Sir Philip John William Miles, 2nd Baronet (2 September 1825 – 5 June 1888) was an English politician. 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 ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

, he then served in the

17th Lancers The 17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1759 and notable for its participation in the Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War. The regim ...

. He was a sheriff of Bristol in 1853 and partner in the family's bank, Miles & Co, from 1852 to 1854. He sat as Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for East Somerset from 1878 to 1885 and was a member of the

Carlton Club The Carlton Club is a private members' club in the St James's area of London, England. It was the original home of the Conservative Party before the creation of Conservative Central Office. Membership of the club is by nomination and elect ...

and the

Army and Navy Club The Army and Navy Club, commonly known as The Rag, is a private members' club in London that was founded in 1837 for officers of the British Army, the Royal Navy and the Royal Marines.baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

cy of Leigh Court, Somerset, from his father

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

, who had previously been Conservative MP for East Somerset along, with estates in Somerset. He had his own estate in County Kerry, Ireland. He was cousin of Philip Napier Miles,

Frank Miles George Francis Miles (22 April 1852 – 15 July 1891) was a London-based British artist who specialised in pastel portraits of society ladies, also an architect and a keen plantsman. He was the artist in chief of the magazine ''Life (magazine), ...

and Katharine Tennant. He supported an amendment to the Representation of the People Act 1884 and the Franchise Bill debated earlier that year, that would have allowed votes for women who were householders on equal terms with men. The vote was defeated and women finally received the vote in the UK in 1918. In 1848, he married Frances Roche (1827–1908), daughter of Sir David Roche, Bt, Roche baronets, MP for Limerick. Frances was a renowned society beauty nicknamed the "Venus of Miles" in reference to the classical sculpture the

Venus de Milo The ''Venus de Milo'' or ''Aphrodite of Melos'' is an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek marble sculpture that was created during the Hellenistic art, Hellenistic period. Its exact dating is uncertain, but the modern consensus places it in the 2nd ...

. She attracted a number of admirers including Charles Manners, 6th Duke of Rutland who scandalised society by leaving his 120-foot yacht, Lufra, to her in his will. They had the following children: * Alice Catherine Miles (1850–1926), who married firstly in 1870 George Duppa, JP (1819–1888), and secondly in 1889 Lt Col Gerard Vivian Ames, 1st The Royal Dragoons (1853–1899), having six children between the two marriages. * William John Miles (1852–1859). * Edith Clara Miles (1854–1934), who in 1875 married Charles William Mansel Lewis (1849–1931) of Stradey Castle, Llanelli, Deputy Lieutenant and High Sheriff of Carmarthen, and had a son and a daughter. :de:Mansel Lewis * Mabel Constance Miles (1856–1944), who married Casamajor William Gaussen (chief guest at the wedding was the Prince of Wales, later

King Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...

, a friend and shooting companion of Sir Philip Miles), and had issue. * Violet Bessie Miles (1867–1883). * Sir Cecil Miles, 3rd Baronet (1873–1898), who married Minnie Spire in 1896 but had no children. His widow subsequently married Frederick Hilton Gibbes in 1904. He died of acute laryngitis at his London house, 75 Cornwall Gardens, Kensington, SW, and was succeeded by his son, Cecil, in 1888. His widow subsequently married an American from St Louis, Missouri, Dr John Nicholls, in 1904 and they lived at Maidenhead, Berkshire, and she died in 1908.

References

External links

*
ThePeerage.com
* The diary of Alice Miles was discovered in the 1980s amongst Duppa family papers and published in 1993 in edited form and with commentary, as "Every Girl's Duty: The Diary of a Victorian Debutante". * ''The Times'', report of Parliamentary debate, 12 June 1884. * ''The Times'', obituary notice 7 June 1888. {{DEFAULTSORT:Miles, Philip 1825 births 1888 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Politicians from Somerset Miles, Sir Philip, 2nd baronet UK MPs 1874–1880 UK MPs 1880–1885 High sheriffs of Bristol English landowners 17th Lancers officers People educated at Eton College 19th-century English businesspeople