Evelyn Francis Edward Seymour, 17th Duke of SomersetDSOOBEDL (1 May 1882 – 26 April 1954) was a British Armyofficer, landowner, peer, and for eight years Lord Lieutenant of Wiltshire. He was also a baronet. Between 1 May 1882 and 5 May 1931, he was styled as Lord Seymour.
During the Second World War, Somerset returned to the army. With effect from 1 November 1939, he was appointed a Lieutenant Colonel of the Devonshire Regiment,[6] in which he commanded a battalion, and he later held an appointment as a full Colonel on the General Staff.
On 19 March 1949, "having exceeded the age limit", he relinquished his commission as an honorary Colonel of the Devon Regiment on retired pay.[8] In 1950, he was appointed a knight of the Venerable Order of Saint John.[9]
In London on 3 January 1906, he married Edith Mary Parker (d. Maiden Bradley, Wiltshire, 19 April 1962), daughter of William Parker (1816–1893), of Whittington Hall, Derbyshire, England, and Lucinda Steeves (1842–1920), daughter of William Steeves. Evelyn and Edith had four children:
The Hon. Francis William Seymour (1906–1907), who died young.
The Hon. Algernon Francis Edward Seymour (1908–1911), who died young.
Lady Susan Mary Seymour (1913–2004), who died unmarried and without issue.
Somerset was a member of The Magic Circle for many years, having first joined it in 1907, after becoming a pupil of the magician Ernest Noakes. He became the organization's president in 1935, after the death of Lord Ampthill.
The Duke died in London on 26 April 1954.
Ancestry
Ancestors of Evelyn Seymour, 17th Duke of Somerset