Richard Hamilton Rawson

Colonel Richard Hamilton Rawson, JP, DL (21 February 1863 – 11 October 1918) was a British Army officer and later a Conservative and National Party politician.

Personal life

Rawson was born in Aigburth, Lancashire, the son of Philip Rawson and his wife Octavia, née Gilmour.

He attended Eton College, and Brasenose College, Oxford. After Oxford, he joined the 1st Regiment of Life Guards (now Life Guards) until he retired, with the rank of captain, in 1892. He later joined the Sussex Yeomanry,

Following this, he was appointed High Sheriff for Sussex in 1899, and was a Justice of the Peace and from 1900 a Deputy Lieutenant of the county.

He married Lady Beatrice Anson, the second daughter of Thomas Anson, 2nd Earl of Lichfield, in 1890 at St George's, Hanover Square. As a result, he was successful in the 1910 general election, winning Reigate by a large majority and defeating the incumbent Liberal MP, Harry Cunningham Brodie. Reigate has been a Conservative safe seat ever since.

In 1917, unhappy with the new Lloyd George coalition government and angry at the alleged sale of honours, Rawson left the Conservative Party to join the National Party, a right-wing split from the Conservatives. Although the Party was xenophobic, a trait exacerbated by the war, many National Party policies were progressive and years ahead of their time; they included a call for "honest politics", increased rights for employees and help for soldiers reintegrating into civilian life.

Death

Colonel Rawson died in Belgravia a month before the Armistice was signed, ending the First World War, and consequently never saw victory. He was still MP for Reigate at the time. The National Party was disbanded soon after.