1953, produced by North & Sons, West Wycombe, numbered 31, covered with blue velvet bearing the monogram ER II beneath a crown, stamped and branded to the underside, one corner block stamped "P.S" beneath a crown, 85cm high x 49.5cm x 43cm deep
| Estimate: | £500 - £1,000 |
| Hammer price: | £800 |
Provenance: Sir Horace Holmes (1888-1971) and thence by descent
Born in Weston, Notts., Holmes received an elementary education before becoming a coal miner. During World War I, he served as a sergeant in the Leeds Rifles, and received the Distinguished Conduct Medal. After the war, he returned to mining, and from 1923 was secretary of his branch of the Yorkshire Miners' Association. From 1923 until 1946, he also served on Royston Urban District Council, and for eleven years, he additionally served on the West Riding County Council.
Sponsored by his union, Holmes was elected unopposed as Member of Parliament for Hemsworth at a by-election in 1946 following the death of the sitting MP George Griffiths. Holmes held the seat at the next three general elections, each time with the largest Labour majority in the election. From 1947 until 1951, he was Parliamentary Private Secretary to the successive Ministers of Fuel and Power, Hugh Gaitskell and Philip Noel-Baker. He then became the Labour Whip for the Yorkshire members.
Holmes stood down at the 1959 general election. He was knighted in 1966, and died in 1971.
Sir Horace Holmes attended The Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II along with his wife Lady Nellie Holmes, in seat numbers 31 and 375 respectively. Lady Nellie Holmes's chair is offered in the following lot (260).
The Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was held on 2nd June 1953 at Westminster Abbey.
The ceremony was a very large celebration with several thousand distinguished guests in attendance. The numbers of guests were fewer than George VI coronation, due to the reduction in seating behind the alter. Planning for such an important event took over 12 months. The design of the chairs and stools produced for the ceremony was taken from those created for the King George VI Coronation in 1937. The Ministry of Works were responsible for commissioning all furnishings for the coronation. As had been the case for George VI coronation furniture manufacturers based in High Wycombe, the centre of English chair making during this period, produced all of the chairs and stools. A range of companies manufactured the furniture including; B. North & Sons; W. Hands & Sons; Thomas Glenister Ltd.; Castle Bros. (all firms in High Wycombe); Maple & Co., and Waring & Gillow. The blue velvet coverings were made at Listers Mills in Bradford, Yorkshire.
