ColonelColonel , 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...
Albert Brassey (22 February 1844 – 7 January 1918) was a British
rowerRowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
, soldier and
ConservativeThe 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...
politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1895 to 1906.
Life
Brassey was the fourth son of the railway contractor
Thomas BrasseyThomas Brassey was an English civil engineering contractor and manufacturer of building materials who was responsible for building much of the world's railways in the 19th century. By 1847, he had built about one-third of the railways in Britain, and by time of his death in 1870 he had built one...
and his wife Maria, daughter of Thomas Harrison. The Liberal MP
Thomas Brassey, 1st Earl BrasseyThomas Brassey, 1st Earl Brassey GCB, JP, DL, TD , was a British Liberal Party politician, Governor of Victoria and founder of The Naval Annual.-Background and education:...
, and
Henry BrasseyHenry Arthur Brassey DL was a British Member of Parliament.Brassey was the son of the railway contractor Thomas Brassey and his wife Maria . Thomas Brassey, 1st Earl Brassey, was his elder brother and Albert Brassey his younger brother...
were his elder brothers and
Henry Brassey, 1st Baron Brassey of ApethorpeHenry Leonard Campbell Brassey, 1st Baron Brassey of Apethorpe DL , known as Sir Henry Brassey, 1st Baronet, from 1922 to 1938, was a British Conservative politician.-Biography:...
, his nephew. He was educated at
EtonEton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and
University College, Oxford.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...
. Brassey rowed bow to
Charles Bennett LawesSir Charles Bennett Lawes-Wittewronge, 2nd Baronet was an English rower, athlete and sculptor. He exhibited twelve works at the Royal Academy....
’ stroke at Eton in the 1861 School Pulling and in the 1862 Eight. At Oxford, Brassey was a member of the winning University College crew in the
Grand Challenge CupThe Grand Challenge Cup is a rowing competition for men's eights. It is the oldest and most prestigious event at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing clubs...
and the
Ladies' Challenge PlateThe Ladies' Challenge Plate is one of the events at Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. Crews of men's eight-oared boats below the standard of the Grand Challenge Cup can enter, although international standard heavyweight crews are not permitted to row in the...
at
Henley Royal RegattaHenley Royal Regatta is a rowing event held every year on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. The Royal Regatta is sometimes referred to as Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage...
in 1863. In 1864 he was in the winning crew of the
Visitors' Challenge CupThe Visitors Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless fours at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing clubs and has similar qualifying rules to the Ladies' Challenge Plate. Two or more clubs may...
. In 1866, he was in the winning crews in the Grand rowing for Oxford Etonian, the
Stewards' Challenge CupThe Stewards' Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless fours at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing clubs. Two or more clubs may combine to make an entry....
for University College, and Visitors' ..
Brassey was a Lieutenant in the 14th Hussars and a
ColonelColonel , 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...
in the Queen's Own Oxfordshire Hussars and served as
High SheriffA high sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement officer in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.In England and Wales, the office is unpaid and partly ceremonial, appointed by the Crown through a warrant from the Privy Council. In Cornwall, the High Sheriff is appointed by the Duke of...
of
OxfordshireOxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
in 1878. In 1895 he entered Parliament for
BanburyBanbury is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is a strongly Conservative seat.The constituency was created January 26, 1554 through the efforts of Henry Stafford and Thomas Denton...
, a seat he held until 1906. He lived at Charlton Park,
GloucestershireGloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, Heythrop Hall, Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, and at 29
Berkeley SquareBerkeley Square is a town square in the West End of London, England, in the City of Westminster. It was originally laid out in the mid 18th century by architect William Kent...
,
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Family
Brassey married the Hon. Maria Matilda Helena, daughter of John Charles Robert Bingham, 4th Baron Clanmorris, in 1871. They had three sons and five daughters. He died in January 1918, aged 73. His wife, who was appointed an
OBEThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
in 1919, died in July 1943. Their eldest son
RobertCaptain Robert Bingham Brassey was a British Conservative Party politician.He was elected as Member of Parliament for Banbury in the general election of January 1910, winning it from the Liberals, but they took it back from him in the general election of December 1910.His father was Albert...
also represented Banbury in the
House of CommonsThe House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
very briefly in 1910.
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