Charles Ingram Courtenay Wood, 2nd Earl of Halifax, DL (3 October 1912 – 19 March 1980), styled Hon. Charles Wood from 1925–59, was a British peer, Conservative politician, Lord Lieutenant of Humberside and High Steward of York Minster.
The Earl of Halifax | |
|---|---|
 Memorial in York Minster | |
| Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |
| In office 23 December 1959 – 19 March 1980 Hereditary peerage | |
| Preceded by | The 1st Earl of Halifax |
| Succeeded by | The 3rd Earl of Halifax |
| Member of Parliament for York | |
| In office 6 May 1937 – 15 June 1945 | |
| Preceded by | Roger Lumley |
| Succeeded by | John Corlett |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Charles Ingram Courtenay Wood 3 October 1912 Garrowby, Yorkshire, England |
| Died | 19 March 1980 (aged 67) Garrowby, Yorkshire, England |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse | Ruth Primrose |
| Children | 3, including Peter |
| Parent(s) | Edward Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax Lady Dorothy Onslow |
| Alma mater | Christ Church, Oxford |
Early life and education
editWood was the son of Edward Wood M.P., a Conservative politician, later created Earl of Halifax, Viceroy of India, and Foreign Secretary, by his marriage to Lady Dorothy Evelyn Augusta Onslow, a daughter of William Onslow, 4th Earl of Onslow, a former Governor-General of New Zealand. He was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford, graduating in 1934 with a B.A. degree. He captained the Oxford University Polo Team in the same year.[1]
Career
editIn 1934, Wood was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant into the Royal Horse Guards. Like his father, in 1937 he entered politics as a Conservative, becoming Member of Parliament for the City of York. In 1939, at the outbreak of the Second World War, he rejoined the Royal Horse Guards and served for three years in the Middle East, continuing as a member of parliament during this time. At the 1945 general election, he lost his seat to the Labour candidate, John Corlett.
Wood was styled Lord Irwin between 1944 and 1959, when he succeeded his father as Earl of Halifax and joined the House of Lords. He was a Deputy Lieutenant of the East Riding in Yorkshire between 1955 and 1968, and Lord-Lieutenant of Humberside between 1974 and 1980. He was also High Steward of York Minster between 1972 until 1980.
In 1978, his horse Shirley Heights won the Derby.[2]
The 2nd Earl of Halifax died in 1980 and was buried at All Saints' Church, Kirby Underdale, where a Halifax family memorial is to be found.[3]
Family
edit
In 1936, he married Ruth Alice Hannah Mary Primrose (18 April 1916 – 1989), daughter of the Liberal politician Captain Neil James Archibald Primrose and Lady Victoria Alice Louise Primrose, née Stanley, a granddaughter of the Prime Minister Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery.[4]
They had three children:
- Lady Caroline Victoria Wood (born 10 September 1937, died 15 November 2014), married, firstly, Randle J. Feilden in 1958 (divorced in 1970), secondly, John V. Gosling in 1970.[5]
- Virginia Mary Feilden (born 6 June 1959, died 24 March 1994)
- Randle Charles Roderick Feilden (born 19 January 1961)
- Fiona Caroline Feilden (born 26 January 1965)
- Lady Susan Diana Wood (born 22 September 1938), married Brigadier Ian Darsie Watson in 1959.
- David Charles Darsie Watson (born 29 July 1960)
- Richard Ian Watson (born 30 January 1962)
- The Rt Hon. Charles Edward Peter Neil Wood, 3rd Earl of Halifax (born 14 March 1944)
- The Hon James Charles Wood, Lord Irwin (born 24 August 1977) Heir Apparent to the earldom.
- Hon. Rex Patrick Wood (born 12 August 2010)[6]
- Hon. Audrey Nancy Wood (born 23 January 2013)
- Lady Joanna Victoria Wood (born 15 January 1980)
- The Hon James Charles Wood, Lord Irwin (born 24 August 1977) Heir Apparent to the earldom.
References
edit- ^ "Oxford University Polo Club". Oxforduniversitypoloclub.com. Archived from the original on 27 November 2013. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
- ^ "Shirley Heights' Derby". The Age. 8 June 1978. p. 28. Retrieved 8 December 2014.
- ^ "Kirby Underdale". Visitor.uk.com. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
- ^ "Wedding Of Charles Wood and Ruth Primrose 1936". British Pathe News. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
- ^ "Lady Caroline Gosling – obituary". The Daily Telegraph. 25 December 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
- ^ "Halifax, Earl of (UK, 1944)". Cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Archived from the original on 25 October 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2016.