Felix Hope-Nicholson Explained

Charles Felix Otho Victor Gabriel John Adrian Hope-Nicholson^{[1] [2]} (21 July 1921 – 15 September 1990) was a British aristocrat and genealogist. The Herald of Scotland called him a "tall, imposing figure known as the Squire of Chelsea", and noted that after Eton College, Christ Church, Oxford,^{[3] [4]} and the war he had "dedicated his life to the greater glory of his ancestors, in particular the Linlithgow family and the Hopes of Hopetoun House."^[5]

Biography

The son of Hedley Hope-Nicholson, a barrister, head of the Society of King Charles the Martyr and heir to a raincoat fortune,^[6] in his young years Felix Hope-Nicholson was a notable figure in high society in London, and was often seen socialising at The Ritz.^[7] During an air raid during World War II, in a drunken state, he tripped and fell on King Zog of Albania, who was staying at the hotel at the time.^[8] By the 1970s he was described as "impoverished",^[9] but successfully kept up the appearance of a "bachelor dandy".^[10] He lived in the house in which he was raised, More House on Tite Street.^{[2] [10]} Hope-Nicholson was a friend of Francis Bacon^[11] and Hamish Erskine (son of the 5th Earl of Rosslyn),^[12] a "notoriously vain, rather silly and extremely amusing" homosexual, unofficially ('listlessly') engaged to Nancy Mitford until Erskine ended the relationship.^{[13] [14]}

Notes and References

1. Web site: Charles HOPE-NICHOLSON | | The Gazette. www.thegazette.co.uk.
2. Family First: Tracing Relationships in the Past, Ruth Alexandra Symes, Pen and Sword History, 2015, pg 83
3. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, 107th edition, vol. 2, ed. Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage Ltd, 2003, p. 2353
4. Oxford University Calendar 1945, University of Oxford Press, 1945, p. 893
5. News: Saviour sought for gem of a house. The Herald (Scotland). 8 April 1993. 23 June 2015.
6. Web site: M-J Lancaster: Outspoken writer and editor who became a prototype of. October 23, 2011. The Independent.
7. Book: Thompson, Damian. Loose Canon: A Portrait of Brian Brindley. 22 June 2004. A&C Black. 978-0-8264-7418-6. 52.
8. News: Puttin' on the Ritz, at The Ritz. The Chicago Tribune. 7 December 2008. 23 June 2015.
9. Book: Salwak, Dale. AfterWord: Conjuring the Literary Dead. 1 May 2011. University of Iowa Press. 978-1-58729-989-6. 116.
10. Book: Massingberd, Hugh. Daydream Believer: Confessions of a Hero-Worshipper. 12 July 2012. Pan Macmillan. 978-1-4472-1022-1. 213.
11. Book: Mellor. David Alan. Joule. Barry. Hamilton. Richard. The Barry Joule archive: works on paper attributed to Francis Bacon. 31 December 2000. Irish Museum of Modern Art. 978-1-873654-84-2. 10.
12. Book: Cooper, Artemis. Writing at the Kitchen Table: The Authorized Biography of Elizabeth David. 16 June 2011. Faber & Faber. 978-0-571-27977-7. 24.
13. Book: Dalley, Jan. Diana Mosley. registration. 2 May 2000. Knopf. 61. 9780394587363 .
14. News: Nancy pursued . . . and caught. The Telegraph. 23 June 2015.