John Hare, 1st Viscount Blakenham
Encyclopedia
John Hugh Hare, 1st Viscount Blakenham OBE
, PC, DL
(22 January 1911–7 March 1982), was a British
Conservative
politician.
aristocrat
, and The Hon. Freda Vanden-Bampde-Johnstone. His elder brother, The 5th Earl of Listowel
, was a prominent Labour
politician. He was educated at Eton
.
of London County Council
between 1937 and 1952 and fought in the Second World War with the Suffolk Yeomanry in Italy
and was awarded the Legion of Honour and appointed an OBE
. He sat as Member of Parliament
for Woodbridge
between 1945 and 1950 and for Sudbury and Woodbridge
between 1950 and 1963 and was vice-chairman of the Conservative Party between 1952 and 1955. He served under Sir Anthony Eden
as Minister of State for the Colonies between 1955 and 1956 and under Eden and his successor, Harold Macmillan
, as Secretary of State for War
from 1956 to 1958.
He later held office under Macmillan as Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
from 1958 to 1960 and Minister of Labour
between 1960 and 1963. He was admitted to the Privy Council in 1955 and in 1963 he was elevated to the peerage as Viscount Blakenham, of Little Blakenham
in the County of Suffolk. Blakenham then served under Sir Alec Douglas-Home
as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
and Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
from 1963 to 1964 and was chairman of the Conservative Party between 1963 and 1965.
Hare received the Victoria Medal of Honour from the Royal Humane Society
in 1974.
, on 31 January 1934. They had three children:
Lord Blakenham died in March 1982, aged 71, and was succeeded in the viscountcy by his only son, Michael. Lady Blakenham died in November 1994, aged 86.
. The wood was inherited by his son and is open to the public. On his death the wood was made into a charitable trust
. His son, Michael Blakenham, a lifelong environmentalist has increased the stock of unusual specimens and has bought many rare including unnamed trees and shrubs from auctions at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
.
Order of the British Empire
The 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...
, PC, DL
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
(22 January 1911–7 March 1982), was a British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
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...
politician.
Background and education
Blakenham was the third son of The Rt. Hon. Richard Hare, 4th Earl of Listowel, an Anglo-IrishAnglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish was a term used primarily in the 19th and early 20th centuries to identify a privileged social class in Ireland, whose members were the descendants and successors of the Protestant Ascendancy, mostly belonging to the Church of Ireland, which was the established church of Ireland until...
aristocrat
Aristocracy (class)
The aristocracy are people considered to be in the highest social class in a society which has or once had a political system of Aristocracy. Aristocrats possess hereditary titles granted by a monarch, which once granted them feudal or legal privileges, or deriving, as in Ancient Greece and India,...
, and The Hon. Freda Vanden-Bampde-Johnstone. His elder brother, The 5th Earl of Listowel
William Hare, 5th Earl of Listowel
William Francis Hare, 5th Earl of Listowel GCMG, PC , styled Viscount Ennismore between 1924 and 1931, was a British peer and Labour politician...
, was a prominent Labour
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...
politician. He was educated at Eton
Eton College
Eton 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"....
.
Political career
Blackenham was an AldermanAlderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
of London County Council
London County Council
London County Council was the principal local government body for the County of London, throughout its 1889–1965 existence, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today known as Inner London and was replaced by the Greater London Council...
between 1937 and 1952 and fought in the Second World War with the Suffolk Yeomanry in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and was awarded the Legion of Honour and appointed an OBE
Order of the British Empire
The 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...
. He sat as 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 Woodbridge
Woodbridge (UK Parliament constituency)
Woodbridge was a county constituency centred on the town of Woodbridge in Suffolk. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
between 1945 and 1950 and for Sudbury and Woodbridge
Sudbury and Woodbridge (UK Parliament constituency)
Sudbury and Woodbridge was a county constituency centred on the towns of Sudbury and Woodbridge in Suffolk. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
between 1950 and 1963 and was vice-chairman of the Conservative Party between 1952 and 1955. He served under Sir Anthony Eden
Anthony Eden
Robert Anthony Eden, 1st Earl of Avon, KG, MC, PC was a British Conservative politician, who was Prime Minister from 1955 to 1957...
as Minister of State for the Colonies between 1955 and 1956 and under Eden and his successor, Harold Macmillan
Harold Macmillan
Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC was Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 January 1957 to 18 October 1963....
