Lord Richard Cecil

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Lord Richard Cecil boards an RhAF DC-3 transport aircraft on the morning of 20 April 1978. He was killed about one hour later
Lord Richard Cecil boards an RhAF DC-3 transport aircraft on the morning of 20 April 1978. He was killed about one hour later

Lord Richard Valentine Gascoyne-Cecil (26 January 1948 – 20 April 1978) was the son of Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 6th Marquess of Salisbury.[1] Lord Richard's mother was Marjorie (Mollie) Olein Wyndham-Quin, who had married his father in 1945.[2]

The Salisbury family had well established links with the country of Rhodesia. Rhodesia's capital city was named after the third Marquess. The family had extensive land holdings in the country and the fifth Marquess (Lord Richard's grandfather) was a leading British supporter of the white minority UDI regime that ran Rhodesia from 1965 to 1979.

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[edit] Education and early career

Lord Richard was educated at Eton College and at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. After graduating from Sandhurst, he was commissioned in the Grenadier Guards. After three tours of duty in Northern Ireland (mentioned in dispatches in 1973[3]) he attained the rank of Captain. He decided not to pursue a career in the military and resigned his commission with a view to pursuing a career in politics.

He enrolled on a degree course in politics at Sussex University in 1973, although it is believed that he rarely attended classes and never graduated. In July 1974 he was adopted as the Conservative candidate for Barrow-in-Furness and contested the seat in the October 1974 general election.[4] During the election campaign he complained about the restraints being placed on military action in Northern Ireland by politicians. He suggested the possibility of making military incursions into the Republic of Ireland in order to eliminate terrorists sheltering there. The incumbent Labour MP defeated Lord Richard by 7,400 votes and a 3% swing from Conservative to Labour.[5] Thereafter, he decided to become a freelance journalist while seeking a winnable Conservative seat to contest at the next election.[6]

[edit] Journalism and Rhodesia

Lord Richard's military background and social connections lead him to Southern Africa in the mid 1970s, at a time when political unrest in Rhodesia was leading to a state of war between the white minority government and black nationalist guerrilla forces. He quickly established friendships with prominent Rhodesians including the Foreign Minister, P. K. van der Byl.

When the Bush War against black nationalists started in earnest in 1976, Lord Richard used his family connections to gain access to Rhodesian army counter-insurgency operations. In particular, his friendship with "PK" allowed him access to events and locations that were off-limits to other journalists. He provided reports that were carried by a number of newspapers (including The Times and Time magazine). He also contributed reports to the British ITN TV news service. He produced and presented the "Frontline Rhodesia" features broadcast by Thames Television's TV Eye.

An adventurer by nature, Lord Richard would accompany Rhodesian army units into action while himself wearing army uniform and carrying a rifle. He was reported to have fired a rifle at insurgent targets on several occasions.[7] He ignored warnings that such conduct was inappropriate and dangerous for a journalist. Lord Richard was a member of a 20 strong group of correspondents known as the "Bang Gang". This group was intimately involved in the Rhodesian cause, and went about their journalistic work heavily armed.

Lord Richard was nicknamed "Young Winston" by fellow journalists. This referred to similarities between the early careers of Lord Richard and Winston Churchill. The nickname was not used kindly in every case. Some of his fellow journalists considered that his conduct exposed all journalists in Rhodesia to the charge of being combatants - and being treated accordingly in certain eventualities such as capture.

[edit] Death

On 20 April 1978, Lord Richard and his cameraman (Nick Downie) parachuted into insurgent dominated territory in North East Rhodesia with an army airborne unit. He was intending to record material for use in a film he was making about the Bush War.[8] The unit became scattered during the parachute drop and their position was infiltrated by ZANLA guerrillas. While moving through dense undergrowth, Lord Richard encountered a ZANLA man who fired into him at a range of less than 5 metres. He was hit in the chest, stomach and legs, and died after a few minutes.[9][10]

The Rhodesian Ministry of Defence reported him as being "killed in action". His body was returned to England for burial.

[edit] Aftermath

P. K. van der Byl offered the following comment upon being informed of Lord Richard's death :

"Lord Richard was the finest young man I ever knew and represented the best of everything that made the Englishman great, and built the British Empire."

Lord Richard's funeral service was held at the Parish Church of St. Mary and St. Bartholomew, Cranborne on 27 April. [11] A memorial service was held for him at the Guards Chapel, Wellington Barracks on 9 May. Both events were attended by the most prominent personalities from the British aristocracy (including Lord Mountbatten), the British army and the media.

The death of Lord Richard was one of a number of events during 1978 that brought UDI to an abrupt end. The loss of one man did not amount to much in the whole scheme of things, but it was the identity of that man and the nature of his loss that had an impact. One factor that had sustained UDI since 1965 was tacit support from some elements in the British establishment who were variously influenced by anti-communism, appreciation of the colonial era's achievements and a wish to safeguard investments. Lord Richard was the embodiment of that support. His death brought the UDI project into question and made certain people think very hard about the wisdom of it.

Lord Richard’s elder brother was Robert Cecil, Viscount Cranborne, elected MP for South Dorset in the 1979 general election. In his maiden speech to the House, Cranborne urged Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith to end UDI and accept majority rule in Rhodesia. Cranborne became 7th Marquess of Salisbury in 2003 upon the death of his father.

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Guardian, 15 July 2003 :obituary of sixth Marquess of Salisbury
  2. ^ Genealogy report :aristocratic British families (extract)
  3. ^ The Times, 19 September 1973. Official Notices
  4. ^ The Times, 25 July 1974. "Candidates adopted"
  5. ^ October 1974 general election :Barrow-in-Furness result
  6. ^ The Times, 22 April 1978. Obituary of Lord Richard Cecil
  7. ^ Time magazine, 1979 :the 'Bang Gang'
  8. ^ Nick Downie report :caution, partisan comment
  9. ^ Rory Peck Trust :list of freelance journalists killed in battle
  10. ^ The Times, 22 April 1978. 'Journalist killed by guerrillas' - by Frederick Cleary
  11. ^ The Times, 29 April 1978. Report on funeral service


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