Francis John Fane Marmion Dymoke was born on January 19 1955. He was the eldest of three sons of the then Captain John Dymoke and Susan. John Dymoke served with the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment in Sumatra during the Indonesian nationalist uprising and in Malaya during the Emergency. Lieutenant Colonel JLM Dymoke commanded the 3rd Battlion The Royal Anglian Regiment on operations in Aden in 1966 and subsequently in Tidworth and Aldershot.

Francis spent a classic Army childhood always on the move and was educated at Marlborough and Hull University. After reading economics, he qualified as a chartered accountant but decided to opt for pastures new. Moving to Australia he worked as a jackaroo before employment in Papua New Guinea.

On returning to the UK, Francis eventually took over the management of the family estate in 1992 and became a committed member of the rural Lincolnshire community. He fully supported many local causes including serving as chair of the Lincolnshire branches of the Prince’s Trust and the Country Landowner’s Association. He was also a board member of the Heritage Trust of Lincolnshire. He served as High Sheriff of Lincolnshire in 1999 and as a Deputy Lieutenant of the County.

In 2021, he was appointed Honorary Colonel of the Lincolnshire Army Cadet Force proudly wearing a Royal Anglian cap badge as his father had worn before. Francis thoroughly enjoyed his role and took an active part in all aspects of the Army Cadet Force making a significant contribution. He took great pleasure in visiting the Cadets in training and at annual camp and will be sorely missed by the Cadet Force Adult Volunteers and by all the Cadets.

Francis served as King’s Champion at the coronation of King Charles III in May 2023, a ceremonial role performed by his father in 1953 at Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation. Historically, Francis’s 34th great-grandfather, Robert de Marmion, was William the Conqueror’s right-hand man in France as early as 1066, and the family have performed the ancestral role of Sovereign’s Champion for nearly a millennium.

Francis died on the 18th December 2023 and his life was celebrated at a Memorial Service at Lincoln Cathedral on the 18th January 2024. Standards were proudly displayed by the Lincolnshire Army Cadet Force, including the Standard from the Horncastle Detachment that held great affinity with Francis.

He is survived by his wife Gail and by two sons and a daughter from a previous marriage.