Francis Pym facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Right Honourable The Lord Pym MC PC DL
Pym in 1982
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
In office 6 April 1982 – 11 June 1983
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	The Lord Carrington
Succeeded by	Geoffrey Howe
Lord President of the Council
In office 14 September 1981 – 5 April 1982
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	The Lord Soames
Succeeded by	John Biffen
Leader of the House of Commons
In office 5 January 1981 – 5 April 1982
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Norman St John-Stevas
Succeeded by	John Biffen
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
In office 5 January 1981 – 14 September 1981
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Norman St John-Stevas
Succeeded by	The Baroness Young
Paymaster General
In office 5 January 1981 – 14 September 1981
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Angus Maude
Succeeded by	Cecil Parkinson
Secretary of State for Defence
In office 4 May 1979 – 5 January 1981
Prime Minister	Margaret Thatcher
Preceded by	Fred Mulley
Succeeded by	John Nott
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
In office 2 December 1973 – 4 March 1974
Prime Minister	Edward Heath
Preceded by	William Whitelaw
Succeeded by	Merlyn Rees
Chief Whip of the House of Commons and Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury
In office 19 June 1970 – 2 December 1973
Prime Minister	Edward Heath
Preceded by	Bob Mellish
Succeeded by	Humphrey Atkins
Shadow Cabinet posts Shadow Foreign Secretary In office 6 November 1978 – 4 May 1979 Leader Margaret Thatcher Preceded by John Davies Succeeded by Peter Shore Shadow Leader of the House of Commons In office 19 November 1976 – 6 November 1978 Leader Margaret Thatcher Preceded by John Peyton Succeeded by Norman St John-Stevas Shadow Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food In office 4 March 1974 – 19 November 1976 Leader Edward Heath Margaret Thatcher Preceded by Norman Buchan Succeeded by Michael Jopling Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland In office 4 March 1974 – 29 October 1974 Leader Edward Heath Preceded by Merlyn Rees Succeeded by Ian Gilmour
Parliamentary offices Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal Life peerage 9 October 1987 – 7 March 2008 Member of Parliament for South East Cambridgeshire In office 9 June 1983 – 18 May 1987 Preceded by New constituency Succeeded by Jim Paice Member of Parliament for Cambridgeshire In office 17 March 1961 – 13 May 1983 Preceded by Gerald Howard Succeeded by Constituency abolished
Personal details
Born	Francis Leslie Pym (1922-02-13)13 February 1922 Abergavenny, Wales
Died	7 March 2008(2008-03-07) (aged 86) Sandy, Bedfordshire, England
Political party	Conservative
Spouse	Valerie Daglish ​ (m. 1949)​
Children	4
Parent	Leslie Pym (father)
Education	Eton College
Alma mater	Magdalene College, Cambridge

Francis Leslie Pym, also known as Lord Pym, was an important British politician. He was a member of the Conservative Party. He held many important jobs in the British government during the 1970s and 1980s. These included being the Foreign Secretary, Defence Secretary, and Northern Ireland Secretary. He was also the Leader of the House of Commons.

Pym was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Cambridgeshire (and later South East Cambridgeshire) from 1961 to 1987. After leaving the House of Commons, he became a life peer in 1987, which meant he could sit in the House of Lords.

Early Life and Military Service

Pym was born on February 13, 1922, in Abergavenny, Wales. His father, Leslie Pym, was also an MP. His grandfather, Walter Pym, was a bishop in India.

Francis Pym went to Eton College, a famous school, and then to Magdalene College, Cambridge for university. During World War II, he served in the army. He fought in North Africa and Italy as a captain and later a major. He was recognized for his bravery and was awarded the Military Cross. Before becoming a politician, Pym managed land and businesses.

Political Career Highlights

Pym started his political journey in 1958 as a member of the Herefordshire County Council. He first tried to become an MP in 1959 but wasn't successful. However, in 1961, he won a special election to become the MP for Cambridgeshire. He represented this area until 1987.

Key Government Roles

Pym held several important positions in the government:

• He was the Government Chief Whip from 1970 to 1973 under Prime Minister Edward Heath. The Chief Whip makes sure that members of their party vote in the way the party wants.
• He became the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 1973 to 1974. This job involved overseeing government matters in Northern Ireland.
• Under Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, he served as Secretary of State for Defence from 1979 to 1981. In this role, he was in charge of the country's armed forces.
• He was also the Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council from 1981 to 1982. The Leader of the House helps manage the business of Parliament.

Foreign Secretary and Later Years

In 1982, during the Falklands War, Pym became the Foreign Secretary. This meant he was in charge of how Britain dealt with other countries. He took over this role after the previous Foreign Secretary resigned.

After Margaret Thatcher won another election in 1983, she removed Pym from his position. Pym was known as one of the "wets" within the Conservative Party. This was a nickname for members who were not fully supportive of Margaret Thatcher's strong, free-market policies, known as Thatcherism.

During the 1983 election campaign, Pym famously said that "Landslides don't on the whole produce successful governments." This statement was not popular with Thatcher, and he was removed from his job after the election. He then started a group called Conservative Centre Forward. This group wanted the Conservative Party to follow more moderate policies. However, it was not very successful because Thatcher was very powerful at the time.

Pym retired from being an MP in 1987. He was then made a life peer, which gave him the title of Baron Pym. This allowed him to continue serving in the House of Lords until his death.

Books and Portrayals

In 1984, after leaving the government, Pym wrote a book called The Politics of Consent. This book explained the views of the "wets" and their disagreements with Margaret Thatcher's leadership style and policies.

Francis Pym has been shown in several films and TV shows:

• He was played by Jeremy Child in the 2002 BBC show The Falklands Play.
• Julian Wadham played him in the 2011 movie The Iron Lady.
• Guy Siner played him in the fourth season of The Crown.

Personal Life

Francis Pym passed away on March 7, 2008, in Sandy, Bedfordshire, at the age of 86, after a long illness.

He was married to Valerie Daglish in 1949. They had four children together. Valerie passed away in 2017.

See also

In Spanish: Francis Pym para niños