Horace James Seymour

Sir Horace James Seymour GCMG CVO (26 February 1885 - 10 September 1978) was a British diplomat, Ambassador to China from 1942 to 1946.

Early life and family

The elder son of Hugh Francis Seymour and the grandson of the Peelite Sir Horace Seymour MP (1791-1851), Seymour was educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge.'SEYMOUR, Sir Horace James', in Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2007; online edition by Oxford University Press, December 2007 (subscription required): [http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/article/oupww/whowaswho/U159469 SEYMOUR, Sir Horace James] , accessed 14 Aug 2008] ]

He was a descendant of many notable Seymours, including Admiral Lord Hugh Seymour, Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford, and Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset. His great aunt, Adelaide Horatia Elizabeth Seymour (1825-1877) married Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer and became an ancestor of Diana, Princess of Wales.

Career

Seymour entered the Foreign Office and Diplomatic Service in 1908. He rose to become British Minister in Tehran, 1936 to 1939, Assistant Under-Secretary of State at the Foreign Office, 1939 to 1942, and British Ambassador to China, from 1942 to 1946. He retired in 1947.

Marriage and children

In 1917, Seymour married Violet, daughter of Thomas Erskine, and they had one son, Hugh Francis Seymour, and two daughters. They lived at Bratton House, Bratton, Westbury, Wiltshire.

Honours

*Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George, 1927
*Commander of the Royal Victorian Order, 1936
*Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George, 1939
*Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George, 1946

References