Hugh George Cholmondeley of the expansive Soysambu ranch in Naivasha has died.
His family was among the first British settlers in Kenya.
Hugh Delamere died peacefully at his Soysambu ranch on Monday, the family said.
He was aged 82.
His relatives described him as a kindhearted man, a beloved grandfather to two grandchildren and the loving husband of Lady Anne.
To the many workers on his expansive ranch, he was the caring employer who always took care of their welfare.
To friends he was a gentleman, the family said.
Hugh Delamere was an indirect descendant of the first prime minister of Great Britain Sir Robert Walpole.
His wife Anne Renison is the daughter of the colonial governor of Kenya, Sir Patrick Renison.
They got married on April 11, 1964. Their only son, Tom Cholmondeley, died in 2016.
In April 2005, Tom was accused of shooting and killing Kenya Wildlife Service ranger Samson Ole Sisina in Soysambu ranch.
He pleaded self-defence and the murder case was dropped before going to trial.
In May 2006, he allegedly shot and killed an alleged poacher named Robert Njoya on the estate near Lake Naivasha. Tom had claimed he aimed to shoot at the poacher’s dogs and not Njoya.
He was prosecuted and found guilty of manslaughter. He was sentenced to serve eight months in prison and released in October 2009.
The handling of the charges against Tom Cholmondeley saw activists press for a boycott of Delamere dairy products.
The controversy and protests forced the Delamere to lease a section of the ranch to Brookside and move some of their stock to Njoro.
In 2020, Hugh Delamere arranged a subdivision of the property.
He registered Ng’ombe Limited to take charge of 1,680 steers and 792 cows.
At the time, each steer was valued at Sh65,000 while a cow would be priced at Sh140,000.
He also registered Land Limited to take hold of the real estate properties and land.
Before the two companies were created, the family had been trading under the name of Delamere Estates Limited.
The family filed the details of the succession with the Competition Authority of Kenya, explaining that although it was not legally mandated to disclose the divesting of the properties, it did so to forestall future family feuds.
The authority had announced at the time that it had allowed “the acquisition of 1,680 heads of steers and 792 heads of cows from Delamere Estates Limited by Ngombe Limited.”