Edward Heath

The Right Honourable Sir Edward Heath KG MBE
Portrait by Allan Warren, 1987
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
In office 19 June 1970 – 4 March 1974
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Preceded by	Harold Wilson
Succeeded by	Harold Wilson
Leader of the Opposition
In office 4 March 1974 – 11 February 1975
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Prime Minister	Harold Wilson
Preceded by	Harold Wilson
Succeeded by	Margaret Thatcher
In office 28 July 1965 – 19 June 1970
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Prime Minister	Harold Wilson
Preceded by	Sir Alec Douglas-Home
Succeeded by	Harold Wilson
Leader of the Conservative Party
In office 28 July 1965 – 11 February 1975
Preceded by	Sir Alec Douglas-Home
Succeeded by	Margaret Thatcher
Father of the House of Commons
In office 9 April 1992 – 14 May 2001
Preceded by	Bernard Braine
Succeeded by	Tam Dalyell
Ministerial offices President of the Board of Trade In office 20 October 1963 – 16 October 1964 Prime Minister Sir Alec Douglas-Home Preceded by Fred Erroll Succeeded by Douglas Jay Secretary of State for Industry, Trade and Regional Development In office 20 October 1963 – 16 October 1964 Prime Minister Sir Alec Douglas-Home Preceded by Position created Succeeded by Position abolished Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal (Deputy Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs) In office 14 February 1960 – 18 October 1963 Prime Minister Harold Macmillan Preceded by The Viscount Hailsham Succeeded by Selwyn Lloyd Minister of Labour In office 14 October 1959 – 27 July 1960 Prime Minister Harold Macmillan Preceded by Iain Macleod Succeeded by John Hare Chief Whip of the House of Commons Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury In office 7 April 1955 – 14 June 1959 Prime Minister Sir Anthony Eden Harold Macmillan Preceded by Patrick Buchan-Hepburn Succeeded by Martin Redmayne Lord Commissioner of the Treasury In office 7 November 1951 – 20 December 1955 Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill Sir Anthony Eden Preceded by William Wilkins Succeeded by Edward Wakefield
Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
In office 27 October 1964 – 27 July 1965
Leader	Sir Alec Douglas-Home
Preceded by	Reginald Maudling
Succeeded by	Iain Macleod
Member of Parliament for Old Bexley and Sidcup (Sidcup, 1974–1983; Bexley, 1950–1974)
In office 23 February 1950 – 14 May 2001
Preceded by	Ashley Bramall
Succeeded by	Derek Conway
Personal details
Born	Edward Richard George Heath (1916-07-09)9 July 1916 Broadstairs, Kent, England
Died	17 July 2005(2005-07-17) (aged 89) Salisbury, Wiltshire, England
Resting place	Salisbury Cathedral
Political party	Conservative
Alma mater	Balliol College, Oxford
Occupation	Civil servant musician politician yachtsman
Military service
Branch/service	British Army
Rank	Lieutenant Colonel
Unit	Royal Artillery Honourable Artillery Company
Battles/wars	Second World War
Awards	Member of the Order of the British Empire Mentioned in despatches
Service #	179215

Sir Edward Richard George Heath KG MBE (9 July 1916 – 17 July 2005), often known as Ted Heath, was a British Conservative politician.^[1] He was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1970 until 1974.^[1] Heath was also the leader of the Conservative Party from 1965 until 1975.

Heath was educated at Balliol College, Oxford.^[1]

In 1937, as a student when he was travelling in Nuremberg, Heath met three of Adolf Hitler's top Nazi leaders Hermann Goering, Joseph Goebbels and Heinrich Himmler. He described Himmler as the most evil man he had ever met. Heath also travelled to Barcelona in Spain in 1938 at the time of the Spanish Civil War. In 1939, Heath went again to Germany, and returned to Britain before the outbreak of World War II.

Heath was a lifelong bachelor. He never married. His sexual orientation was a matter of dispute during his lifetime, and since. There were rumours that he was gay. Heath never spoke about his sexuality.^[2][3] He was also a classical organist and conductor and a sailor.

In August 2015, ten years after his death, it was claimed that five police forces were investigating Heath about allegations of child sexual abuse.^[4] Writing in The Independent, Heath's biographer John Campbell said: "If he had any inclinations that way he would have repressed them; he was too self-controlled and self-contained to do anything that would have risked his career".^[5]

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Cite error: The named reference bbc was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).
2. ↑ Edward Heath
3. ↑ "Heath warned about gay sex trysts". The Daily Telegraph. 25 April 2007.
4. ↑ Gearin, Mary (6 August 2015). "Sir Edward Heath: Five UK police forces investigating child sex abuse claims involving former PM". ABC News (Australia). Retrieved 6 August 2015.
5. ↑ Edward Heath 'child sex abuse' allegation: Rumours always swirled about his sexuality - I’m sure that’s all they were | The Independent