Philip Richardson

Sir Philip Wigham Richardson, 1st Baronet, OBE (26 January 1865 – 23 November 1953) was a British sport shooter and Conservative politician. He was the first son of John Wigham Richardson, the shipbuilder from Newcastle upon Tyne. He also competed at the 1908 Summer Olympics and the 1912 Summer Olympics.[1]

For the Archbishop of New Zealand, see Philip Richardson (bishop).

Sir Philip Richardson, 1st Baronet
OBE
Richardson in 1923
Member of Parliament
for Chertsey
In office
24 March 1922 – 7 October 1931
Preceded bySir Donald Macmaster
Succeeded byArchibald Boyd-Carpenter
Personal details
Born(1865-01-26)26 January 1865
Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Died23 November 1953(1953-11-23) (aged 88)
Weybridge, Surrey, England
Political partyConservative
Parent
Sports career
SportSports shooting
Medal record
Men's shooting
Representing  United Kingdom
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place1908 LondonMilitary rifle, team

Biography

Richardson was born on 26 January 1865 in Newcastle upon Tyne, the eldest son of shipbuilder John Wigham Richardson.[2] He was educated at Rugby School and King's College, Cambridge. He joined the shipbuilding company his father had founded on Tyneside in 1859. He was made a director in 1891 and continued to be a director after the amalgamation of his company with C. S. Swan and Hunter, Ltd., to form the shipbuilding and engineering company of Swan, Hunter and Wigham Richardson. During his association with the company he travelled extensively in search of orders and continued to serve as a director after he retired from the chairmanship of the company, a position which he occupied from 1945 to 1949.

He married Rosa América Colorado from Cuba in 1891 with whom he had three children, John Edward Colorado Richardson (1892), William Wigham Richardson (1893) George Wigham Richardson (1895). He divorced his first wife in 1897. In 1909 he married Bertha Anne Greenley with whom he had one daughter Irene Geraldine Wigham.

Richardson competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics and 1912 Summer Olympics.[3] In the 1908 Olympics he won a silver medal in the team military rifle event. Four years later he was 65th in the 300 metre military rifle, three positions event and 33rd in the 600 metre free rifle event. Appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1919, he was knighted in 1921.[4][5]

Richardson was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for Chertsey at a by-election in March 1922, and held the seat until he retired from the House of Commons at the 1931 general election.[6] On 26 July 1929 he was created a Baronet, of Weybridge in the County of Surrey.[7]

He led a colourful life travelling very widely around the world especially in Latin America, Africa, India and Eastern Europe. He drove across the Sahara desert in 1937 and piloted his own light aircraft.

In 1952 he published his autobiography, It happened to me: Being the reminiscences of Sir Philip Wigham Richardson.

He died at his home in Weybridge on the night of 23 November 1953, aged 88.[2]

References
  1. "Philip Richardson". Olympedia. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
  2. "The Times Archive". The Times & The Sunday Times. 25 November 1953. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  3. "Sports Reference: Philip Richardson". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 18 February 2014.
  4. "No. 32346". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 June 1921. p. 4531.
  5. "No. 32461". The London Gazette. 20 September 1921. pp. 7381–7381.
  6. Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918–1949 (3rd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 473. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
  7. "No. 33523". The London Gazette. 6 August 1929. p. 5143.
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