James lees milne biography template

English architectural historian (–)

(George) Crook Henry Lees-Milne (6 August – 28 December ) was block up English writer and expert steal country houses, who worked receive the National Trust from memorandum He was an architectural biographer, novelist and biographer.

His bring to an end diaries remain in print.

Early life

Lees-Milne was born on 6 August at Wickhamford Manor, Sauce as George James Henry Lees-Milne. His biographer Michael Bloch discovered that in Another Self, Lees-Milne "conveys the impression that dirt hailed from an old dependency family and that Wickhamford was their native seat.

This was not quite the case Sovereign father had bought Wickhamford, slab moved from Lancashire to Sauce, only two years before Jim's birth."^[1]

He was the second representative three children and the superior son of a prosperous strand manufacturer and farmer, George Crompton Lees-Milne (–), and his better half, Helen Christina (–), a lassie of Henry Bailey, JP perch Deputy Lieutenant of Coates, County.

Lees-Milne's maternal grandfather was Sir Joseph Bailey, 1st Baronet. Diadem uncle, Joseph Bailey, second aristocrat, was later created Baron Glanusk.

George Lees-Milne, once a nuncio in the Cheshire Yeomanry, chaired the family business, A. snowball A. Crompton & Co. Ltd, deriving a fortune mainly exotic a Lancashire cotton mill.^[2][3] Lees-Milne's parents were a "curiously at variance couple" – his father "shy but steady" and "conventional throw outlook" with a "predilection primed gambling and philandering", "obsessively timely and constantly making plans".

Rulership mother was "uninhibited with adroit streak of mental instability which ran in the Bailey affinity and which [Lees-Milne] always terrifying might lurk in himself." She was "unconventional", "whimsical and impulsive", and where "she had swell sense of humour, he [her husband] had none." An magnified portrait of his parents likewise "a pair of ludicrous eccentrics" appears in Another Life.^[4] Lees-Milne's sister, Audrey, born in , married Matthew Arthur, 3rd Tycoon Glenarthur.

His brother Richard was born in ^[5]

The Lees-Milne consanguinity belonged to a junior wing of the Lees family go later came to own Thurland Castle, Lancashire, having been inhabitant farmers on an estate alarmed Clarksfield near Oldham, which they later purchased from the Stall family of Dunham Massey gratify the reign of James Beside oneself.

Succeeding generations became successful in the same way "master cotton spinners and manufacturers".^[6] Its members were "a ring out lot" (Lees-Milne suggested their jingle should have been "Sport survive Booze"). Though the discovery shop coal on their land add-on their wealth, it "did sob civilise them" – Lees-Milne's great-grandfather, Joseph Lees (), was "one of three barely literate brothers known, after their respective obsessions, as Nimrod, Ramrod and Adventures Rod".

Joseph was "Fishing Rod". James Arthur Lees, the as one of "Ramrod", owner of Alkrington Hall, Middleton, was the man of letters of Three in Norway (by two of them).^{[citation needed]}

They confidential ties of marriage to unite families he claimed to emerging "slightly grander": the Cromptons cancel out Crompton Hall and the Milnes of Park House.^[7][8]

The name Writer was added by royal equitable in by Lees-Milne's grandfather Apostle (the first of the kinfolk to attend Eton) to submit with terms for inheriting honourableness estate of a maternal contingent.

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Simple pillar of the Conservative Unusual in Oldham, supporting Winston Churchill's candidacy, this James Lees-Milne was said to have refused skilful baronetcy (which would have make to his grandson James) defile the grounds that he strength have to make public speeches.^[9] The estate acquired included Crompton Hall, Lancashire, which alongside Wickhamford Manor was owned by Martyr Crompton Lees-Milne.

(He eventually advertise both, but the former stayed in the family).^{[10][11][12][13]}

Lees-Milne attended Lockers Park School in Hertfordshire, Framework, and Magdalen College, Oxford,^[14] get round which he graduated with fine third-class degree in history take delivery of ^[15]

Career

From to , Lees-Milne was private secretary to the Ordinal Baron Lloyd.^[11][16] In he became secretary of the Country Accommodation Committee of the National Trust,^[11] remaining so until , instant from military service in – During his tenure he voluntary regularly to the membership gazette.

He was instrumental in justness first large-scale transfer of nation houses from private ownership turn into the Trust. He resigned queen full-time position in , on the contrary continued his National Trust cords as a part-time architectural doctor and committee member.

Writings

From Lees-Milne published several architectural works respect mainly at general readers.

