Lionel Beaumont Thomas
Encyclopedia
Colonel
Lionel Beaumont Thomas MC
(1 August 1893 – 7 December 1942), was a Welsh
businessman, British Army
officer and politician
, who served as Conservative
Member of Parliament
for Birmingham King's Norton
, from 1929 to 1935.
and his wife Nora Anderson, Lionel was born on 1 August 1893. Educated at Rugby school
, on graduating in 1912 Lionel was commissioned as Second Lieutenant
(Special Reserve) in The Royal Artillery. He then spent two years touring Europe, gaining knowledge of pig iron
and steel
production, particularly the ARBED
steelworks in Luxembourg
where he lived.
, and now married, he was promoted to Lieutenant
. Posted to the 14th Brigade, he served in the trenches. Promoted to Captain, for three years from August 1915 to August 1918, Beaumont-Thomas was adjutant to the 14th Brigade of the Royal Horse Artillery
. He served in the Battle of the Somme in July 1916, where the division in which he served held ground around the village of Mametz
. In January 1917, he was awarded the Military Cross
for holding a stretch of ground after two of his companions had been killed.
, he was tempted to stay on, but decided in light of the death of his father to rejoin the family business, Richard Thomas & Co Ltd
. Rather than taking a board position, he took a working post to learn the business. He did however retain his military commission, appointed to command a Battery in the 83rd Welsh Brigade
, the Territorial Army in Cardiff
.
After resigning his commission in 1923, as well as his duties as Deputy Chairman of Richard Thomas & Co Ltd, he was a Justice of the Peace
and a Conservative County Councillor in Herefordshire
. In 1923, he stood unsuccessfully in Llanelli
, and in 1924 again unsuccessfully for Pontypool
.
, including the placement of posters in within his Longbridge
car factory which was located within the constituency.
Beaumont-Thomas was elected to the seat of Birmingham King's Norton in 1929, ousting Labour's
Robert Dennison. He took part in his first debate on 24 March 1930, on disarmament
. Two years later he showed his gratitude to his constituents, inviting 2,000 to tea at Lyons Corner House, followed by a tour of the Palace of Westminster
. He arranged for the visit to be filmed, which is now stored in the National Film Archive. However, after the breakdown of his marriage, in spring 1933 he wrote to Neville Chamberlain
to say that he would be standing down "for reasons of health." He subsequently divorce
d in late 1933, due to his affair
with Iseult Margery Hazlehurst. His final debate was on 1 May 1935, on the subject of Pedal Cyclists
.
Beaumont-Thomas married his second wife Iseult in 1934, and returned to working in the family business. He got involved in an early lock
or viaduct
based version of the Thames Barrier
, to solve flooding of the lower reaches of the River Thames
.
, he was appointed to the command of the enemy armaments intelligence branch at the Ministry of Economic Warfare, a post he held until May 1940. After serving as a general staff officer, he joined Military Intelligence
, and in early 1941 attended an eight week military politics course at Trinity College, Cambridge
. Promoted to Colonel (Acting Lieutenant Colonel), he was to lead a mission proceeding to the Middle East
.
The height of the Battle of the Atlantic
, the was scheduled to cross the Atlantic Ocean
to the Caribbean
, and then proceed south to Freetown
, South Africa
, and onwards to Lagos
. Beaumont-Thomas would then travel onwards to Gibraltar
. After leaving Liverpool
on the 28 November 1942, 100 miles (160.9 km) from the coast of the West Indies (580 miles (933.4 km) northwest of the Azores), on 6 December 1942, the ship was torpedoed by U-Boat
U103, under the command of Gustav-Adolf Janssen. All hands and passengers made it to the four lifeboat
s, and started rowing to the Azores
. The U-Boat resurfaced later that day, and after questioning the crew and passengers took the captain prisoner. That night a gale
blew up, and although the U-Boat commander decided to track the lifeboats, her engine took on water and flooded the engine room, ceasing the search. Nothing further was seen or heard of the four lifeboats and their crews, and it was presumed that they lost their lives in the storm: 44 crew; 8 gunners; 11 passengers.
