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CHRIS PATTEN TO DELIVER THE 2005 TYBURN LECTURE The high profile annual lecture, inaugurated four years ago by the Tyburn Nuns at their London convent to provide a platform for national figures to speak on their choice of a contemporary topic, will be delivered on Tuesday, May 3. Mother Xavier Monagle, Mother General at Tyburn Convent, said: "We are honoured that Mr Patten has agreed to deliver next year's lecture. We know that our invited audience will appreciate his lecture as he has added deep experience of the international scene to his vast national knowledge and experience in politics gathered from important government posts he held in Great Britain." Mr Patten said: " It was with great pleasure that I accepted Tyburn's invitation to deliver next year's lecture.It is a great privilege to speak at such a spot, steeped in the history of England, going back some 500 years". Tyburn Convent is the home of the Tyburn Nuns, The Adorers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus of Montmartre, Order of St Benedict. They pray night and day before the Blessed Sacrament to honour the 105 Catholic martyrs who suffered and died for their faith on the scaffold of Tyburn Tree between 1535 and 1681. They also pray continuously for the needs of all mankind, especially for the people of Great Britain. Notes for Editors 2.- Attendance at the lecture is by invitation only. 3.- Background on Mr Patten. Christopher Francis Patten was born in 1944. He was educated at St Benedict’s School, Ealing; Balliol College, Oxford (Domus Exhibitioner, BA Hons. and MA Hons. Modern History) and won a Coolidge Travelling Scholarship to the USA in 1965. Mr Patten joined the Conservative Research Department in 1966. He was seconded to the Cabinet Office in 1970 and was personal assistant and political secretary to Lord Carrington and Lord Whitelaw when they were Chairmen of the Conservative Party from 1972-1974. In 1974 he was appointed the youngest ever Director of the Conservative Research Department, a post which he held until 1979. Mr Patten was elected as Member of Parliament for Bath from May 1979 until April 1992. In 1983 he wrote “The Tory Case”, a study of Conservatism. Following the General Election of June 1983, Mr Patten was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Northern Ireland Office and in September 1985 Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science. In September 1986 he was appointed Minister for Overseas Development at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office. He was appointed to the Privy Council in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List, June 1989, and was appointed a Companion of Honour in the New Year’s Honours List l998. In July 1989 Mr Patten was appointed Secretary of State for the Environment. In November 1990 he became Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Chairman of the Conservative Party. Mr Patten was appointed Governor of Hong Kong in April 1992, and was there from July 1992 until the return of Hong Kong to China in 1997. He was Chairman of the Independent Commission on Policing for Northern Ireland set up under the Good Friday Peace Agreement; it reported in 1999. In September 1999 he was appointed European Commissioner for External Relations. He has a number of Honorary Degrees and is an Hon. Fellow of The Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh, and an Hon. Fellow of Balliol College, Oxford. He is Chancellor of Newcastle University and Chancellor of Oxford University. Mr Patten married Lavender Thornton in 1971. They have three daughters, Kate (born in 1973), Laura (1974) and Alice (1979). Mr Patten reads a lot and is keen on tennis and gardening. In 1998, he wrote ‘East and West’ a book on Asia and its relations with the rest of the world. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Issued by Tyburn Convent, 8, Hyde Park Place, London W2 2LJ
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