ROYAL MOURNING
Tragedy for Royal Family as beloved godson who held honorary role dies aged 79
He had also served as a politician in the European Parliament for 17 years
A BELOVED godson of the late Queen Elizabeth II who also held an honorary role has died aged 79.
Lord Charles O'Hagan passed away at North Devon Hospital on March 23 after suffering a subdural haematoma, an inquest has been told.
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The Tory peer had a history of falls and states of confusion, it is understood.
He had formerly served as a Member of European Parliament (MEP) for Devon for two stints from 1973-1975 and from 1979-1994.
Charles Towneley Strachey O'Hagan was the 4th Baron O'Hagan and lived at Beaford near Winkleigh, Devon.
He was a member of the House of Lords from December 1961 until November 1999 when he was excluded.
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The politician was born in 1945 and later attended Eton College and New College, Oxford.
He also served as a Page of Honour to the late Queen between 1959 and 1962.
A ceremonial position, Pages of Honour wear a scarlet frock coat with gold trimmings and are often utilised for state occasions.
Typically, the only physical activity involved is to carry the long train of the Sovereign's robes.
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The distinction is usually granted to teenage sons of members of the nobility and gentry, and especially of senior members of the Royal Household.
Lord O'Hagan's grandfather, Maurice Towneley-O'Hagan, 3rd Baron O'Hagan, was a well-known politician in the United Kingdom.
He inherited the family title at the age of 16, following his grandfather's death in 1961.
The title did not pass to his father, the Hon. Major Thomas Strachey, as he had died in 1955.
Lord O'Hagan first took his seat in the House of Lords on December 5, 1967, giving his maiden speech while he was still a student.
He then became an Independent MEP in December 1972 and took his seat on the European Parliament on January 1, 1973 - the day Britain began its membership of the EEC.
He lost his seat on July 3, 1975, after a joint decision by the Conservatives and Labour to stop appointing Independents and Liberals to the European Parliament.
After joining the Tories, he was returned as an MEP for Devon in 1979, staying in the position until his resignation in 1994 following the collapse of his second marriage.
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