After being assumed dead the following year, his name was inscribed on the Brookwood Memorial, together with 3,500 other men and women of the land forces of the Commonwealth
who died in action during the Second World War and have no known grave.
His family later learnt that Beaumont-Thomas was en route to brief forces with regards the Battle of Crete
, to recapture it from the Nazis. His enjoyment in being involved in such a mission was that at the time of his departure, his son Nigel was a Prisoner of War
in Italy.
Released as the allies undertook the Italian Campaign
, Nigel Beaumont-Thomas (17 April 1916 – 20 September 1944), was second in command of the 4th Parachute Squadron within the 1st Airborne Division, when they parachuted into Arnhem
, where he was killed in action.
. A relationship disapproved of by his mother, the couple married in a Register office
with the bride's mother was a witness. On visiting his mother, the couple told her of their marriage, and she insisted on them remarrying in a church, which they later did at Holy Trinity, Brompton. The couple lived at Great Brampton House, in Madley
, Herefordshire
, and had three children: Nigel, Paul and Pearl.
An affair with Welsh seamstress Nancy Turner (born 22 December 1899 in Canton, Cardiff
- died April 1971 in Lemington Spa), bore him a son, Noel David Jeffries Turner (born 5 January 1920 in Cardiff - died 22 December 1987 in Newport
).
After he started a prolonged affair with the married Iseult Margery Hazlehurst (born 6 March 1896 in Culworth
, Northamptonshire
- died 15 December 1987 in Yeovil
, Somerset
), Pauline divorced him in 1933. He married Iseult on 5 January 1934 in Kensington
, London.
to build him the motor yacht Llanthony. She was requisitioned in 1939 by the Admiralty
, and after transfer to Ramsgate
was placed under the command of Sub Lieutenant Robert Timbrell
of the Royal Canadian Navy
. Under his command, she was one of the Little Ships
that took part in the Dunkirk evacuation. MY Llanthony brought back 280 men, and with trawlers added to his flotilla Timbrell was responsible for the evacuation of 900 troops. After the war, she was sold to Lord Astor
of Hever Castle
. Found languishing in Greece in 1995, she has since been restored and now forms part of the collection at Ardlamont Estate.
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Lionel Beaumont Thomas MC
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
(1 August 1893 – 7 December 1942), was a Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
businessman, British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
officer and politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, who served as Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Birmingham King's Norton
Birmingham King's Norton (UK Parliament constituency)
Birmingham King's Norton was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 to 1955. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election.- Boundaries :...
, from 1929 to 1935.
Biography
The second child of industrialist Richard Beaumont ThomasRichard Beaumont Thomas
Richard Beaumont-Thomas was the Managing Director of a major South Wales iron, steel and tinplate manufacturing company named Richard Thomas and Co Ltd which eventually merged with Baldwins to become Richard Thomas and Baldwins....
and his wife Nora Anderson, Lionel was born on 1 August 1893. Educated at Rugby school
Rugby School
Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...
, on graduating in 1912 Lionel was commissioned as Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
(Special Reserve) in The Royal Artillery. He then spent two years touring Europe, gaining knowledge of pig iron
Pig iron
Pig iron is the intermediate product of smelting iron ore with a high-carbon fuel such as coke, usually with limestone as a flux. Charcoal and anthracite have also been used as fuel...
and steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
production, particularly the ARBED
Arbed
ARBED was a major Luxembourg-based steel and iron producing company. Created in 1911 after the merger of three steel producing companies, ARBED was a major actor in the economic history of the Grand-Duchy until it merged in 2002 with two other European steel companies to create Arcelor.- Origins ...
steelworks in Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
where he lived.
World War One
On the outbreak of World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, and now married, he was promoted to Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
. Posted to the 14th Brigade, he served in the trenches. Promoted to Captain, for three years from August 1915 to August 1918, Beaumont-Thomas was adjutant to the 14th Brigade of the Royal Horse Artillery
Royal Horse Artillery
The regiments of the Royal Horse Artillery , dating from 1793, are part of the Royal Regiment of Artillery of the British Army...
