Bernard Halsey-Bircham
Sir Bernard Edward Halsey-Bircham, GCVO, JP (born Halsey; 1869–1945) was an English lawyer and the private solicitor to George V from 1922 to 1936.
Early life[edit]
Born on 1 January 1869, he was the younger son of Edward Joseph Halsey, of Henley Park in Surrey, and his wife Katharine, daughter of F. T. Bircham, of Burhill.[1] He attended Eton College and was admitted a solicitor in 1891.[1] In 1895, he changed his surname to Halsey-Bircham.[2]
Career and later life[edit]
Eventually, Halsey-Bircham became senior partner in the law firm of Bircham and Co., which practised in parliamentary and commercial law. During the First World War, he was a legal adviser to the Ministry of Food. In 1922, he was appointed private solicitor to George V. He was appointed a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order in 1925 and promoted to Knight Grand Cross after the king's death in 1936.[1]
Halsey-Bircham had also been involved in local affairs. He was a magistrate in Surrey and chaired the county council. He died on 11 July 1945; by his wife Ivy Clelia, née Vaughan (a daughter of Arthur Powys-Vaughan), he left a son.[1] Two photographic portraits of Halsey-Bircham are housed in the National Portrait Gallery, London.[3]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d "Sir Bernard Halsey Bircham", The Times (London), 12 July 1945, p. 7. Gale CS118833388
- ^ "Halsey-Bircham, Sir Bernard Edward", Who Was Who (online ed., Oxford University Press, 2021). Retrieved 28 July 2021.
- ^ NPG x165267 and x168080: "Sir Bernard Edward Halsey-Bircham", National Portrait Gallery, London. Retrieved 28 July 2021.