Dermot de Trafford
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Sir Dermot Humphrey de Trafford, 6th Baronet,
Early life and education
Dermot de Trafford was born at
In 1938, he returned to England to study Modern Languages at
In 1943, he joined the Royal Navy as a Probationary Temporary Midshipman, Special Branch, Special Service,
He served in Egypt and Turkey, where he became a 1st Class Interpreter attached to the Eastern Mediterranean Coastal Forces. In April 1944, Dermot was attached to the Royal Naval Reserve under Lt Colonel Bill Toombs as Intelligence Office and resident Turkish interpreter at the Coastal Forces Base. In September 1945 he sailed for Greece to assist the British forces fighting with the Greek Government in the Greek Civil War, serving in the operations room at the Naval Academy.
Following the Greek troubles, Dermot was appointed Naval Liaison Officer at Kavala. From there he served in Athens as part of M9/M19 the escape organisation, seeking out and rewarding natives who had assisted the allied personnel during the war. After the completion of this project Dermot was demobbed and returned to Britain via Malta.[1]
By the end of his career Dermot had gained the rank of Lieutenant-Commander and in 1961 he was awarded the
Post war
Following his Naval service, Sir Dermot returned to education at
In business
During the 1950s, Dermot served on the board of several industrial firms, which in 1961 he merged into a public company; The GHP (General Hydraulic Power) Group, becoming the first Managing Director, then Chairman in 1966. In 1976, GHP was merged with Low and Bonar and he became Vice-Chairman until June 1982 when he was appointed Chairman. He became a director of Imperial Continental Gas Association in 1963, serving as Deputy Chairman from 1972 to 1987, and chairing a number of their UK subsidiaries, including Compair and Calor Gas. From 1971 to 1987, he represented their interests by serving as a director of Petrofina SA. He retired from business in 1990 at the age of 65.
Banking career
During his career, Sir Dermot served on the board of several European financial institutions including the BNP Paribas (Banque de Paris et des Pays Bas Ltd); Banque Belge Ltd; Belgian & General Investments and Friars Investment Trust.
Post retirement
Following his retirement from his business interests in 1990, Dermot became involved in charity work, he became a director of the Andover Crisis and Support Centre and of People Need Homes Plc. The latter was a continuation of a long interest in improving housing conditions, which had earlier led to him becoming a director of Hummingbird Housing Association and Hyde Housing Association. He also served terms as Chairman 1990-1992 and Vice-President 1993-1994 of the Institute of Directors.[3]
Personal life
Dermot married Patricia Beeley in 1948.
In 1972, Dermot and Patricia oversaw the sale of the 2,430-acre (9.8 km2)
Dermot and Patricia were divorced in 1973. On 22 December 1973, Dermot de Trafford married Xandra Carandini Walter, only daughter of
Sir Dermot de Trafford died on 22 January 2010, three days after his 85th birthday, from undisclosed causes.
References
- ^ a b de Trafford, Dermot (2003). As I Liked It.
- ^ a b c d Charles Mosley (ed.). Burke's Peerage and Baronetage. Vol. 1 (107 ed.). p. 1114.
- ^ a b "The Times & The Sunday Times". The Times. Retrieved 24 August 2018. (subscription required)
- ^ The Times, 30 June 1948.
- ^ The Times, 17 February 1972
- ^ "Christopher Lee Biography (1922-)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved 24 August 2018.
- ^ Merchant of menace Telegraph.co.uk
- ^ "I thought I'd never be happy again - Theatre - Going Out - London Eve…". Archived from the original on 5 May 2013.