Sackville Lane-Fox, 12th Baron Conyers


Sackville George Lane-Fox, 12th Baron Conyers and de jure 15th Baron Darcy de Knayth was a British peer and soldier.

Early life

Lane-Fox was the eldest son of Lady Charlotte Osborne and Sackville Lane-Fox, a British Conservative Party politician. His younger brother, Charles Pierrepont Darcy Lane-Fox, was wounded at the Battle of Alma while an officer in the Crimean War.
His father was the third son of James Fox-Lane of Bramham Park and Hon. Marcia Lucy Pitt. His grandfather was a Member of Parliament for Horsham and through his uncle William Lane-Fox and his wife, Lady Caroline Douglas, he was first cousin of Augustus Pitt Rivers. His mother was the only childhood-surviving daughter of the George Osborne, 6th Duke of Leeds and Lady Charlotte Townshend. His maternal uncle was Francis D'Arcy-Osborne, 7th Duke of Leeds.

Career

On 7 August 1846, he became a cornet by purchase in the Royal Horse Guards and exchanged to the 13th Light Dragoons on 28 December 1849. He retired from the regiment in April 1850.
He returned to the Army after the outbreak of the Crimean War. On 29 December 1854, he was commissioned an ensign in the 21st Regiment of Foot. Lane-Fox served with the regiment at the Siege of Sevastopol, for which he later received the medal and clasp. He exchanged as a lieutenant into the 87th Regiment of Foot on 22 July 1856 and retired from the regiment around June 1859.
He was appointed a cornet in the Yorkshire Hussars on 24 May 1861, but retired from the regiment in September and became a lieutenant in the Royal East Kent Yeomanry on 19 May 1863.

Titles and estates

In 1859, Lane-Fox had inherited the Portuguese countship of Mértola and the baronies of Darcy de Knayth and Conyers from his maternal uncle the 7th Duke of Leeds. The Dukedom was inherited by the 7th Duke's cousin, George Osborne.

Personal life

On 14 August 1860, Lord Conyers married Mary Curteis, daughter of Capt. Reginald Curteis and the former Frances Mary Reynolds. Together, they had three children:
On Lord Conyers' death in 1888 his English baronies became abeyant between his two daughters; the barony of Conyers became granted to Marcia in 1892, that of Darcy de Knayth became granted to his other daughter, Violet in 1903. His Portuguese countship passed to Marcia with immediate effect. His widow, Lady Conyers, died on 12 November 1921.