Thomas Brassey, 1st Earl Brassey

38
Thomas Brassey, 1st Earl Brassey bigraphy, stories - British politician

Thomas Brassey, 1st Earl Brassey : biography

11 February 1836 – 23 February 1918

Thomas Brassey, 1st Earl Brassey GCB, JP, DL, TD (11 February 1836 – 23 February 1918), was a British Liberal Party politician, Governor of Victoria and founder of The Naval Annual.

Honours and Awards

Brassey was President of the Royal Statistical Society from 1879 to 1880. He was conferred with Honorary Membership of the Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders in Scotland in 1891. He served as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports from 1908 to 1913. He was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in 1906 and made Viscount Hythe, of Hythe in the County of Kent, and Earl Brassey in 1911.

King David Kalākaua of Hawaii bestowed on Brassey the honor "Knight Commander of the Royal Order of Kalākaua".The Royal Tourist—Kalakaua’s Letters Home from Tokio to London. Editor: Richard A. Greer. Date: 10 March 1881

Background and education

Brassey was the son of the railway contractor Thomas Brassey, by Maria Harrison, daughter of Joseph Harrison, a forwarding and shipping agent. He was the brother of Henry Brassey and Albert Brassey. He was educated at Rugby and University College, Oxford, and was called to the Bar, Lincoln’s Inn, in 1864.

Political career

Brassey was briefly Member of Parliament (MP) for Devonport in 1865, winning the seat at a by-election in June and then losing it again the general election in July. He returned to Parliament three years later as the representative for Hastings at the 1868 general election,Craig, op. cit. page 147 holding that seat until he retired from the House of Commons at the 1886 general election. He was President of the first day of the 1874 Co-operative Congress. He served under William Ewart Gladstone as Civil Lord of the Admiralty from 1880 to 1884 and as Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty from 1884 to 1884. He was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in 1881 and raised to the peerage as Baron Brassey, of Bulkeley in the County of Chester, in 1886. He again held office under Gladstone and then Lord Rosebery as a Lord-in-Waiting from 1893 to 1895. In 1893 Queen Victoria appointed nine members as the Royal Opium Commission, which consisted of seven British and two Indian members, which was headed by Lord Brassey, who served as the Chairman. The Commission was to report on whether India Opium export trade to far east (China) should be ended and, further, whether poppy growing and consumption of Opium in India itself should be prohibited save for medical purpose.

Family

Anna, Lady Brassey. Lord Brassey married firstly Anna Allnutt, daughter of John Allnutt, of Clapham, Surrey. They had one son and four daughters. The third daughter, Lady Muriel Agnes, married Gilbert Sackville, 8th Earl De La Warr, and was the mother of Herbrand Sackville, 9th Earl De La Warr, while the fourth daughter, Lady Marie Adelaide, married Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon. Lady Brassey died in September 1887, aged 47. Lord Brassey married secondly Lady Sybil de Vere Capell, daughter of Arthur Capell, Viscount Malden, and sister of George Capell, 7th Earl of Essex, in 1890. They had one daughter. Lord Brassey died in February 1918, aged 82, and was succeeded in the earldom by his only son, Thomas.

Freemasonry

He was a freemason. He was initiated to the craft as an Oxford student. In 1868, he became a member of Abbey Lodge No. 1184 and remained for 48 years. He was also a member of Derwent Lodge No. 4 and a founding brother of Navy Lodge No. 2612. When he was appointed Governor of Victoria, while he had never held any Lodge office, he was appointed Honorary Past Junior Grand Warden. In Melbourne, became a member of Clarke Lodge No. 98 and became its Senior Warden in 1896 and its Worshipful Master in 1897. On 4 May 1896 two days before being installed as Senior Warden, he was installed Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Victoria. His becoming of Grand Master was a bit controversial because many members preferred then-current Grand Master Sir William Clarke, 1st Baronet to stay and nominated him again. Clarke said that he would like the nomination to be withdrawn if Brassey was willing to serve. Brassey approved and Clarke withdrew the nomination, so Brassey was the sole candidate and therefore elected Grand Master.http://kenthenderson.com.au/m_papers03.html