament.

Background

Born 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 ...

, he was the oldest son of Brigadier Francis Bridgeman, son of

Orlando Bridgeman, 3rd Earl of Bradford Orlando George Charles Bridgeman, 3rd Earl of Bradford, PC, DL (24 April 1819 – 12 March 1898), styled Viscount Newport between 1825 and 1865, was a British courtier and Conservative politician. In a ministerial career spanning over thirty ...

, and his first wife Gertude Cecilia Hanbury, daughter of George Hanbury. He was educated at

Harrow School Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (school founder), John Lyon, a local landowner an ...

and 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 ...

Career

He was despatched as honorary attaché to

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

in 1903 and became a clerk in the

Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * United ...

already in the next year. In 1908, Bridgeman joined

Her Majesty's Diplomatic Service His Majesty's Diplomatic Service (HMDS) is the diplomatic service of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, dealing with foreign affairs and representing British interests overseas, as opposed to the Civil Service, which deals ...

and became third secretary at the embassy in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Bridgeman was promoted to second secretary three years later, was moved to

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

in 1916, but returned already in the following year. He became first secretary in 1918 and was transferred as chargè d'affaires to

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

in the next year. In 1920, Bridgeman was appointed counsellor of embassy at

Teheran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District. With a population of around 9.8 million in the city as of 2025, ...

. After a visit to

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

he left the service influenced by his experiences there and sympathised with the

Communist Party of Great Britain The Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) was the largest communist organisation in Britain and was founded in 1920 through a merger of several smaller Marxist groups. Many miners joined the CPGB in the 1926 general strike. In 1930, the CPGB ...

. From 1925, Bridgeman worked as secretary in the Chinese Information Bureau. He was head of the British delegation sent by the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

to the

League Against Imperialism The League Against Imperialism and Colonial Oppression (; ) was a transnational anti-imperialist organisation in the interwar period. It has also been referred to as the League of Oppressed People, and the World Anti-Imperialist League, or simp ...

(LAI) in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

in 1927 and became its secretary in 1933. He contested

Uxbridge Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon, northwest of Charing Cross. Uxbridge formed part of the parish of Hillingdon in the county of Middlesex. As part ...

for Labour in the 1929 general election, but was expelled from the party short time after, because of his membership in the LAI. After the League's dissolution, he was readmitted to Labour in 1938 and was adopted as Labour's prospective candidate for

Hendon Hendon is an urban area in the London Borough of Barnet, northwest London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient Manorialism, manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has ...

. Bridgeman was expelled again in 1941 and after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he joined the Britain-China Friendship Association. He was a member of the British-Soviet Friendship Society and sat in the

National Council for Civil Liberties Liberty, formerly, and still formally, called the National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL), is an advocacy group and membership organisation based in the United Kingdom, which challenges unjust laws, protects civil liberties and promotes huma ...

. In 1962, he was nominated vice-chairman of the Co-ordinating Committee for Nuclear Disarmament.

Family and legacy

In 1914, Bridgeman was awarded a Member 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 ...

and in 1917 a Companion of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

. On 4 June 1923, he married Olwen Elizabeth Jones, oldest daughter of Maurice Jones, and had by her four children, two sons and two daughters. Bridgeman died in 1968 and was buried at

Tong, Shropshire Tong is a village and civil parish in Shropshire, also bordering Staffordshire in England. It is located between the towns of Shifnal, Newport and Brewood. It is near junction 3 of the M54 motorway and A41 road. The population of the village w ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bridgeman, Reginald 1884 births 1968 deaths People educated at Harrow School Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Members of the Royal Victorian Order

Reginald Reginald is a masculine given name in the English language meaning "king". Etymology and history The name Reginald comes from Latin meaning "king" and "ruler" symbolizing authority and leadership. It comes from combining Latin “ rex” meaning ...