#7341, Arthur Nicholas Winston SOAMES

In 1967 the Hon. Nicholas was a 2nd Lt. in the 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own). He was an Extra Equerry to HRH The Prince of Wales between 1970 and 1972 and served as the MP for Crawley from 1983 to 1997. He was chairman of the Conservative Party from 1984 to 1992; Parliamentary Private Secretary at the same time to the Minister of State for Employment. He became Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State to the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in 1992 and Minister of State Armed Forces at the Ministry of Defence in 1994. He was again elected to be an MP, this time for Mid Sussex in 1997, a post he held until 1999. He was appointed Knight Bachelor in 2014.

In an article entitled 'All the King's horses and all the King's friends' in the DT of 23rd June 2023, Nicholas Soames was mentioned thus: The grandson of Sir Winston Churchill, Nicholas Soames has been one of Charles's closest confidants for decades.  The pair got to know each other in 1970 when Soames was appointed equerry to Charles, a position he held for two years.  Soames raised his head above the parapet when he criticised Diana Princess of Wales, for her conduct during the couple's estrangement, blaming it on her 'paranoia'.  When Charles later admitted adultery, Soames apologised.  Despit no longer working for the palace (he left in the 1970s to become a stockbroker and later a Conservative MP) he remains very loyal to his old friend, and even hit the headlines once again when he described Prince Harry's recent behaviour as 'cruel' and 'hurtful' on a radio show.