Arthur Somers-Cocks, 6th Baron Somers
Administrator of the Commonwealth | |
---|---|
In office 2 October 1930 – 21 January 1931 | |
Monarch | George V |
Preceded by | The Viscount Stonehaven (as Governor-General) |
Succeeded by | Sir Isaac Isaacs (as Governor-General) |
16th Governor of Victoria | |
In office 28 June 1926 – 23 June 1931 | |
Monarch | George V |
Premier | John Allan Edmond Hogan William McPherson |
Preceded by | Lord Stradbroke |
Succeeded by | Lord Huntingfield |
Personal details | |
Born | Freshwater, Isle of Wight, England | 20 March 1887
Died | 14 July 1944 Ledbury, Herefordshire, England | (aged 57)
Spouse |
Daisy Meeking (m. 1921) |
Mentioned in Despatches (France)Legion of Honour | |
Arthur Herbert Tennyson Somers-Cocks, 6th Baron Somers,
Early life
Somers was born in Freshwater, Isle of Wight, the eldest son of Herbert Haldane Somers-Cocks and the former Blanche Clogstoun. His godfather was Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Somers' father died when he was seven years old. He succeeded a distant relative as Baron Somers at the age of twelve. He attended Charterhouse School before going on to New College, Oxford.[1] He was an able cricketer, and played 17 first-class games. In 1904, whilst a schoolboy at Charterhouse, he made 115 against Westminster,[2] and two years later he made his first-class debut for Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) against Worcestershire, scoring 0 and 13.[3] He rarely had enough time to play cricket, but in the 1920s he made a further 16 first-class appearances for Worcestershire, his highest score being 52 against Essex in May 1925.[4] In later life he became both a vice-president of Worcestershire County Cricket Club and, in 1936, President of the MCC.[2]
Military career
In 1906, Somers joined the
Governor of Victoria and Administrator of Australia
Somers was appointed Governor of Victoria in 1926. He "had charm and natural gaiety which won him popularity ... warm and generous, he had a genuine interest in people, as well as a high sense of duty and leadership ... a shrewd and successful governor".[1] Following the expiry of Lord Stonehaven's term as Governor-General of Australia in October 1930, Somers – as the longest serving state governor – was called upon to act as Administrator of Australia until Sir Isaac Isaacs took office in January 1931.[5]
Freemasonry
Somers was initiated as a
Lord Somers Camp
In 1929, at his own expense, Somers brought together teenage boys from different backgrounds in Australia to what was named Lord Somers Camp which continues to this day.[7] The idea of the camp was based upon the Duke of York's camps in England that operated from 1921 until the start of the Second World War.[8]
Scouting
With the governor-generalship came the honorary position of State Chief Scout of Victoria. Somers was determined to make the role more than a ceremonial one and enthusiastically participated in Scout camps and hikes, insisting on pitching his own tent.[9] He wore Scout uniform at these events and personally led a series of Christmas hikes in the state. In 1931, the founder of Scouting and Chief Scout of the World, Lord Baden-Powell, met Somers during a tour of Australia and was impressed by his commitment to Scouting.[10]
On Somers' return to Britain,
Other appointments
Somers was appointed
Family
Somers married Daisy Finola Meeking in 1921 and had a daughter:
- Elizabeth Violet Virginia Somers Cocks (1922–1986), who married Major Benjamin Alexander Frederick Hervey-Bathurst (1920–1997), 2nd son of Sir Frederick Edward William Hervey-Bathurst, 5th Baronet.
Death
During the early 1940s, Somers had been increasingly debilitated by
References
- ^ a b c d Australian Dictionary of Biography article on Lord Somers
- ^ a b Obituaries, 1944. Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, 1945.
- ^ "Marylebone Cricket Club v Worcestershire in 1906". CricketArchive. Retrieved 15 March 2009.
- ^ "Essex v Worcestershire in 1925". CricketArchive. Retrieved 15 March 2009.
- ^ Christopher Cunneen, Kings' Men: Australia's Governors-General from Hopetoun to Isaacs, 1983, George Allen & Unwin, p. 172.
- ISBN 0-7316-5791-8.
- ^ a b c Gregory, Alan (2006). "Somers, Arthur Herbert Tennyson (1887–1944)". adb.anu.edu.au. Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
- ^ "Our History - Since 1929". www.lscph.org.au. Lord Somers Camp and Power House. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
- ^ Hazlewood 1967, pp. 152-153
- ^ Wilson 1959, p. 94
- ^ "Meet the Chiefs" (PDF). The Scout Information Centre. October 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 October 2007. Retrieved 8 December 2007.
- ^ Hazlewood 1967, pp. 153-154
- ^ Moynihan 2006, p. 106
- ^ Moynihan 2006, p. 176
Sources
- Hazlewood, Rex (1967). "Our Second Chief Scout". The Scout Annual 1967. London: The Boy Scouts Association.
- Moynihan, Paul, ed. (2006). An Official History of Scouting. London: Hamlyn. ISBN 978-0-600-61398-5.
- Wilson, J. S. (1959). Scouting Round the World. London: Blandford Press.
External links
- Arthur Somers-Cocks, 6th Baron Somers at CricketArchive (subscription required)
- Arthur Somers-Cocks, 6th Baron Somers at ESPNcricinfo
- "Lord Somers (1887–1944), KCMG, DSO, MC, as Chief Scout [portrait by] Oswald Hornby Joseph Birley (1880–1952)". artuk.org. Public Catalogue Foundation. Retrieved 10 February 2023.