John Wodehouse, 4th Earl of Kimberley
Encyclopedia
John Wodehouse, 4th Earl of Kimberley (12 May 1924 – 26 May 2002) was the oft-married Earl of Kimberley from 1941 to 2002. He inherited the title when his father, John Wodehouse, 3rd Earl of Kimberley
, was killed in an air raid. He was a member of the House of Lords
as well as being a leading bobsled racer and a Cresta
member.
He was educated at Eton
and Magdalene College, Cambridge
and served in the Grenadier Guards
. He reportedly had a strong dislike of his kinsman, P.G. Wodehouse (they were third cousins thrice removed). He had the reputation of being Britain's most married Peer, having married Diana Legh (a daughter of Sir Piers Legh
) in 1945 as the first of six wives. They divorced in 1948, and he married Australian Carmel Dunnett (née Maguire) in 1949. They had a son, John Armine Wodehouse, 5th Earl of Kimberley, but divorced in 1952. He tried again in 1953 with Cynthia Abdy Westendarp, but they too were divorced in 1961; together they had a son, Henry, who served in the Special Branch
of the Metropolitan Police
. Then he married model Margaret Simons in 1961 but they were also divorced in 1965. Wodehouse then wed Gillian Ireland-Smith in 1970, but they split up so he could marry Janey Consett, a masseuse he'd met in Jamaica, in 1982. This marriage lasted for the remainder of his life and gave him much happiness.
For some years he was an active member of the Conservative Monday Club
and, briefly, chairman of the Club's Foreign Affairs Commiittee. Under his chairmanship it published a Club Policy Paper in August 1983, The Future of Hong Kong by David Sparrow.
He wrote a memoir entitled the Whim of the Wheel, after he had suffered a stroke, in 1998. He also contributed to the debate in the House of Lords on UFOs.
John Wodehouse, 3rd Earl of Kimberley
John Wodehouse, 3rd Earl of Kimberley CBE MC was a British peer, known from 1902 to 1932 as Lord Wodehouse.-Biography:...
, was killed in an air raid. He was a member 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....
as well as being a leading bobsled racer and a Cresta
Cresta Run
The Cresta Run is a natural ice 1,212.5 m long skeleton racing toboggan track in the Swiss winter sports town of St. Moritz, and one of the few runs dedicated primarily to skeleton. It was built in 1884 near the hamlet of Cresta in the municipality of Celerina/Schlarigna by Major Bulpett, eventual...
member.
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"....
and Magdalene College, Cambridge
Magdalene College, Cambridge
Magdalene College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary Magdalene...
and served in the Grenadier Guards
Grenadier Guards
The Grenadier Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It is the most senior regiment of the Guards Division and, as such, is the most senior regiment of infantry. It is not, however, the most senior regiment of the Army, this position being attributed to the Life Guards...
. He reportedly had a strong dislike of his kinsman, P.G. Wodehouse (they were third cousins thrice removed). He had the reputation of being Britain's most married Peer, having married Diana Legh (a daughter of Sir Piers Legh
Piers Legh
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Piers "Joey" Walter Legh GCVO KCB CMG CIE OBE was a British soldier and a member of the Royal Household....
) in 1945 as the first of six wives. They divorced in 1948, and he married Australian Carmel Dunnett (née Maguire) in 1949. They had a son, John Armine Wodehouse, 5th Earl of Kimberley, but divorced in 1952. He tried again in 1953 with Cynthia Abdy Westendarp, but they too were divorced in 1961; together they had a son, Henry, who served in the Special Branch
Special Branch
Special Branch is a label customarily used to identify units responsible for matters of national security in British and Commonwealth police forces, as well as in the Royal Thai Police...
of the Metropolitan Police
Metropolitan police
Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
. Then he married model Margaret Simons in 1961 but they were also divorced in 1965. Wodehouse then wed Gillian Ireland-Smith in 1970, but they split up so he could marry Janey Consett, a masseuse he'd met in Jamaica, in 1982. This marriage lasted for the remainder of his life and gave him much happiness.
For some years he was an active member of the Conservative Monday Club
Conservative Monday Club
The Conservative Monday Club is a British pressure group "on the right-wing" of the Conservative Party.-Overview:...
and, briefly, chairman of the Club's Foreign Affairs Commiittee. Under his chairmanship it published a Club Policy Paper in August 1983, The Future of Hong Kong by David Sparrow.
He wrote a memoir entitled the Whim of the Wheel, after he had suffered a stroke, in 1998. He also contributed to the debate in the House of Lords on UFOs.
"UFOs defy worldly logic... The human mind cannot begin to comprehend UFO characteristics: their propulsion, their sudden appearance, their disappearance, their great speeds, their silence, their manoeuvre, their apparent anti-gravity, their changing shapes."
EARL OF KIMBERLEY
House of Lords
Debate on Unidentified Flying Objects
Sources
- The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
(obituary).