George Coventry, 10th Earl of Coventry

George William Reginald Victor Coventry, 10th Earl of Coventry (10 September 1900 - 27 May 1940)[1] was the son of George William Coventry, Viscount Deerhurst and Virginia Bonynge (born Daniels), step- and adopted daughter of Charles Bonynge.[2] As his father predeceased his grandfather, the 10th Earl was his grandfather's heir to the earldom. George Coventry inherited both the earldom and the viscountcy on 13 March 1930.[1] He was educated at Ludgrove School and Eton College.[3]

The Earl of Coventry
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
In office
13 March 1930 – 27 May 1940
Hereditary Peerage
Preceded by9th Earl of Coventry
Succeeded by11th Earl of Coventry
Personal details
Born10 September 1900
Died27 May 1940(1940-05-27) (aged 39)

Politics

edit

Standing as a Unionist, Coventry unsuccessfully stood in the Carmarthen Constituency in the 1922 General Election.[3]

General election 1922: Carmarthen
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Liberal John Hinds 12,530 41.9 N/A
Unionist George Coventry 8,805 29.4 N/A
National Farmers' Union Daniel Johns 4,775 15.9 N/A
Liberal H. Llewelyn-Williams 3,847 12.8 N/A
Majority 3,725 12.5 N/A
Turnout 29,957 82.7 N/A
Registered electors 36,213
National Liberal gain from Liberal

Military service

edit

Coventry was a Lieutenant in the 7th Battalion, Worcestershire Regiment, which was part of the original Expeditionary Force sent to France in September 1939.[4] His regiment was subsequently evacuated during the retreat from Dunkirk; Coventry was killed in action [5] 27 May 1940 at La Bassée, during the Battle of Dunkirk which preceded it. He is buried in the communal cemetery at Givenchy-lès-la-Bassée.[6]

A memorial service was held at Croome Church in Worcester on 21 July 1940.[7]

Family and personal life

edit

He married the Honourable Nesta Donne Philipps in September 1921; they had four children.[1] His youngest child, also named George William Coventry and subsequently 11th Earl of Coventry was born at Croome Court on 25 January 1934.[8] The 10th earl's daughters were Anne Donne, Joan Blanche, and Maria Alice Coventry.[2]

In 1932, he was appointed the Deputy Lieutenant for the county of Worcestershire.[9]

He served as a company director of the London and Thames Haven Oil Wharves Limited.[10]

Coventry enjoyed hunting and was the Master of the Carmarthenshire Hounds, the Hawkstone Hounds as well as the Croome Hounds.[3]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c Hammond, P.W., ed., The Complete Peerage or a History of the House of Lords and All its Members From the Earliest Times, Vol. XIV (Stroud, 1998), 212.
  2. ^ a b "Person Page".
  3. ^ a b c "Deaths". The Times. No. 48669. 16 July 1940.
  4. ^ "Worcestershire Regiment - Famous Units - Research - National Army Museum, London".
  5. ^ "Lieut. Earl George William Reginal Victor COVENTRY (7903) - Worcestershire Regiment".
  6. ^ "Lieut. Earl George William Reginal Victor COVENTRY (7903) - Worcestershire Regiment".
  7. ^ "Deaths". The Times. No. 48675. 23 July 1940.
  8. ^ "The Earl of Coventry".
  9. ^ "Court Circular". The Times. No. 46262. 12 October 1932.
  10. ^ "London & Thames Haven Oil Wharves". The Times. No. 46401.
Peerage of England
Preceded by Earl of Coventry
1930–1940
Succeeded by