View source for Tony Benn

{{Infobox Minister
|honorific-prefix = [[The Right Honourable]]
|birthname        = Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn
|honorific-suffix =
|image            = Tony Benn2.jpg{{!}}border
|caption          = Tony Benn in 2007
|office           = President of the [[Stop the War Coalition]]
|vicepresident    = [[Lindsey German]]
|1blankname       = {{nowrap|[[Chairman]]}}
|1namedata        = [[Andrew Murray (trade unionist)|Andrew Murray]]<br>[[Jeremy Corbyn]]
|term_start       = 21 September 2001
|term_end         = 14 March 2014
|predecessor      = [[Stop the War Coalition#Formation|''Office established'']]
|successor        = ''Vacant''
|office1          = [[Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change|Secretary of State for Energy]]
|primeminister1   = [[Harold Wilson]]<br />[[James Callaghan]]
|term_start1      = 10 June 1975
|term_end1        = 4 May 1979
|predecessor1     = [[Eric Varley]]
|successor1       = [[David Howell, Baron Howell of Guildford|David Howell]]
|office2          = [[Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy|Secretary of State for Industry]]
|primeminister2   = [[Harold Wilson]]
|term_start2      = 5 March 1974
|term_end2        = 10 June 1975
|predecessor2     = [[Peter Walker, Baron Walker of Worcester|Peter Walker]] {{nowrap|<small>([[Department of Trade and Industry (United Kingdom)|Trade and Industry]])</small>}}
|successor2       = [[Eric Varley, Baron Varley|Eric Varley]]
|office3          = [[National Executive Committee|Chairman of the Labour Party]]
|leader3          = [[Harold Wilson]]
|term_start3      = 20 September 1971
|term_end3        = 25 September 1972
|predecessor3     = [[Ian Mikardo]]
|successor3       = William Simpson
|office4          = [[Minister of Technology]]
|primeminister4   = [[Harold Wilson]]
|term_start4      = 4 July 1966
|term_end4        = 19 June 1970
|predecessor4     = [[Frank Cousins]]
|successor4       = [[Geoffrey Rippon]]
|office5          = [[Postmaster General of the United Kingdom|Postmaster General]]
|primeminister5   = [[Harold Wilson]]
|term_start5      = 15 October 1964
|term_end5        = 4 July 1966
|predecessor5     = [[Reginald Bevins]]
|successor5       = [[Edward Short, Baron Glenamara|Edward Short]]
| office8         = [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] <br>for [[Bristol South East (UK Parliament constituency)|Bristol South East]]
|term_start9      = 30 November 1950
|term_end9        = 17 November 1960
|predecessor9     = [[Stafford Cripps]]
|successor9       = [[Malcolm St Clair (politician)|Malcolm St Clair]]
|majority9        = 
|term_start8      = 20 August 1963
|term_end8        = 9 June 1983
|predecessor8     = [[Malcolm St Clair (politician)|Malcolm St Clair]]
|successor8       = [[Boundary Commissions (United Kingdom)|''Constituency abolished'']]
|majority8        = 
|office7          = [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] <br> for [[Chesterfield (UK Parliament constituency)|Chesterfield]]
|term_start7      = 1 March 1984
|term_end7        = 7 June 2001
|predecessor7     = [[Eric Varley, Baron Varley|Eric Varley]]
|successor7       = [[Paul Holmes (politician)|Paul Holmes]]
|majority7        = 
|birth_date       = {{Birth date|df=yes|1925|4|3}}
|birth_place      = [[Marylebone]], London, England
|death_date       = {{Death date and age|df=yes|2014|3|14|1925|4|3}}
|death_place      = London, England
|party            = [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]]
|nationality      = British
|spouse           = {{marriage|[[Caroline Benn|Caroline DeCamp]]|17 June 1949|22 November 2000|reason=died}}
|children         = {{Hlist|[[Stephen Benn, 3rd Viscount Stansgate|Stephen]]|[[Hilary Benn|Hilary]]|[[Melissa Benn|Melissa]]|Joshua}}
|parents          = [[William Wedgwood Benn, 1st Viscount Stansgate|William Wedgwood Benn]]<br />[[Margaret Wedgwood Benn|Margaret Holmes]]
|alma_mater       = [[Westminster School]]<br />[[New College, Oxford]]
|allegiance       = {{flag|United Kingdom|size=23px}}
|branch           = {{flagicon image|Ensign of the Royal Air Force.svg|size=23px}} [[Royal Air Force]]
|rank             = [[Pilot officer]]
|battles          = [[World War II|Second World War]]
}}
'''Anthony Neil Wedgwood''' ‘'''Tony'''’ '''Benn''', <small>[[Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council|PC]]</small> (3 April 1925 &ndash; 14 March 2014), formerly '''2nd [[Viscount Stansgate]]''', was a [[British people|British]] [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] politician.

Benn was born in [[Marylebone]], [[London]], [[England]]. He was married to [[Caroline Benn|Caroline DeCamp]] (1926&ndash;2000) from 1949 until her death. Their four children are: Stephen, [[Hilary Benn|Hilary]], [[Melissa Benn|Melissa]] and Joshua.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/1036726.stm|title=Caroline Benn dies|date=23 November 2000|publisher=[[BBC]]|accessdate=2 March 2014}}</ref> He had been a [[Vegetarianism|vegetarian]] since 1970.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/6004384/Tony-Benn-making-mistakes-is-part-of-life.html|author=Farndale, Nigel|title=Tony Benn: making mistakes is part of life|date=12 August 2009|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|accessdate=2 March 2014}}</ref> He was also an [[Agnosticism|agnostic]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=''More Time for Politics: Diaries 2001–2007''|url=https://archive.org/details/moretimeforpolit0000benn|author=Benn, Tony|year=2007|publisher=[[Hutchinson (publisher)|Hutchinson]]|location=[[London]]|page=[https://archive.org/details/moretimeforpolit0000benn/page/223 223]|accessdate=2 March 2014}}</ref>

Benn inherited the title of Viscount Stansgate from his father, [[William Wedgwood Benn]], in 1960. He became the first peer to renounce his title. This made him able to become a [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] (MP) in 1963. He was a [[UK Cabinet|Cabinet Minister]] under [[Harold Wilson]] and [[James Callaghan]]. From 2001 to his death, he was President of the [[Stop the War Coalition]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.biographyonline.net/politicians/uk/tony-benn.html|title=Tony Benn Biography|publisher=[[Biography Online]]|accessdate=2 March 2014}}</ref>

Benn died after an illness on 14 March 2014 in London. He was 88 years old. <ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-26573929|title=Labour stalwart Tony Benn dies at 88|publisher=[[BBC]]|date=14 March 2014|accessdate=14 March 2014}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Other websites==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official|http://www.tonybenn.com/}}
* {{IMDb name|1125277}}


{{Bio-stub}}

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