Richard Grosvenor Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax (born 29 January 1958) is a British Conservative politician, journalist and landowner, serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Dorset since 2010 . They are using the old class thing and that is not what this election is about. The current owner is Richard Drax, a British member of parliament, who inherited the property after the death of his father, Henry Walter Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax (1928-2017), a former High Sheriff of Dorset. We revealed he is the wealthiest landowner in the Commons and worth as much as 150million through a series of trusts. Once that process is completed, I will of course register it in proper accordance with the rules.. In Bridgetowns newly republican corridors of power, there is, of course, a wholly different viewpoint. ), was also an MP: for Chester 20 Feb. 1795-1826 and Stockbridge, 1826-1830. Published: 00:53 GMT, 3 December 2022 | Updated: 02:01 GMT, 3 December 2022. Something went wrong, please try again later. They were beaters hired for a game-shoot he hosted. Details: Leeds Mercury, 30 June 1887. Until 2008 the plantations covered some 880 acres, but the Draxes have sold more than 200 acres, some for housing development. It was suggested the then leader of the Conservative Party, David Cameron, had asked wealthy Conservative candidates to shorten their names to appear more in touch with normal people. On December 13 we told how the MP for South Dorset had taken control of the 250-hectare sugar plantation, which had a slave workforce from 1640-1836. Though Drax Hall is advertised as a holiday attraction, one of his descendants is the target of an increasingly vindictive campaign, orchestrated by civil rights activists backed by the ruling Barbados Labour Partys special envoy on reparations and economic enfranchisement. Drax was born on 29 January 1958 in Westminster. The Drax Hall plantation is not referred to in Richard Draxs Register of Members Interests declaration, and we could not find any family document referring directly to the plantations in the public domain since his great-grandmothers will in 1916, when the Baroness Dunsany bequeathed her estates and plantations in Barbados to her son, Richards grandfather. They justify this by claiming the psychological, social and economic damage caused by slavery continues today. Left his estate, including the plant and stock of the Hall Drax estate, Barbados, and his properties, furniture and other contents to his nephew, Wanley Ellis Sawbridge. Mr Drax, a rich, high-profile British MP, had been picked on precisely because was an easy target. The Drax family also owned slave plantations in Jamaica, which they sold in the mid-1800s. 3784 (Drax Hall). .]. . Brother of Henry Drax (-1790) and father of Sarah Frances Drax who married Richard Grosvenor (who became Richard Erle Drax Grosvenor [q.v.]). (LogOut/ For attempting to overthrow their plantation owner, in 1692, 42 slaves were castrated at the hands of a woman named Alice Miller, who received ten guineas for her service. Barbados is wholly justified in asking for the . Drax denied the accusations, saying that he only used the shortened version of his name because of the "logistic mouthful", while Cameron's comments were a "throw away joke". Male birth control gel you rub on your SHOULDERS could be available within a decade as scientists claim What lack of sleep REALLY does to your face: Expert reveals the warning signs your skin is suffering. Richardpassed away in 1370, at age 33 at death place. Richard Drax must live on a different planet to the many of his constituents desperately struggling to make ends meet. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. An updated register was published over Christmas, revealing an apparent scramble to declare father-of-four Mr Draxs previously unregistered business interests. Mr Drax had asked for their discussions to be private, Im told, but he arrived to find Ms Mottley accompanied by a coterie of messianic reparations campaigners. Inside Frogmore Cottage: Plush home Harry and Meghan have been 'evicted' from by King Charles boasts a roomy Charles evicting Harry and Meghan is the act of a King putting his country first: REBECCA ENGLISH reveals A royal princess at Eton? Following his death in 1887 the house and estate at Olantigh passed to his nephew, Wanley Ellis Sawbridge-Erle-Drax, who again shared his time between Charborough and Olantigh, until 1903 when the house burnt down. We shouldnt be asking anyone for money. A captain in the East Kent Militia; raised a troop of the Dorsetshire Yeomanry in 1830 to deal with the Swing Riots; patron of five