This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/19/world/africa/thomas-cholmondeley-obituary.html
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Thomas Cholmondeley, Scion Implicated in Deaths of 2 Kenyans, Dies at 48 | Thomas Cholmondeley, Scion Implicated in Deaths of 2 Kenyans, Dies at 48 |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| NAIROBI, Kenya — Thomas Patrick Gilbert Cholmondeley, the scion of one of Kenya’s richest and most fabled white families, was in excellent spirits last weekend, telling friends at a campsite outside Nairobi: “You know, Kenyans are now eating millions of chickens a year. I think I’m going to start doing chickens.” | NAIROBI, Kenya — Thomas Patrick Gilbert Cholmondeley, the scion of one of Kenya’s richest and most fabled white families, was in excellent spirits last weekend, telling friends at a campsite outside Nairobi: “You know, Kenyans are now eating millions of chickens a year. I think I’m going to start doing chickens.” |
| Mr. Cholmondeley, 48, seemed in good health, but he died on Wednesday in a Nairobi hospital while undergoing hip-replacement surgery. Doctors said he had a heart attack, and friends suggested it might have been prompted by a reaction to anesthesia. | Mr. Cholmondeley, 48, seemed in good health, but he died on Wednesday in a Nairobi hospital while undergoing hip-replacement surgery. Doctors said he had a heart attack, and friends suggested it might have been prompted by a reaction to anesthesia. |
| His death was front-page news in Kenya, and not only because Mr. Cholmondeley (pronounced CHUM-lee) was a great-grandson of Hugh Cholmondeley, the third Baron Delamere, a British aristocrat who came to Kenya more than a century ago on a lion-hunting safari, fell in love with the country and became one of its most powerful settlers. | His death was front-page news in Kenya, and not only because Mr. Cholmondeley (pronounced CHUM-lee) was a great-grandson of Hugh Cholmondeley, the third Baron Delamere, a British aristocrat who came to Kenya more than a century ago on a lion-hunting safari, fell in love with the country and became one of its most powerful settlers. |
| Many Kenyans knew him for a different reason: He was a killer. | Many Kenyans knew him for a different reason: He was a killer. |
| Mr. Cholmondeley, an eccentric outdoorsman who liked fast horses, speedy bikes and guns, was implicated in two deadly shootings of black men. The first was an undercover wildlife officer whom Mr. Cholmondeley mistook for a robber in 2005. The second was a threadbare poacher who trespassed on his estate in 2006. Mr. Cholmondeley said he never meant to kill the poacher and was aiming at the man’s dogs. | Mr. Cholmondeley, an eccentric outdoorsman who liked fast horses, speedy bikes and guns, was implicated in two deadly shootings of black men. The first was an undercover wildlife officer whom Mr. Cholmondeley mistook for a robber in 2005. The second was a threadbare poacher who trespassed on his estate in 2006. Mr. Cholmondeley said he never meant to kill the poacher and was aiming at the man’s dogs. |
| Mr. Cholmondeley was not prosecuted for the first shooting, but he was convicted of manslaughter for the second. He spent three years in a grossly overcrowded Kenyan prison. Of 3,500 inmates, he was the only white man. | Mr. Cholmondeley was not prosecuted for the first shooting, but he was convicted of manslaughter for the second. He spent three years in a grossly overcrowded Kenyan prison. Of 3,500 inmates, he was the only white man. |
| Both cases stirred deep-seated grievances and suspicions that white people in Kenya were still treated with greater deference and privilege than black people, more than four decades after Kenya’s independence from Britain. | Both cases stirred deep-seated grievances and suspicions that white people in Kenya were still treated with greater deference and privilege than black people, more than four decades after Kenya’s independence from Britain. |
| Many Kenyans were outraged that he wasn’t punished for the first killing and seemed to be lightly punished for the second one. His case provoked a debate over whether a person’s race and money could allow them to get away with murder, literally. | |
| In a prison interview, Mr. Cholmondeley seemed contemplative and remorseful. | In a prison interview, Mr. Cholmondeley seemed contemplative and remorseful. |
