Tributes paid following death of Datchet's Lord of the Manor

He held the title of Lord of the Manor of Datchet and his family holds a centuries-long connection with the village.

Janet Kennish, chairman of the Datchet Village Society, said: “As Lord of the Manor of Datchet, Lord Montagu was always pleased to be invited here.

“He enjoyed performing modern Lord of the Manor duties and coming back to his family’s roots, both in the village and at Ditton Park.”

Lord Montagu’s father, John Montagu, died when he was just two years old and he subsequently inherited the Beaulieu estate.

He took over the running of the estate when he turned 25 in 1951.

His first official visit to Datchet was in 1966 when he planted an oak tree in North Green to mark Datchet’s winning of the Best Kept Village award.

He also unveiled the parish council’s series of millennium plaques in 2000 and in 2005 he drove to the village in a vintage car to open the library in the Old Working Men’s Club, re-named as Montagu House, in Horton Road.

The land for Datchet Library was originally given to the Old Working Men’s Club by Lord Montagu’s grandfather.

He visited again in 2012 for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

Lord Montagu is survived by his heir, the Hon Ralph Douglas-Scott-Montagu, who now becomes the 4th Lord Montagu.

Janet said she hoped the connection between the village and the family will remain as strong as ever.

“We hope he will be as interested in keeping the centuries-long family connection with Datchet as his father was,” she added.