. He served in the Battle of the Somme in July 1916, where the division in which he served held ground around the village of Mametz
Mametz
Mametz is the name of two communes in France:* Mametz, Pas-de-Calais* Mametz, Somme...
. In January 1917, he was awarded the Military Cross
Military Cross
The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
for holding a stretch of ground after two of his companions had been killed.
Inter war period
Promoted in June 1918, to Major in charge of the 76th Battery, Royal Field ArtilleryRoyal Field Artillery
The Royal Field Artillery of the British Army provided artillery support for the British Army. It came into being when the Royal Artillery was divided on 1 July 1899, it was reamalgamated back into the Royal Artillery in 1924....
, he was tempted to stay on, but decided in light of the death of his father to rejoin the family business, Richard Thomas & Co Ltd
Richard Beaumont Thomas
Richard Beaumont-Thomas was the Managing Director of a major South Wales iron, steel and tinplate manufacturing company named Richard Thomas and Co Ltd which eventually merged with Baldwins to become Richard Thomas and Baldwins....
. Rather than taking a board position, he took a working post to learn the business. He did however retain his military commission, appointed to command a Battery in the 83rd Welsh Brigade
Welsh Brigade
The Welsh Brigade was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1948 to 1964. The Brigade administered the regular Welsh infantry regiments.After the Second World War the British Army had fourteen infantry depots, each bearing a letter...
, the Territorial Army in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
.
After resigning his commission in 1923, as well as his duties as Deputy Chairman of Richard Thomas & Co Ltd, he was a Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
and a Conservative County Councillor in Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
. In 1923, he stood unsuccessfully in Llanelli
Llanelli (UK Parliament constituency)
Llanelli is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. From 1918 to 1970 the official spelling of the constituency name was Llanelly...
, and in 1924 again unsuccessfully for Pontypool
Pontypool (UK Parliament constituency)
Pontypool was a county constituency in the town of Pontypool in Monmouthshire. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system....
.
MP for Birmingham King's Norton
Beaumont-Thomas was adopted as the Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Birmingham King's Norton in 1925. He received great support from the ousted Conservative candidate of 1927, the car manufacturer and industrialist Herbert AustinHerbert Austin
Herbert 'Pa' Austin, 1st Baron Austin KBE was an English automobile designer and builder who founded the Austin Motor Company.-Background and early life:...
, including the placement of posters in within his Longbridge
Longbridge plant
The Longbridge plant is an industrial complex situated in the Longbridge area of Birmingham, United Kingdom. It is currently owned by SAIC Group and is a manufacturing and research and development facility for its MG Motor subsidiary....
car factory which was located within the constituency.
Beaumont-Thomas was elected to the seat of Birmingham King's Norton in 1929, ousting Labour's
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Robert Dennison. He took part in his first debate on 24 March 1930, on disarmament
Disarmament
Disarmament is the act of reducing, limiting, or abolishing weapons. Disarmament generally refers to a country's military or specific type of weaponry. Disarmament is often taken to mean total elimination of weapons of mass destruction, such as nuclear arms...
. Two years later he showed his gratitude to his constituents, inviting 2,000 to tea at Lyons Corner House, followed by a tour of the Palace of Westminster
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
. He arranged for the visit to be filmed, which is now stored in the National Film Archive. However, after the breakdown of his marriage, in spring 1933 he wrote to Neville Chamberlain
Neville Chamberlain
Arthur Neville Chamberlain FRS was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940. Chamberlain is best known for his appeasement foreign policy, and in particular for his signing of the Munich Agreement in 1938, conceding the...
to say that he would be standing down "for reasons of health." He subsequently divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
d in late 1933, due to his affair
Affair
Affair may refer to professional, personal, or public business matters or to a particular business or private activity of a temporary duration, as in family affair, a private affair, or a romantic affair.-Political affair:...
with Iseult Margery Hazlehurst. His final debate was on 1 May 1935, on the subject of Pedal Cyclists
Bicycle
A bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....
.
