Hon. William Waldorf Astor
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The Right Honourable The Viscount Astor |
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Astor (right) with his third wife, Bronwen, on their wedding day
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
13 August 1907 Cliveden, Buckinghamshire, England |
| Died | 7 March 1966 (aged 58) Nassau, Bahamas |
| Spouse(s) |
Sarah Kathleen Elinor Norton (m. 1945; div. 1953) Phillipa Victoria Hunloke (m. 1955; div. 1960) Janet Bronwen Alun Pugh (m. 1960; his death 1966) |
| Relations | Astor family |
| Children | 4, including William Waldorf Astor III |
| Parents |
Waldorf Astor, 2nd Viscount Astor Nancy Witcher Langhorne |
| Alma mater |
Eton College New College, Oxford |
| Occupation | Businessman, politician |
William Waldorf Astor II, 3rd Viscount Astor (13 August 1907 – 7 March 1966) was an English businessman and Conservative Party politician. He was also a member of the Astor family.
William was the eldest son of Waldorf Astor and Nancy Witcher Langhorne. He was educated at Eton and at New College, Oxford.
In 1932, Astor was appointed secretary to The 2nd Earl of Lytton, League of Nations Committee of Enquiry in what was then known as Manchuria. First elected to the House of Commons in 1935, he served as a Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for Fulham East until 1945. Between 1936 and 1937 he was Parliamentary Private Secretary to the First Lord of the Admiralty Sir Samuel Hoare, who was then made Secretary of State for the Home Department in the new cabinet of Neville Chamberlain in 1937.
Astor left Parliament for a time, but returned as the Conservative MP for Wycombe in the 1951 general election, serving for ten months. On his father's death in 1952, he inherited his title, becoming The 3rd Viscount Astor. Lord Astor took his seat in the House of Lords, forcing a by-election in Wycombe, which was won by the Conservative candidate John Hall. During the 1963 Profumo Affair Astor was accused of having an affair with Mandy Rice-Davies. In response to being told during one of the trials arising out of the scandal that Astor had denied having an affair with her, Rice-Davies famously replied "He would, wouldn't he?"
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