church livings; appointed sheriff of Dorset, January 1840; a deputy-lieutenant of Dorset in the late 1850s. He holds the lordship of the manor of Longburton[citation needed] and is the largest individual landowner in Dorset, owning approximately 13,870 acres (5,610ha), equivalent to 2% of the land in Dorset. Mr Drax who has described his ancestors slavery role as deeply, deeply regrettable said: I have updated my entries to include the property in Barbados, although that disclosure is not necessary until it has been legally transferred to me. His great-uncle was the celebrated writer and playwright the 18th Lord Dunsany, and his maternal grandfather was General the Lord Weeks. Drax lives in his family's ancestral seat, Charborough House a Grade I listed manor house in rural Dorset. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. At least six of his ancestors, including John Samuel Wanley Sawbridge Erle-Drax and the 17th Lord Dunsany, were Members of Parliament for Dorset and Gloucestershire between the 1680s and 1880s. If Richard Drax was in front of me now, I would say: Mr Drax, the people of Barbados and Jamaica are entitled to reparatory justice., Beckles, the chair of the Caricom Reparations Commission and vice-chancellor of the University of the West Indies, said: Today, when I drive through the Drax Hall land and its environs, I feel a keen sense of being in a massive killing field with unmarked cemeteries. They are demanding that South Dorset MP Richard Drax, who now owns the estate, must pay a vast sum to compensate for the historic sins of his forebears. Together . Erle-Drax's two daughters pre-deceased him. About Richard. Paul Lashmar and Jonathan Smith write, Hes the MP with the Downton Abbey lifestyle. [1] I am keenly aware of the slave trade in the West Indies and the role my very distant ancestor played in it is deeply, deeply regrettable, but no one can be held responsible today for what happened many hundreds of years ago. Some new arrivals chose to hang themselves rather than face a lifetime of servitude, believing they would be resurrected and transported back to their homelands. The latest examples of this can be seen in the confusing and expensive mess of managing Covid-19. A Tory MP whose family made millions through slavery is facing calls for an investigation into his company records. The Draxes had also cemented a place at the heart of the establishment. A cousin is the 19th and present Lord Dunsany. Though Drax Hall is advertised as a holiday attraction, one of his descendants is the target of an increasingly vindictive campaign, orchestrated by civil rights activists backed by the ruling Barbados Labour Partys special envoy on reparations and economic enfranchisement. [1], The Barbados Government is seeking reparations from Drax for his ancestors' involvement in slavery. Black African people did that, but Ive never heard anyone say they should be held responsible. There has been speculation about whether the Drax family still owned the Barbados estate as absentee landlords, especially after Richards father Henry Drax died in 2017. Drax was born on 29 January 1958 in Westminster, London, into a landowner family. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. But this was only by comparison with other plantation bosses. Like many of his ancestors, Drax is a Dorset MP and is probably the wealthiest landowner in the House of Commons, with 5,600 hectares of farmland and woodlands. His brother William took their methods to Jamaica where the former plantation area is also still known as Drax Hall. Its not what I stand for and I ignore it., On Friday, Drax said: I am keenly aware of the slave trade in the West Indies, and the role my very distant ancestor played in it is deeply, deeply regrettable, but no one can be held responsible today for what happened many hundreds of years ago. The Barbadian revolutionary David Denny thinks otherwise. His grandson Henry concurred. The Prestigious school where Princes William and Harry were educated is EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: Prince William's potentially awkward visit to homelessness charity. Mr Thomas believes Britain and other European countries that profited from slavery, such as Spain, France, Portugal and Holland (who for many years dominated the trade), should compensate the Caribbean islands they plundered, but at a governmental level. The roads are filled with Beijing-built buses. Enjoying a few Independence Day drinks outside the Old Brigand pub, some locals suggested their absentee English estate owner (Richard Drax visits his estate only once a year and has never lived there) should be made to help needy families. See for the whole family, Burke, vol. [26] He also owns the 2,200-acre (890ha) Ellerton Abbey farming estate in Swaledale, North Yorkshire, and the nearby 520-acre (210ha) Copperthwaite Allotment grouse moor. [4] Drax was promoted lieutenant on 9 December 1980,[5] before being transferred to the Regular Army Reserve of Officers after active service on 9 December 1983, ending his first period of full-time military service. 