Great Bealings – St. Mary’s Church (John Julian Ganzoni, 2nd Baron Belstead)
Whilst meandering around St. Mary’s Church in Great Bealings, this grave caught my eye, commemorating the life of John Julian Ganzoni, 2nd Baron Belstead (1932-2005). John Julian Ganzoni was born on 30 September 1932, the only son of Sir (Francis) John Childs Ganzoni and Gwendolen Gertrude Turner. His father was a distinguished figure in his own right who was a barrister by profession and a long-serving Conservative Member of Parliament for Ipswich, who was elevated to the peerage as the 1st Baron Belstead in 1938. The first Lord Belstead had also served his country during the First World War as an officer in the Suffolk Regiment and his mother, Gwendolen, was the daughter of Arthur Turner, also of Ipswich.
John Julian grew up with an elder sister, The Honourable Jill Ganzoni, who would later become known for her philanthropic endeavours, notably her significant contributions to the Belstead Centre at Woodbridge School, a lasting tribute to the family name in Suffolk. An early, perhaps formative, brush with the world of high politics occurred in his childhood when he and his sister Jill were presented to the then Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin, at their parents’ Ipswich home which must have been really rather exciting. Such an environment, where political discourse and public service were familiar concepts, likely instilled in the young Ganzoni a nascent understanding of duty, even if his own political ambitions were not to surface for some years.
When his father died in 1958, it meant that he joined the House of Lords, but it took him several years to make his maiden speech. Matters changed somewhat though over the next few decades as he was given appointments by numerous Prime Ministers. I think we need a table here….
| Role | Department/Body | Dates | Prime Minister(s) Served Under |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State | Department of Education and Science | 1970–1973 | Edward Heath |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State | Northern Ireland Office | 1973–1974 | Edward Heath |
| Chairman | Association of Governing Bodies of Public Schools | 1974–1979 | N/A |
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State | Home Office | 1979–1982 | Margaret Thatcher |
| Minister of State | Foreign and Commonwealth Office | 1982–1983 | Margaret Thatcher |
| Minister of State | Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food | 1983–1987 | Margaret Thatcher |
| Deputy Leader of the House of Lords | House of Lords | 1983–1987 | Margaret Thatcher |
| Minister of State | Department of the Environment | 1987–1988 | Margaret Thatcher |
| Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal | House of Lords / Privy Council Office | 1988–1990 | Margaret Thatcher |
| Paymaster General | HM Treasury | 1990–1992 | John Major |
| Minister of State | Northern Ireland Office | 1990–1992 | John Major |
After retiring from Government, in 1992 he took over as Chairman of the Parole Board for five years and was known throughout his career as a compassionate Conservative. He died in 2005 without children and when his sister, Honourable Jill Ganzoni, died in 2022 her ashes were scattered next to his which all seems really rather lovely.
