Background
Philip Lever was the only son of William Lever, 2nd Viscount Leverhulme and his first wife, Marion. He was born on 1 July 1915.
Philip Lever was the only son of William Lever, 2nd Viscount Leverhulme and his first wife, Marion. He was born on 1 July 1915.
He was educated at Eton College and Trinity College, Cambridge.
During the Second World War served in the Middle East with the Cheshire Yeomanry, of which he later became Honorary Colonel. After the war, he managed his father"s estates at Thornton Manor. In 1954 he bought the Badanloch estate, in Sutherland, Scotland.
In 1949 he inherited his father"s titles and was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire that year, a post he held until 1990, making him the longest serving Lord Lieutenant in the country.
His lifelong passion was horse racing, the subject of his 1976 maiden speech in the House of Lords. A race horse owner, he served as Chairman of Chester Racecourse and as a senior steward of the Jockey Club.
He was a supporter of the Animal Health Trust, the veterinary research establishment at Lanwades Hall, near Newmarket. He was also Chancellor of the University of Liverpool from 1980-1993 and appointed a Knight of the Garter in 1988.
Personal life
On 1 July 1937, Leverhulme married Margaret Ann Moon (died 1973) and they had three daughters:
Honorary
Susan Elizabeth Moon (born 1938), married (Hercules) Michael Pakenham. Honorary Victoria Marion Ann (born 1945), married (1) Sir Richard Pole, 13th Baronet, (2) Gordon Apsion, (3) Peter Tower. Honorary (Margaret) Jane (born 1947), married Algernon Heber-Percy.
He died on 4 July 2000.
Succession
As Leverhulme was the last male descendant of the 1st Viscount and died without male heirs in 2000, his titles became extinct. Honours and Decorations.