Name Thomas 2nd Role Hereditary peer | Education Eton College | |
Thomas Edward Bridges, 2nd Baron Bridges, GCMG (27 November 1927 – 27 May 2017) was a British hereditary peer and diplomat.
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Early life
Bridges was born on 27 November 1927 to Edward Bridges, the Cabinet Secretary. His grandfather was Robert Bridges, the Poet Laureate. He was educated at Eton College and New College, Oxford.
Career
He joined the Diplomatic Service in 1951. Following postings to, amongst other places, West Berlin, Rio de Janeiro, Moscow and Washington, D.C., he was HM Ambassador to Italy from 1983 to 1987.
He sat as a crossbench member of the House of Lords from 1975, and was one of the ninety hereditary peers elected to remain under the House of Lords Act 1999 He was on leave of absence from March 2011 to May 2015. Having failed to attend during the whole of the 2015–16 session without being on leave of absence, he ceased to be a member on 18 May 2016 pursuant to section 2 of the House of Lords Reform Act 2014. He died a year later on 27 May 2017 at the age of 89.
Personal life
Bridges was married to Rachel Mary Bunbury (1926–2005), youngest daughter of Sir Henry Noel Bunbury KCB. They have three children:
The Conservative peer, The Lord Bridges of Headley, is his nephew.
Honours
In 1969, Bridges succeeded to the barony of Bridges upon the death of his father. In the 1975 New Year Honours, he was appointed to the Order of St Michael and St George as a Companion (CMG). In the 1983 New Year Honours, Bridges was promoted within the same Order as a Knight Commander (KCMG). In the 1988 New Year Honours, Bridges was promoted within the same Order as a Knight Grand Cross (GCMG).