Thomas Agar-Robartes Explained

Thomas Charles Reginald Agar-Robartes (known as Tommy) (22 May 1880 – 30 September 1915) was a British Liberal politician.

Background and education

Tommy Agar-Robartes was the eldest son and heir of Thomas Agar-Robartes, 6th Viscount Clifden, and his wife Mary (née Dickenson) and was brought up at Lanhydrock House, Bodmin. He was the eldest of ten (including a twin sister).^[1] Educated at Oxford and a keen horseman, he played in the Oxford University polo team that beat Cambridge in 1903.^[2]

Public life

He was elected a Member of Parliament for Bodmin in the 1906 general election, but lost his seat in June 1906 following a controversial election petition by the defeated candidate alleging illegal payments to potential voters. He was elected to the St Austell Division of Cornwall in a by-election in 1908 and held the seat until his death.

Military career

He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Royal 1st Devon Imperial Yeomanry on 13 May 1902. At the outbreak of World War I he joined the Royal Bucks Hussars as an officer. Tommy then joined the Coldstream Guards and was subsequently posted to France & Flanders. Captain The Honourable Thomas Charles Reginald Agar-Robartes, in command of No. 2 Coy, 1st Bn, the Coldstream Guards, was wounded in the Battle of Loos on 28 September and killed by a sniper on 30 September 1915 after rescuing a wounded comrade under heavy fire for which he was recommended for the Victoria Cross.

Memorials

Agar-Robartes is buried in Lapugnoy Military Cemetery, near Béthune. He is commemorated by a memorial in Truro Cathedral^[3] and in stained glass at Selsey Abbey, Wimpole^[4] and Church Norton.^[5]

Agar-Robartes is commemorated on Panel 8 of the Parliamentary War Memorial in Westminster Hall, one of 22 MPs who died during World War I to be named on that memorial.^{[6] [7]} Agar-Robartes is one of 19 MPs who fell in the war who are commemorated by heraldic shields in the Commons Chamber.^[8] A further act of commemoration came with the unveiling in 1932 of a manuscript-style illuminated book of remembrance for the House of Commons, which included a short biographical account of the life and death of Agar-Robartes.^{[9] [10]} As Agar-Robartes never married and had no children, his younger brother Francis later succeeded their father in the viscountcy.

List of memorials

• Headstone at Lapugnoy Military Cemetery, near Béthune^[11]
• Wooden battlefield marker St Hydroc's Church, Lanhydrock, Cornwall^[12]
• Granite memorial seat at Truro Road, St Austell, Cornwall^[13]
• Stained glass window at St Hydroc Church, Lanhydrock, Cornwall^[14]
• Stained glass window at Selsey Abbey, Sussex
• Stained glass window at Wimpole, Cambridgeshire^[15]
• Stained glass window at St Wilfrid's Chapel, Church Norton, West Sussex^[16]
• Marble bust at Truro Cathedral
• Wooden armorial shield at the House of Commons^[17]
• Brass plaque in Holy Trinity Church, St Austell^[18]

References

• • Web site: Lundy . Darryl . FAQ . The Peerage.
• Wimpole War Memorial

External links

• The Honourable Thomas Charles Reginald Robartes (1880-1915), MP by Richard Jack

Notes and References

1. News: Births, Marriages, Deaths. The Cornishman. 99. 3 June 1880. 8.
2. The Polo Monthly. 19 January 1911. 334. 16 October 2015.
3. Web site: Captain the Hon. Thomas Charles Reginald Agar-Robartes Memorial, Truro Cathedral, Cornwall . 2008-01-01 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20071013120104/http://ww1cemeteries.com/british_cemeteries_memorials/agar_robartes_mem_truro.htm . 13 October 2007 . dmy-all .
4. http://www.armingford.net/wimpole/church.htm Wimpole Parish Church
5. http://victorians.westsussex.gov.uk/theme/wscc-theme-2/ccm/content/environment/the-west-sussex-countryside/the-coastal-plain/pagham-harbour-local-nature-reserve/harbour-views-newsletter/features/heritage.en;jsessionid=ampfuslcnAO5 West Sussex County Council: Heritage
6. Web site: Recording Angel memorial Panel 8. UK Parliament (www.parliament.uk). Recording Angel memorial, Westminster Hall. 31 August 2016.
7. Web site: List of names on the Recording Angel memorial, Westminster Hall. UK Parliament (www.parliament.uk). Recording Angel memorial, Westminster Hall. 31 August 2016.
8. Web site: Agar-Robartes. UK Parliament (www.parliament.uk). Heraldic shields to MPs, First World War. 31 August 2016.
9. House of Commons War Memorial: Final Volumes Unveiled by The Speaker. 6 February 1932 . 7. 46050.
10. Book: Moss-Blundell. Edward Whitaker. The House of Commons Book of Remembrance 1914–1918. E. Mathews & Marrot. 1931.
11. Web site: Remembering Tommy Agar Robartes 30 September 1915. 30 September 2015.
12. Web site: Captain T C Agar Robartes. Imperial War Museums.
13. Web site: CAPT THE HON T C R AGAR ROBARTES - War Memorials Online. www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk.
14. Web site: St Hydroc's Church. National Trust.
15. Web site: Redirect Page. www.wimpolepast.co.uk.
16. Web site: Captain J Wingfield and Captain The Honourable T Agar Robartes. Imperial War Museums.
17. Web site: Agar-Robartes. UK Parliament.
18. Web site: Thomas Charles Reginald Agar-Robartes - War Memorials Online. www.warmemorialsonline.org.uk.