Christopher Soames

The Right Honourable The Lord Soames GCMG GCVO CH CBE PC
Soames in 1966
Governor of Southern Rhodesia
In office 11 December 1979 – 18 April 1980
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Preceded by	Humphrey Gibbs (1969) Josiah Zion Gumede[nb 1]
Succeeded by	Canaan Banana[nb 2]
Vice-President of the European Commission
In office 6 January 1973 – 5 January 1977
President	François-Xavier Ortoli
European Commissioner for External Relations
In office 6 January 1973 – 5 January 1977
President	François-Xavier Ortoli
Preceded by	Jean-François Deniau
Succeeded by	Wilhelm Haferkamp
Her Majesty's Ambassador to France
In office September 1968 – 27 October 1972
Preceded by	Patrick Reilly
Succeeded by	Edward Tomkins
Ministerial offices Leader of the House of Lords and Lord President of the Council In office 5 May 1979 – 14 September 1981 Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher Preceded by The Lord Peart (Lords) Michael Foot (Council) Succeeded by The Baroness Young (Lords) Francis Pym (Council) Shadow Foreign Secretary In office 11 November 1965 – 13 April 1966 Leader Edward Heath Preceded by Reginald Maudling Succeeded by Alec Douglas-Home Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food In office 27 July 1960 – 16 October 1964 Prime Minister Harold Macmillan Alec Douglas-Home Preceded by John Hare Succeeded by Fred Peart Secretary of State for War In office 6 January 1958 – 27 July 1960 Prime Minister Harold Macmillan Preceded by John Hare Succeeded by John Profumo Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty In office 9 January 1957 – 6 January 1958 Prime Minister Harold Macmillan Preceded by George Ward Succeeded by Robert Allan Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Air In office 6 April 1955 – 9 January 1957 Prime Minister Anthony Eden Preceded by George Ward Succeeded by Ian Orr-Ewing
Parliamentary offices Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal Life peerage 19 April 1978 – 16 September 1987 Member of Parliament for Bedford In office 23 February 1950 – 10 March 1966 Preceded by Thomas Skeffington-Lodge Succeeded by Brian Parkyn
Personal details
Born	Arthur Christopher John Soames (1920-10-12)12 October 1920 Penn, Buckinghamshire, England
Died	16 September 1987(1987-09-16) (aged 66) Odiham, Hampshire, England
Resting place	St Martin's Church, Bladon
Political party	Conservative
Spouse	Mary Churchill ​ (m. 1947)​
Children	5, including Nicholas, Emma and Rupert
Parent	Arthur Granville Soames (father)
Relatives	Winston Churchill (father‑in‑law)
Education	Eton College
Alma mater	Royal Military College, Sandhurst
n.b.1 ^ as President of Zimbabwe Rhodesia n.b.2 ^ as President of Zimbabwe

Arthur Christopher John Soames, Baron Soames, GCMG, GCVO, CH, CBE, PC (12 October 1920 – 16 September 1987) was a British Conservative politician who served as a European Commissioner and the last Governor of Southern Rhodesia. He was previously Member of Parliament (MP) for Bedford from 1950 to 1966. He held several government posts and attained Cabinet rank.