Sir Felix John Morgan Brunner, 3rd Baronet (13 October 1897 – 2 November 1982) was a British Liberal Party politician and business owner. He was the maternal uncle of Katharine, Duchess of Kent.[1]
Biography edit
The son of Sir John Brunner, 2nd Baronet, he studied at Cheltenham College and Trinity College, Oxford. During World War I, he served as a lieutenant in the Royal Field Artillery.[2]
In 1926, Brunner married Elizabeth Irving, an actress, the granddaughter of Sir Henry Irving. In 1928 he submitted plans for extensive alterations and additions to Rudloe Manor, in Box, Wiltshire[3] using Rolfe & Peto. He later sold the property at an auction in the city of Bath on 1st July 1931.[4] In 1937 they bought Greys Court in Oxfordshire, and donated the house to the National Trust in 1969 but continued to live there.[5]
Brunner followed in a family tradition by standing for election for the Liberal Party: in Hulme in 1924, Chippenham in 1929, and Northwich in 1945, but was never elected to Parliament. He was elected to Henley Rural District Council, and served as its chairman from 1954 to 1957. He was also President of the Liberal Party in 1962/3.[2]
Brunner was also a supporter of the Open Spaces Society, chairing it from 1958 to 1970.[2]
Brunner's children include John Henry Kilian, now the fourth baronet, and Hugo, a former Lord-Lieutenant of Oxfordshire.
References edit
- ^ Cathcart, Helen (1971). The Duchess of Kent (First ed.). London: W.H. Allen.
- ^ a b c "BRUNNER, Sir Felix (John Morgan)", Who Was Who
- ^ "Improving Life". Box People and Places. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
- ^ "History". Rudloe Manor. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
- ^ Shirley Anglesey, "Brunner, (Dorothea) Elizabeth, Lady Brunner (1904–2003)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, online edn, Oxford University Press, Jan 2007; online edn, Jan 2009 accessed 3 March 2010