William Herbrand Sackville
10th Earl De La Warr
Other titles
Born16 October 1921 (1921-10-16)
Died9 February 1988 (1988-02-10) (aged 66)
London, England
Noble familyDe La Warr
Spouse(s)Anne Rachel Devas
Issue
FatherHerbrand Sackville, 9th Earl De La Warr
MotherDiana Helena Leigh

William Herbrand Sackville, 10th Earl De La Warr DL (/ˈdɛləwɛər/ ⓘ 16 October 1921 – 9 February 1988) was a British peer. He inherited the earldom on 28 January 1976 on the death of his father Herbrand Edward Dundonald Brassey Sackville, 9th Earl De La Warr.[1]

Earl De La Warr was educated at Eton College, and fought in World War II, attaining the rank of captain in the Parachute Regiment of the British Army.[1] After the war, on 18 May 1946, he married Anne Rachel Devas (grandniece of a former Prime Minister, Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman).[citation needed] They had three children:[1]

In September 1981, the Earl allowed Doctor Who to film on his large tranche of Ashdown Forest for the episode "Black Orchid".[3]

In the autumn of 1987, the earl offered to sell that forest, the direct inspiration for the Winnie-the-Pooh stories, to the East Sussex County Council at a below-market price of £1.2 million for the 6,500 acres (2,600 ha).[4][5] As young children, the future earl and Christopher Robin Milne had played together there.[6][7] Milne himself joined conservationists to prevent the forest from being sold piecemeal to private owners, and to oppose BP's plan to prospect and extract oil there.[5][8] The sale to the council was concluded after the earl's death, making the forest public land.[5]

On 9 February 1988, at age 66, Earl De La Warr died after falling under a train at the St James's Park station of the London Underground.[4][9] An inquest ruled the death to be a suicide, with a jury finding that the earl had been "anxious and upset over hurricane damage to his estate".[10]

References

  1. ^ a b c Mosley, Charles, ed. (2003). Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage. Vol. 1 (107th ed.). p. 1074. ISBN 978-0971196629. Cited in Lundy, Darryl Roger (ed.). "William Herbrand Sackville, 10th Earl De La Warr". The Peerage. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016.
  2. ^ "Sackville". Register. The Times. No. 73816. London. 22 June 2022. col 6, p. 53.
  3. ^ shannonsulivan.com
  4. ^ a b "Earl dies in fall under train". The Herald. Glasgow. 11 February 1988. p. 7 – via Google News Archive.
  5. ^ a b c United Press International (26 November 1988). Written at London. "Pooh's forest saved". Chicago Sun-Times. US. UPI. Archived from the original on 11 September 2016. Retrieved 28 April 2016 – via HighBeam Research.
  6. ^ Aalto, Kathryn (2015). The Natural World of Winnie-the-Pooh: A Walk Through the Forest that Inspired the Hundred Acre Wood. Timber Press. p. 232. ISBN 978-1604695991.
  7. ^ William, Earl De La Warr. "Welcome to Buckhurst Estate". Buckhurst Park. Archived from the original on 7 May 2010. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
  8. ^ Associated Press (16 May 1988). Written at London. "Oil Yields to Honey in Pooh Bear's Home". Boston Globe. US. AP. Archived from the original on 11 September 2016. Retrieved 28 April 2016 – via HighBeam Research.
  9. ^ "Passings: William Herbrand Sackville, British Lord". Los Angeles Times. 11 February 1988.
  10. ^ "Anxious Earl dived under train". The Herald. Glasgow. 17 March 1988. p. 3 – via Google News Archive.
Peerage of Great Britain Preceded byHerbrand Edward Dundonald Brassey Sackville Earl De La Warr 1976–1988 Succeeded byWilliam Herbrand Sackville
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