Beaumont-Thomas married his second wife Iseult in 1934, and returned to working in the family business. He got involved in an early lock
Lock (water transport)
A lock is a device for raising and lowering boats between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a fixed chamber in which the water level can be varied; whereas in a caisson lock, a boat lift, or on a canal inclined plane, it is...
or viaduct
Viaduct
A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...
based version of the Thames Barrier
Thames Barrier
The Thames Barrier is the world's second-largest movable flood barrier and is located downstream of central London. Its purpose is to prevent London from being flooded by exceptionally high tides and storm surges moving up from the sea...
, to solve flooding of the lower reaches of the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
.
World War Two
At the outbreak of war, Beaumont-Thomas signed up to be reactivated, much as though his health was graded B1. In part due to his fluency on FrenchFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, he was appointed to the command of the enemy armaments intelligence branch at the Ministry of Economic Warfare, a post he held until May 1940. After serving as a general staff officer, he joined Military Intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
, and in early 1941 attended an eight week military politics course at Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
. Promoted to Colonel (Acting Lieutenant Colonel), he was to lead a mission proceeding to the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
.
The height of the Battle of the Atlantic
Battle of the Atlantic
Battle of the Atlantic may refer to either of two naval campaigns:* The Atlantic U-boat Campaign during the First World War * The Battle of the Atlantic during the Second World War...
, the was scheduled to cross the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
to the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
, and then proceed south to Freetown
Freetown
Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, and onwards to Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
. Beaumont-Thomas would then travel onwards to Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
. After leaving Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
on the 28 November 1942, 100 miles (160.9 km) from the coast of the West Indies (580 miles (933.4 km) northwest of the Azores), on 6 December 1942, the ship was torpedoed by U-Boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
U103, under the command of Gustav-Adolf Janssen. All hands and passengers made it to the four lifeboat
Lifeboat (rescue)
A rescue lifeboat is a boat rescue craft which is used to attend a vessel in distress, or its survivors, to rescue crewmen and passengers. It can be hand pulled, sail powered or powered by an engine...
s, and started rowing to the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
. The U-Boat resurfaced later that day, and after questioning the crew and passengers took the captain prisoner. That night a gale
Gale
A gale is a very strong wind. There are conflicting definitions of how strong a wind must be to be considered a gale. The U.S. government's National Weather Service defines a gale as 34–47 knots of sustained surface winds. Forecasters typically issue gale warnings when winds of this strength are...
blew up, and although the U-Boat commander decided to track the lifeboats, her engine took on water and flooded the engine room, ceasing the search. Nothing further was seen or heard of the four lifeboats and their crews, and it was presumed that they lost their lives in the storm: 44 crew; 8 gunners; 11 passengers.
After being assumed dead the following year, his name was inscribed on the Brookwood Memorial, together with 3,500 other men and women of the land forces of the Commonwealth
Commonwealth
Commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has sometimes been synonymous with "republic."More recently it has been used for fraternal associations of some sovereign nations...
who died in action during the Second World War and have no known grave.
His family later learnt that Beaumont-Thomas was en route to brief forces with regards the Battle of Crete
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...
, to recapture it from the Nazis. His enjoyment in being involved in such a mission was that at the time of his departure, his son Nigel was a Prisoner of War
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
in Italy.
Released as the allies undertook the Italian Campaign
Italian Campaign (World War II)
The Italian Campaign of World War II was the name of Allied operations in and around Italy, from 1943 to the end of the war in Europe. Joint Allied Forces Headquarters AFHQ was operationally responsible for all Allied land forces in the Mediterranean theatre, and it planned and commanded the...
, Nigel Beaumont-Thomas (17 April 1916 – 20 September 1944), was second in command of the 4th Parachute Squadron within the 1st Airborne Division, when they parachuted into Arnhem
Battle of Arnhem
The Battle of Arnhem was a famous Second World War military engagement fought in and around the Dutch towns of Arnhem, Oosterbeek, Wolfheze, Driel and the surrounding countryside from 17–26 September 1944....
, where he was killed in action.
