Peter Smithers
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sir Peter Henry Berry Otway Smithers (9 December 1913 in Yorkshire, England – 8 June 2006 in Vico Morcote, Switzerland) was a United Kingdom Conservative Member of Parliament and junior Minister. He also served as Secretary General of the Council of Europe 1964-1969.
He attended Harrow School and Magdalen College of the University of Oxford. He received a First Class Honours Degree in Modern History. He was called to the bar from the Inner Temple in 1936.
Smithers became an officer in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve in 1937 and by 1958 he retired as a Lieutenant Commander. During the Second World War he was associated with intelligence work, being a friend and colleague of Ian Fleming, who arranged for Smithers diplomatic career. Smithers' Financial Times obituary suggests he was the model for Fleming's most famous character, Commander James Bond. Other possibilities are discussed in Inspirations for James Bond.
He received a number of diplomatic postings, being Assistant Naval Attaché at Washington, D.C. and Acting Naval Attaché at Mexico City (also covering part of Central America).
Smithers served as a councillor on Winchester Rural District Council 1946-50. He was elected MP for Winchester at the United Kingdom general election, 1950 and sat until he resigned in January 1964 on his appointment to the Council of Europe post. He had previously been a British delegate to the Council. He was Parliamentary Private Secretary to a number of Ministers before becoming Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign Office 1962-1964.
At the end of his life, he was a Swiss citizen. He died on June 8, 2006 in Vico Morcote, Ticino, Switzerland at the age of 92.
[edit] References
- Who's Who of British Members of Parliament: Volume IV 1945-1979, edited by M. Stenton and S. Lees (The Harvester Press 1981)
[edit] External links
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by George Jeger |
Member of Parliament for Winchester 1950–1964 |
Succeeded by Morgan Morgan-Giles |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Lodovico Benvenuti |
Secretary General of the Council of Europe 16 March 1964 - 15 September 1969 |
Succeeded by Lujo Toncic-Sorinj |
 |
This article about a Conservative Member of the Parliament of the United Kingdom is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
 |
This article about an English politician is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