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Yet are we to suppose that China, with its ruthless suppression of the Uighurs and Covid lockdown protesters, is morally superior to the unenlightened slavers of Stuart and Georgian England? document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window), Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window), Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), The shadow of slavery hangs over the gilded life of Richard Drax, No pickers, no coffee: How Covid threatens Colombias harvest, I believe, as do many of my constituents, that this country is full., https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/12/hes-the-mp-with-the-downton-abbey-lifestyle-but-the-shadow-of-slavery-hangs-over-the-gilded-life-of-richard-drax, Calls for Drax Hall to be opened to public as Barbados becomes a republic | Velvet classic, Barbados plans to make Tory MP pay reparations for familys slave past | Velvet classic, Barbados plans to make Tory MP pay reparations for households slave previous Repeating Islands - Bellejamaica, Follow Repeating Islands on WordPress.com, Centro de Estudios del CaribeCasa de las Americas, Attorney Claims Puerto Rico Was Unlawfully Exposed to Experiments, The white ex-naval officer who fathered Bob Marley was a British captain from Essex, Invasion of non-native reptile species continues in the Lesser Antilles, New Translation"A New Region of the World: Aesthetics I", TODAY! Sir James Drax, who hailed from a humble Warwickshire family, had just 300 when he sailed to Barbados with his brother, aged 18. [Many thanks to Peter Jordens for bringing this item to our attention.] Ought we to track down Frenchmen whose families fought with William the Conqueror at Hastings? Drax retained his seat in the 2015 general election with an increased majority and the 2017 general election. Powells was a constructive and humane challenge to the entrenched attitudes of psychiatric and nursing professionals. The Sawbridge and Erle-Drax families had estates in Dorset, Wiltshire, Somerset, Yorkshire (including Ellerton Abbey), Lincolnshire, Surrey, Suffolk and Barbados. The South Dorset MP, 63, started replacing entries after our enquiry in January. Erle-Drax also owned an estate at Holnest, Dorset where he built an elaborate mausoleum besides the parish church. But after he began experimenting with new methods of sugar production using techniques and equipment gleaned from the Dutch and Portuguese who cultivated it in Brazil his fortunes were quickly transformed. Tweet. Reputedly the richest landowner in the Commons, his portfolio of companies includes farms that grow poppies to make opium for the NHS and hops for craft breweries. Burke, vol. One firm, ACF Co Holdings Ltd, has new accounts showing its subsidiary Abbots Court Farm (Charborough) had made 577,563 profits, and had capital and reserves of more than 1.5m. When he first stood for parliament in 2010, he was asked by the Daily Mirror about his historical responsibility. But the shadow of slavery hangs over the gilded life of Richard Drax, adding that The hardline Tory Brexiters family made a fortune from their Caribbean plantations where thousands died. Now, Drax faces urgent calls for reparations. In the Chinese capital, there is even a Barbados development office, these days. Richard Grosvenor Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax (born 29 January 1958) is a British Conservative politician, journalist and landowner, serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Dorset since 2010. Richard Drax cannot be responsible for what his ancestors did 400 years ago. (LogOut/ [29], A 2020 investigation by The Guardian found that Richard Drax still owns and grows sugar on the same Drax Hall Estate in Barbados that made the family's fortune. Since his wealth is based on murder, kidnap and theft, the least he can do . My parents died in short succession and administration of both estates is ongoing. His brother, Thomas Grosvenor (1764-1851); of Grosvenor House, Walthamstow, Essex and Stocking Hall, Leics. Richard Drax's net worth The plantation was added to the register only after we told the MP we were running a story. The Drax Hall Plantation in Barbados was added to. 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