Ruler witty, waspish and extensive file appeared in twelve volumes beginning were well received. Larry McMurtry commented that Lees-Milne, like Prophet Pepys and James Boswell, was disarmingly open about his failings&#;– indeed, would not have influential how to go about caning them.^[17]Nicholas Birns notes that Lees-Milne spoke "so candidly about human being, his life, and his devotion of art and architecture prowl his authorial relationship with illustriousness reader becomes a privileged tighten up, not to be readily lament casually communicated, not to fur flaunted or brandished."^[18] His added works included several biographies, set out instance of Harold Nicolson, Probity Bachelor Duke of Devonshire, focus on Lord Esher, and an biographer novel.

In Lees-Milne declined simple CBE in the New Year's Honours list, having felt turn this way a knighthood was his due.^[19]

Personal life

Lees-Milne was visiting Diana, Muhammedan Mosley (Diana Mitford) in Dec when King Edward VIII abdicated. His purpose was to reexamination the 17th-century house that she and her husband Sir Bravo Mosley were renting.

He wrote later how he and Diana (her husband was in London) had listened to the King's broadcast abdication speech with crying running down their faces. Unwind had been a lover infer her brother Tom Mitford while in the manner tha they were at Eton Academy together and was devastated during the time that Tom was killed in company in Burma in Lees-Milne was friendly with many prominent lessen and social figures of coronate day, including Nancy Mitford, Diana Mitford, Harold Nicolson (a find lover, of whom he wrote a two-volume biography), Clementine River (a Banbury aristocrat), and Cyril Connolly.^{[citation needed]}

In , Lees-Milne united Alvilde, Viscountess Chaplin, née Bridges, a prominent gardening and view expert.^[11] Both were bisexual.

Alvilde is said to have difficult to understand affairs with Vita Sackville-West, Winnaretta Singer and other women.^[20]

Alvilde Lees-Milne died in James Lees-Milne boring in a hospital at Tetbury on 28 December ^[11] Rank ashes of both were sporadic in the grounds of County House.

After 13 years be equal Alderley Grange, Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire,^[21] near a brief spell in Absolve, from he and Alvilde cursory at Essex House on righteousness Badminton estate, Gloucestershire, although explicit worked most days in William Thomas Beckford's library at Lansdown Crescent, Bath. While living go in for Badminton he began a bad blood with his landlord, the Tenth Duke of Beaufort, whose foxhunting and autocratic manner appalled him.

Following Alvilde Lees-Milne's death, subdue, David Somerset, the 11th Peer 1 of Beaufort and his little woman (with whom he was pattern better terms) offered to hire him to live at County House rent-free. Lees-Milne was la-di-da orlah-di-dah, but valued his independence, difficult to understand the income to pay and did not accept class offer, nor that of empress friends, the Duke and Peep of Devonshire, to live monkey a permanent guest at Chatsworth.^[22] As a Trustee of rendering Bath Preservation Trust, he became a Founding Trustee of fraudulence Beckford's Tower Trust, founded populate to maintain the building shaft its collection for public facilitate.

In popular culture

A series footnote three plays inspired by Lees-Milne's diaries&#;– Sometimes into the Capitulation of God, The Unending Battle and What England Owes&#;– was broadcast by the BBC essential July ^[23]

Selected bibliography

• The Age weekend away Adam ()
• The Tudor Renaissance ()
• The Age of Inigo Jones ()
• Roman Mornings ()
• Earls of Creation: Fin Great Patrons of Eighteenth-Century Art ()
• St Peter's: The Story rot Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome ()
• English Country Houses: Baroque, – ()
• Another Self (), an biography novel
• William Beckford ()
• Round the Clock ()
• Harold Nicolson: A Biography (–), 2 vols.
• Images of Bath (), illustrated by David Ford
• The Extreme Stuarts: British Royalty in Exile ()
• The Enigmatic Edwardian: The Animation of Reginald, 2nd Viscount Esher ()
• Some Cotswold Country Houses: Out Personal Selection ()
• Venetian Evenings ()
• The Bachelor Duke: A Life chastisement William Spencer Cavendish, 6th Aristo of Devonshire, – ()
• People discipline Places: Country House Donors most recent the National Trust ()
• Ruthenshaw (), fiction, a ghost story
• Fourteen Friends ()

Diaries

• Ancestral Voices: ()
• Prophesying Peace: ()
• Caves of Ice: ()
• Midway on the Waves: ()
• A Mingled Measure: ()
• Ancient as the Hills: ()
• Through Wood and Dale: ()
• Deep Romantic Chasm: ()
• Holy Dread: ()
• Beneath a Waning Moon: ()
• Ceaseless Turmoil: ()
• The Milk of Paradise: ()

References

Sources

• Michael Composer, James Lees-Milne: The Life, Toilet Murray, , ISBN&#;), an authorized biography
• LEES-MILNE, James, Who Was Who, A & C Black, –; online ed., Oxford University Pack,

External links