The Right Honourable The Viscount Margesson PC |
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Margesson during the Second World War
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Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury Government Chief Whip |
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In office 10 November 1931 – 22 December 1940 |
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Monarch |
George V Edward VIII George VI |
Prime Minister |
Ramsay Macdonald Stanley Baldwin Neville Chamberlain Winston Churchill |
Preceded by | Tom Kennedy |
Succeeded by | Sir Charles Edwards |
Secretary of State for War | |
In office 22 December 1940 – 22 February 1942 |
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Monarch | George VI |
Prime Minister | Winston Churchill |
Preceded by | Anthony Eden |
Succeeded by | Sir P. J. Grigg |
Personal details | |
Born | 26 July 1890 |
Died | 24 December 1965 | (aged 75)
Nationality | British |
Political party | Conservative |
Spouse(s) | Frances Leggett |
Alma mater | Magdalene College, Cambridge |
Henry David Reginald Margesson, 1st Viscount Margesson PC (26 July 1890 – 24 December 1965) was a British Conservative politician, most popularly remembered for his tenure as Government Chief Whip in the 1930s. His reputation was of a stern disciplinarian who was one of the harshest and most effective whips. His sense of the popular mood made him know when to sacrifice unpopular ministers. He protected the appeasement-supporting government as long as he could.
However, some argue that there were weaknesses of his system because of the number of high-profile rebellions during his tenure.
Margesson was the third child and elder son of Sir Mortimer Margesson and Lady Isabel, daughter of Frederick Hobart-Hampden, Lord Hobart and sister of Sidney Hobart-Hampden-Mercer-Henderson, 7th Earl of Buckinghamshire. He grew up in Worcestershire and was educated at Harrow School and Magdalene College, Cambridge. He did not complete his degree, choosing instead to seek his fortune in the United States of America. Margesson volunteered at the outbreak of World War I in 1914 and served as an adjutant in the 11th Hussars.
After the war, Margesson entered politics at the suggestion of Lord Lee of Fareham. In the 1922 general election, he was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for Upton.