His mother's great-grandfather was Dutch and great-grandmother was a Sumatran. Gwynne's two older brothers, Reginald and Neville, were both disinherited by their father.[7] Gwynne therefore inherited Wootton Manor on his father's death in 1915 and with his wife commissioned their friend Detmar Blow to restore and extend the house. Other artistic friends included the painter Cedric Morris, who painted Wootton in the 1920s and the writer and plantsman William Robinson.[8]
Gwynne had had a weak heart all his life after having contracted rheumatic fever as a youth, but died suddenly of kidney failure on 12 October 1924, aged 51. His brother, Roland, was the last person to see him alive. His death certificate had the note 'No P.M.' suggesting the doctor, Lionel Handson, was uneasy about his death and called the coroner for his advice.[10] Roland inherited Wootton Manor, but allowed Rupert's widow, Stella, and her daughters to remain there provided Stella did not remarry.[11]
^Ken Good, The House of Gwynne, Bookmarque Publishing 2002
^Craig, F. W. S. (1989) [1974]. British parliamentary election results 1885–1918 (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 403. ISBN0-900178-27-2.