Personal life
On his tour he met Pauline Grace Marriott, the daughter of a former British Army officer attached to the Colonial Service in FijiFiji
Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
. A relationship disapproved of by his mother, the couple married in a Register office
Register office
A register office is a British term for a civil registry, a government office and depository where births, deaths and marriages are officially recorded and where you can get officially married, without a religious ceremony...
with the bride's mother was a witness. On visiting his mother, the couple told her of their marriage, and she insisted on them remarrying in a church, which they later did at Holy Trinity, Brompton. The couple lived at Great Brampton House, in Madley
Madley
Madley is a village and civil parish in the English county of Herefordshire. It is located six miles west of the city of Hereford.-Other settlements:...
, Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
, and had three children: Nigel, Paul and Pearl.
An affair with Welsh seamstress Nancy Turner (born 22 December 1899 in Canton, Cardiff
Canton, Cardiff
Canton is an inner-city district and community in the west of Cardiff, capital of Wales, lying west of the city's civic centre. One of the most ethnically diverse of Cardiff's suburbs, with a significant Asian population such as Pakistanis and Indians, Canton has a population just in excess of...
- died April 1971 in Lemington Spa), bore him a son, Noel David Jeffries Turner (born 5 January 1920 in Cardiff - died 22 December 1987 in Newport
Newport
Newport is a city and unitary authority area in Wales. Standing on the banks of the River Usk, it is located about east of Cardiff and is the largest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent...
).
After he started a prolonged affair with the married Iseult Margery Hazlehurst (born 6 March 1896 in Culworth
Culworth
Culworth is a village and civil parish about north of Brackley in South Northamptonshire, England. Culworth is also about northeast of the north Oxfordshire town of Banbury....
, Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
- died 15 December 1987 in Yeovil
Yeovil
Yeovil is a town and civil parish in south Somerset, England. The parish had a population of 27,949 at the 2001 census, although the wider urban area had a population of 42,140...
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
), Pauline divorced him in 1933. He married Iseult on 5 January 1934 in Kensington
Kensington
Kensington is a district of west and central London, England within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. An affluent and densely-populated area, its commercial heart is Kensington High Street, and it contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington.To the north, Kensington is...
, London.
MY Llanthony
After his divorce, in 1934 Beaumont Thomas commissioned Camper and NicholsonsCamper and Nicholsons
Camper and Nicholsons are the oldest leisure marine company in the world, producing and managing yachts for the world's richest people.As Camper and Nicholsons was founded at Gosport, Hampshire before organised seawater yachting had even started, John Nicholson of the founding family once overheard...
to build him the motor yacht Llanthony. She was requisitioned in 1939 by the Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
, and after transfer to Ramsgate
Ramsgate
Ramsgate is a seaside town in the district of Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century and is a member of the ancient confederation of Cinque Ports. It has a population of around 40,000. Ramsgate's main attraction is its coastline and its main...
was placed under the command of Sub Lieutenant Robert Timbrell
Robert Timbrell
Rear Admiral Robert Walter Timbrell, CMM, DSC, CD, Royal Canadian Navy was the first Canadian to be decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross during the Second World War...
of the Royal Canadian Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...
. Under his command, she was one of the Little Ships
Little ships of Dunkirk
The little ships of Dunkirk were 700 private boats that sailed from Ramsgate in England to Dunkirk in France between May 26 and June 4, 1940 as part of Operation Dynamo, the rescue of more than 338,000 British and French soldiers, who were trapped on the beaches at Dunkirk during the Second World...
that took part in the Dunkirk evacuation. MY Llanthony brought back 280 men, and with trawlers added to his flotilla Timbrell was responsible for the evacuation of 900 troops. After the war, she was sold to Lord Astor
Baron Astor of Hever
Baron Astor of Hever, of Hever Castle in the County of Kent, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1956 for the prominent newspaper proprietor and Conservative politician the Hon. John Jacob Astor. He was the fourth son of William Waldorf Astor, 1st Viscount Astor. Lord...
of Hever Castle
Hever Castle
Hever Castle is located in the village of Hever near Edenbridge, Kent, south-east of London, England. It began as a country house, built in the 13th century...
. Found languishing in Greece in 1995, she has since been restored and now forms part of the collection at Ardlamont Estate.