Simon Isaacs, 4th Marquess of Reading
The Marquess of Reading | |
|---|---|
| Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |
| In office 2 July 1980 – 11 November 1999 Hereditary peerage | |
| Preceded by | The 3rd Marquess of Reading |
| Succeeded by | seat abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 18 May 1942 |
| Spouse | Victoria Melinda Dewar |
| Children | 3, including Lady Natasha Rufus Isaacs |
| Parent(s) | Michael Isaacs, 3rd Marquess of Reading Margot Duke |
Simon Rufus Isaacs, 4th Marquess of Reading (born 18 May 1942),[1] is a British peer, banker and philanthropist.
Biography
[edit]Early life
[edit]Simon Rufus Isaacs was born on 18 May 1942.[2]
His father was Michael Isaacs, 3rd Marquess of Reading, and his mother was Margot Irene (née Duke).[3] His paternal grandfather was Gerald Isaacs, 2nd Marquess of Reading. His paternal great-grandfather was Rufus Isaacs, 1st Marquess of Reading. He became the fourth Marquess of Reading after his father's death in 1980. His maternal great-grandparents were Alfred Moritz Mond, 1st Baron Melchett, and Violet Mond, Baroness Melchett. Violet Mond's grandfather was Ludwig Mond, chemist and industrialist, who created the Mond process to extract and purify nickel.
Career
[edit]He was a lieutenant in 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards from 1961 to 1964.[2]
He worked as a stockbroker from 1964 to 1974, and he was a member of the London Stock Exchange from 1970 to 1974.[2] From 1975 to 1980, he was marketing director of Brahmco International.[2] He worked for Ralph Lauren Cosmetics from 1979 to 1983.[2] He then worked for Abbey Lubbock and Abbey Sports and Events from 1984 to 1992.[2]
He was a business partner of Prince Michael of Kent.[4]
Philanthropy
[edit]Reading was Chairman of the Land's End John o' Groats Club from 1992 to 1996.[2] He served as director of the Global Flying Hospitals from 1996 to 2000.[2] From 1990 to 2000, he was president of the Dean Close School in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.[2] He has served on the Board of Directors of CURE International since 2004, and of the Mertens House in Saint Petersburg, Russia since 2008.[2] He served as a member of the Council of the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem from 2002 to 2008.[2]
He is a patron of the Nelson Recovery Trust and, since 1998, of the Barnabas Fund.[2]
In 2003, he criticized the decision made by the vice-chancellor of the University of Sussex, Alasdair Smith, to sell Swanborough Manor in Iford, East Sussex, which was donated by his step-great-grandmother, Stella Isaacs, Marchioness of Reading (1894–1971), in the hope that it would serve as the main residence of the vice-chancellor until 2021.[5]
In May 2022 Lord Reading was one of the Patrons of The Royal Versailles Ball, a charitable event which took place at the Palace of Versailles. Earlier that year, he was awarded the Order of Menelik II (Grand Cross) by the Crown Council of Ethiopia for his charitable work.[6]
Personal life
[edit]Lord Reading married Melinda Dewar on 12 May 1979. They have three children:
- Lady Sybilla Alice Rufus Isaacs (3 November 1980) she married Charles B. B. Hart on 9 July 2005. They have four children:
- Lady Natasha Rufus Isaacs (24 April 1983) she married Rupert Finch on 8 June 2013. They have three daughters.
- Julian Rufus Isaacs, Viscount Erleigh (26 May 1986)
In May 2021 he announced his intention to seek Israeli citizenship.[7]
Honours
[edit]
- Knight Grand Cross, Order of Menelik II.
References
[edit]- ^ "Birthday's today". The Telegraph. 18 May 2011. Archived from the original on 19 May 2011. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
the Marquess of Reading 69
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l DeBrett's
- ^ National Portrait Gallery
- ^ "Prince Michael of Kent's army role questioned after claims he sold access to Kremlin". TheGuardian.com. 9 May 2021.
- ^ James Trollope, The manor of its going, The Daily Telegraph, 15 March 2003
- ^ "The Royal Versailles Ball". Archived from the original on 20 February 2022. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
To request access please contact the committee.
- ^ Frazer, Jenni (28 May 2021). "Marquess of Reading set to take Israeli citizenship". The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
External links
[edit]
- 1942 births
- Living people
- English Jews
- English people of Portuguese-Jewish descent
- English people of German-Jewish descent
- People from Bisley, Gloucestershire
- English bankers
- English philanthropists
- Marquesses of Reading
- Hereditary peers removed under the House of Lords Act 1999
- Recipients of orders, decorations, and medals of Ethiopia