, as Secretary of State for War
Secretary of State for War
The position of Secretary of State for War, commonly called War Secretary, was a British cabinet-level position, first held by Henry Dundas . In 1801 the post became that of Secretary of State for War and the Colonies. The position was re-instated in 1854...
from 1956 to 1958.
He later held office under Macmillan as Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food was a UK cabinet position, responsible for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The post was originally named President of the Board of Agriculture and was created in 1889...
from 1958 to 1960 and Minister of Labour
Secretary of State for Employment
The Secretary of State for Employment was a position in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. In 1995 it was merged with Secretary of State for Education to make the Secretary of State for Education and Employment...
between 1960 and 1963. He was admitted to the Privy Council in 1955 and in 1963 he was elevated to the peerage as Viscount Blakenham, of Little Blakenham
Little Blakenham
Little Blakenham is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England. Located around two miles north-west of Ipswich and a mile south-west of its larger sister village Great Blakenham, in 2005 its population was 310. The parish also contains the hamlets of...
in the County of Suffolk. Blakenham then served under Sir Alec Douglas-Home
Alec Douglas-Home
Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home, Baron Home of the Hirsel, KT, PC , known as The Earl of Home from 1951 to 1963 and as Sir Alec Douglas-Home from 1963 to 1974, was a British Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 1963 to October 1964.He is the last...
as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is, in modern times, a ministerial office in the government of the United Kingdom that includes as part of its duties, the administration of the estates and rents of the Duchy of Lancaster...
and Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
from 1963 to 1964 and was chairman of the Conservative Party between 1963 and 1965.
Hare received the Victoria Medal of Honour from the Royal Humane Society
Royal Humane Society
The Royal Humane Society is a British charity which promotes lifesaving intervention. It was founded in England in 1774 as the Society for the Recovery of Persons Apparently Drowned, for the purpose of rendering first aid in cases of near drowning....
in 1974.
Family
Lord Blakenham married the Hon. Nancy Pearson, daughter of Weetman Pearson, 2nd Viscount CowdrayWeetman Pearson, 2nd Viscount Cowdray
Harold Miller Pearson, 2nd Viscount Cowdray DL , styled The Honourable Harold Pearson between 1910 and 1927, was a British peer Liberal Party politician.-Background:...
, on 31 January 1934. They had three children:
- Hon. Mary Anne Hare (b. 9 April 1936)
- Michael John Hare, 2nd Viscount BlakenhamMichael Hare, 2nd Viscount BlakenhamMichael John Hare, 2nd Viscount Blakenham , is a British peer and the son of John Hare, 1st Viscount Blakenham and Beryl Nancy Pearson and was chairman of Pearson PLC from 1993 to 1997. His son the Hon. Caspar John Hare is his heir apparent.He is the owner of the island of Little Colonsay in the...
(b. 25 January 1938) - Hon. Joanna Freda Hare (b. 27 July 1942), married 1967 to United States Supreme Court Justice Stephen BreyerStephen BreyerStephen Gerald Breyer is an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1994, and known for his pragmatic approach to constitutional law, Breyer is generally associated with the more liberal side of the Court....
Lord Blakenham died in March 1982, aged 71, and was succeeded in the viscountcy by his only son, Michael. Lady Blakenham died in November 1994, aged 86.
Blakenham Woodland Garden
In 1951 he purchased wood close to his home. Over the following years he created glades and paths through the bluebells and planted many rare plants. In 1982 he became treasurer of the Royal Horticultural SocietyRoyal Horticultural Society
The Royal Horticultural Society was founded in 1804 in London, England as the Horticultural Society of London, and gained its present name in a Royal Charter granted in 1861 by Prince Albert...
. The wood was inherited by his son and is open to the public. On his death the wood was made into a charitable trust
Charitable trust
A charitable trust is an irrevocable trust established for charitable purposes, and is a more specific term than "charitable organization".-United States:...
. His son, Michael Blakenham, a lifelong environmentalist has increased the stock of unusual specimens and has bought many rare including unnamed trees and shrubs from auctions at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, usually referred to as Kew Gardens, is 121 hectares of gardens and botanical glasshouses between Richmond and Kew in southwest London, England. "The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew" and the brand name "Kew" are also used as umbrella terms for the institution that runs...
.