David Alexander Cospatrick Douglas-Home, 15th Earl of Home, (20 November 1943 – 22 August 2022) was a British banker and hereditary peer. He was a Conservative member of the House of Lords from 1996 until his death in 2022.

Background and education

Home was born in London, the only son of Sir Alec Douglas-Home, the 14th Earl of Home and British prime minister and later Lord Home of the Hirsel, and Elizabeth Alington, daughter of Cyril Alington. He was educated at Ludgrove School, Eton College, and Christ Church, Oxford. In 1963, the year his father disclaimed his earldom (and became prime minister), David discontinued the use of his courtesy title, Lord Dunglass.

Career

Home succeeded to his father's disclaimed earldom after his death in October 1995. When the hereditary peers of the House of Lords were reduced under the House of Lords Act 1999, he was elected as one of the 92 that were allowed to remain. He sat as a Conservative, having served some time on the Conservative front bench. Apart from his political career, Lord Home worked in finance. In 1974, he joined Morgan Grenfell and worked in Egypt, Hong Kong, and Thailand. From 1999 to 2013, he was chairman of the private bank Coutts & Co. He was also President of the British Association for Shooting and Conservation and Chief of the Name and Arms of Home. Home was appointed a Knight of the Order of the Thistle (KT) in the 2014 New Year Honours.

Personal life

Lord Home married Jane Margaret Williams-Wynne (born 20 February 1949), of the Williams-Wynn baronet family, in 1972. They had three children:

Death

Lord Home died from lung disease at The Hirsel on 22 August 2022, at the age of 78. He was succeeded in the earldom by his only son, Michael.

Honours and arms

Honours

Arms

Ancestry