Benjamin Bathurst, 2nd Viscount Bledisloe


Benjamin Ludlow Bathurst, 2nd Viscount Bledisloe, QC was a British barrister.

Background and education

Born at Westbury, Wiltshire, Bledisloe was the eldest son of Charles Bathurst, 1st Viscount Bledisloe, and the Hon. Bertha Susan Lopes, daughter of Henry Lopes, 1st Baron Ludlow. He was educated at Eton and Magdalen College, Oxford. He was a distinguished rower at Oxford, helping the Magdalen crew win the Grand Challenge Cup at Henley in 1920.

Career

In 1927, he was called to the Bar at the Inner Temple and Lincoln's Inn.
Bledisloe fought in the First World War and gained the rank of Second Lieutenant in the service of the Royal Artillery. He returned to military service during the Second World War, where he served as a Squadron Leader in the Royal Air Force. In 1956, he was appointed a bencher of Lincoln's Inn. Bathurst succeeded his father in the viscountcy in 1958. He was a regular contributor in the House of Lords, speaking 64 times between 1959 and 1979.

Family

Lord Bledisloe married Joan, daughter of Otto Krishaber, on 2 June 1933. They had two sons:
Lord Bledisloe died in September 1979, aged 79, and was succeeded in the viscountcy by his eldest son. Lady Bledisloe died in December 1999.