| “It’s like ‘Groundhog Day,’ ” he said. “You keep replaying those 10 seconds, those same 10 seconds, thinking what you could have done differently.” | “It’s like ‘Groundhog Day,’ ” he said. “You keep replaying those 10 seconds, those same 10 seconds, thinking what you could have done differently.” |
| The Delameres were the Kennedys of colonial Kenya. They had money, power, social status, the best land and a noble pedigree going back to William the Conqueror. | The Delameres were the Kennedys of colonial Kenya. They had money, power, social status, the best land and a noble pedigree going back to William the Conqueror. |
| Lord Delamere (1870-1931), known simply as D, rode horses through bars and shot chandeliers at fancy hotels. He and his cohorts settled on enormous ranches stocked with zebras and other exotic game in Rift Valley, soon known as Happy Valley for its gin-soaked parties and hedonistic lifestyle. | Lord Delamere (1870-1931), known simply as D, rode horses through bars and shot chandeliers at fancy hotels. He and his cohorts settled on enormous ranches stocked with zebras and other exotic game in Rift Valley, soon known as Happy Valley for its gin-soaked parties and hedonistic lifestyle. |
| Asked what it felt like to be part of such a storied family, Mr. Cholmondeley said: “I’ve been a Delamere my whole life. I deal with it.” | Asked what it felt like to be part of such a storied family, Mr. Cholmondeley said: “I’ve been a Delamere my whole life. I deal with it.” |
| Born in 1968, Mr. Cholmondeley grew up on the family ranch in Soysambu (“place of red rock” in the Maasai language) and was eventually shipped off to Eton in England. He went on to help run the family’s dairy and cattle businesses. He was known for his passion to protect wildlife. He lived on the 50,000-acre ranch that his great-grandfather bought outside Nairobi. | Born in 1968, Mr. Cholmondeley grew up on the family ranch in Soysambu (“place of red rock” in the Maasai language) and was eventually shipped off to Eton in England. He went on to help run the family’s dairy and cattle businesses. He was known for his passion to protect wildlife. He lived on the 50,000-acre ranch that his great-grandfather bought outside Nairobi. |
| He was hard to miss: 6-foot-6, broad-shouldered, strong-jawed and often dressed in linen suits and cowboy boots; sometimes he wore a cravat tucked in his collar. Recently, he walked with a cane; his hip had been bothering him for years. | He was hard to miss: 6-foot-6, broad-shouldered, strong-jawed and often dressed in linen suits and cowboy boots; sometimes he wore a cravat tucked in his collar. Recently, he walked with a cane; his hip had been bothering him for years. |
| Friends say he loved Kenya. The words used to describe him were: charming, committed, intelligent and grounded. | Friends say he loved Kenya. The words used to describe him were: charming, committed, intelligent and grounded. |
| Even this past weekend, when he camped in a tent at a friend’s wedding, he seemed friendly and relaxed as he mingled with other guests. He often came across as a man who just wanted to be treated like anyone else, quick to smile and start a conversation. | Even this past weekend, when he camped in a tent at a friend’s wedding, he seemed friendly and relaxed as he mingled with other guests. He often came across as a man who just wanted to be treated like anyone else, quick to smile and start a conversation. |
| He seemed confident about undergoing a major surgery in a country where health care is relatively good for sub-Saharan Africa but nowhere near the level of that in Western Europe or the United States. Friends say it was an expression of his patriotism. He was Kenyan and believed in Kenya, down to its hip-replacement surgeons. | He seemed confident about undergoing a major surgery in a country where health care is relatively good for sub-Saharan Africa but nowhere near the level of that in Western Europe or the United States. Friends say it was an expression of his patriotism. He was Kenyan and believed in Kenya, down to its hip-replacement surgeons. |
| “The man here has done thousands of these procedures,” he said on Saturday. “That’s what matters.” | “The man here has done thousands of these procedures,” he said on Saturday. “That’s what matters.” |
| Mr. Cholmondeley is survived by his father, Hugh George Cholmondeley, the fifth Baron Delamere; his mother, the former Anne Renison; two sons; and Sally Dudmesh, his longtime companion. | Mr. Cholmondeley is survived by his father, Hugh George Cholmondeley, the fifth Baron Delamere; his mother, the former Anne Renison; two sons; and Sally Dudmesh, his longtime companion. |