Earl of Ypres was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1922 for Field Marshal John French, 1st Viscount French. He was Chief of the Imperial General Staff from 1912 to 1914, Commander of the British Expeditionary Force in the First World War from 1914 to 1915 and Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland from 1919 to 1922. French had already been created Viscount French, of Ypres and of High Lake in the County of Roscommon, in 1916. This title was also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. He was succeeded by his son, the second Earl. He was a Captain in the Royal Artillery as well as a talented artist. On his death the titles passed to his son, the third Earl. He fought in the Second World War as a Captain in the King's Royal Rifle Corps. Lord Ypres had four daughters but no sons and on his death in 1988 his titles became extinct. His youngest daughter, Lady Lucy French, became a prominent journalist and has done extensive work for charity and fundraising for the arts; most notably for Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre.
The suffragette and writer Charlotte Despard was the elder sister of the first Earl.
Read more about Earl Of Ypres: Earls of Ypres (1922)
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