Captain Edward Algernon FitzRoy, DL (24 July 1869–3 March 1943) was a British Conservative politician who served as Speaker of the House of Commons from 1928 until his death.
FitzRoy was the second son of the 3rd Baron Southampton. As a boy, he served as a Page of Honour to Queen Victoria.
A member of Northamptonshire County Council from 1896 to 1921, FitzRoy first entered Parliament in 1900 as Member of Parliament (MP) for Northamptonshire South. During World War I, whilst still an MP, he served in the military as a Captain of the 1st Regiment of Life Guards, was injured at the First Battle of Ypres and commanded the mounted troops of the Guards Division from 1915-16. In 1918, he was elected for the seat of Daventry. Prior to his election as Speaker, he served as Deputy Chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means, briefly during 1923 and from 1924-28. In 1931, he was awarded a Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Cambridge and an honorary Doctor of Civil Law degree from the University of Oxford in 1934. In 1935, there was considerable controversy when the Labour Party decided to stand a candidate against him in the general election.
On 9 May 1935, during the Silver Jubilee of King George V, FitzRoy addressed the King in Westminster Hall "...while standing only a few feet from the place where his own ancestor, Charles I, had been tried for his life and found guilty."[1]
FitzRoy's widow Muriel (whom he had married on 19 November 1891) was given a Viscountcy (the customary retirement honour for Speakers) as Viscountess Daventry, and the title is still extant. He died aged 73 in Westminster.
| Court offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by George Byng |
Page of Honour 1883–1886 |
Succeeded by Cyril Stopford |
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by Hon. Edward Douglas-Pennant |
Member of Parliament for Northamptonshire South 1900–1906 |
Succeeded by Archibald Grove |
| Preceded by Archibald Grove |
Member of Parliament for Northamptonshire South 1910–1918 |
Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament for Daventry 1918–1943 |
Succeeded by Reginald Manningham-Buller |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Cyril Entwistle |
Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means 1924–1928 |
Succeeded by Dennis Herbert |
| Preceded by John Henry Whitley |
Speaker of the House of Commons 1928–1943 |
Succeeded by Douglas Clifton Brown |