Sir Giles Rolls Loder, 3rd Baronet DL (1914–1999) was an English aristocrat, World War II veteran, public official, horticulturalist and yachtsman.

Biography

Early life

Giles Rolls Loder was born on 10 November 1914 in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, England.The Peerage: Sir Giles Rolls Loder, 3rd Bt.
/ref>
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publishe ...

'', 22 March 1999 His father was Robert Egerton Loder (1887–1917) and his mother, Muriel Rolls Hoare (1879–1955). His paternal grandfather was

Sir Edmund Giles Loder, 2nd Baronet Sir Edmund Giles Loder, 2nd Baronet (7 August 1849 – 14 April 1920) was an English aristocrat, landowner and plantsman. Biography Early life Edmund Giles Loder was born on 7 August 1849 in London, England. His father was Sir Robert Loder, 1st B ...

(1849–1920) and his paternal great-grandfather was

Sir Robert Loder, 1st Baronet Sir Robert Loder, 1st Baronet, DL, JP (7 August 1823 – May 1888) was an English landowner, magistrate and Conservative politician. Biography Early life Robert Loder was born on 7 August 1823 in Saint Petersburg, Russia. His father was Giles ...

(1823–1888). He graduated from

Eton College Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...

, a private boarding school in

Eton, Berkshire Eton ( ) is a town in Berkshire, England, on the opposite bank of the River Thames to Windsor, connected to it by Windsor Bridge. The civil parish, which also includes the village of Eton Wick two miles west of the town, had a population of ...

, in 1936, and from

Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...

, a

constituent college A collegiate university is a university in which functions are divided between a central administration and a number of constituent colleges. Historically, the first collegiate university was the University of Paris and its first college was the C ...

of the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, in 1944.

Public service

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, he served in the Surrey and

Sussex Yeomanry The Sussex Yeomanry is a yeomanry regiment of the British Army dating from 1794. It was initially formed when there was a threat of French invasion during the Napoleonic Wars. After being reformed in the Second Boer War, it served in the First Wo ...

, and later worked with the

Vosper & Company Vosper & Company, often referred to simply as Vospers, was a British shipbuilding company based in Portsmouth, England. History The Company was established in 1871 by Herbert Edward Vosper, concentrating on ship repair and refitting work. By t ...

for the

British Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

. He later served as

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 ...

in 1948 and Justice of the Peace in 1949. He also served as Deputy Lieutenant of West Sussex in 1977.

Horticulture

He served as vice-president of

The Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nort ...

. He was a recipient of the

Victoria Medal of Honour The Victoria Medal of Honour (VMH) is awarded to British horticulturists resident in the United Kingdom whom the Royal Horticultural Society Council considers deserving of special honour by the Society. The award was established in 1897 "in per ...

for his horticultural prowess in 1968. At his family estate of

Leonardslee Leonardslee is an English country house and English landscape garden and woodland garden in Lower Beeding, near Horsham, West Sussex, England. The Grade I listed garden is particularly significant for its spring displays of rhododendrons, az ...

, he planted hundreds of varieties of

rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nativ ...

magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendro ...

s, and

camellia ''Camellia'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are more than 220 described species, with some controvers ...

s, and built two

greenhouse A greenhouse (also called a glasshouse, or, if with sufficient heating, a hothouse) is a structure with walls and roof made chiefly of transparent material, such as glass, in which plants requiring regulated climatic conditions are grown.These ...

s. He was elected President of Sussex Wildlife Trust on 21 October 1978 and remained in office until October 1983.

Yachting

An avid yachtsman, he was a member of the

Royal Yacht Squadron The Royal Yacht Squadron (RYS) is a British yacht club. Its clubhouse is Cowes Castle on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom. Member yachts are given the suffix RYS to their names, and are permitted (with the appropriate warrant) to w ...

. He took part in the

Cowes Week Cowes Week ( ) is one of the longest-running regular regattas in the world. With 40 daily sailing races, up to 1,000 boats, and 8,000 competitors ranging from Olympic and world-class professionals to weekend sailors, it is the largest sailin ...

, one of the longest-running regular regattas in the world, where he sometimes skippered on the Kaylena, a well-known yacht.

Personal life

On 11 July 1939, he married Marie Violet Pamela Symons-Jeune (unknown-2005), at St Margeret Church in Westminster, daughter of Captain

Bertram Symons-Jeune Bertram may refer to: Places * Bertram, Western Australia, a suburb of Perth, Australia *Bertram, Iowa, United States, a city * Bertram, Texas, United States, a city * Bertram Building, a historic building in Austin, Texas * Bertram Glacier, Palmer ...

, a famous garden designer. They had two sons: * Sir Edmund Jeune Loder, 4th Baronet (born 1941). He married (and later divorced) Penelope Jane Forde. They had a daughter: ** Gillian Marie Loder (born 1968). She married James D. P. Morgan. They had two children: *** Mathew Morgan (born 1995). *** Olivia Morgan (born 1996). * Robert Reginald Loder (born 1943). He married Quenelda Jane Royden, daughter of Sir John Ledward Royden, 4th Baronet (1907–1976). They had four children: ** Christopher Giles Loder (born 1968). ** Catherine Marie Violet Loder (born 1970). ** Peter Thomas Loder (born 1972). ** Mary Charlotte Loder (born 1972). They resided at Ockenden Manor, a

Grade II* In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...

-listed house in Cuckfield, West Sussex.British Listed Buildings: Ockenden House
/ref> He died on 24 February 1999.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Loder, Giles Rolls English botanists English gardeners English horticulturists 1914 births 1999 deaths Deputy Lieutenants of West Sussex High Sheriffs of Sussex Victoria Medal of Honour recipients Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Sailors from London People from Cuckfield People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge 20th-century British botanists