Charles Cavendish Fulke Greville
Encyclopedia
Charles Cavendish Fulke Greville (2 April 1794 – 17 January 1865) was an English diarist and an amateur cricket
er who played first-class cricket
from 1819 to 1827. His father Charles Greville was a son of 1st Earl of Warwick
, and his mother was Lady Charlotte Bentinck, daughter of the 3rd Duke of Portland
(former leader of the Whig party and Prime Minister).
. He was one of the Pages of Honour to George III
, and was educated at Eton
and Christ Church, Oxford
; but he left the university early, having been appointed private secretary to Earl Bathurst
before he was twenty. The interest of the Duke of Portland
had secured for him the secretaryship of the island of Jamaica
, which was a sinecure
office, the duties being performed by a deputy, and the reversion of the clerkship of the council.
(MCC), he made 5 known appearances in first-class matches. He played for the Gentlemen in the Gentlemen v Players
series. His brother was Algernon Greville
.
in 1821, and continued to perform them for nearly forty years. He therefore served under three successive sovereigns (George IV
, William IV
and Victoria
) and although no political or confidential functions are attached to that office, it is one which brings a man into habitual intercourse with the chiefs of all the parties in the state. Well-born, well-bred, handsome and accomplished, Greville led the easy life of a man of fashion, taking an occasional part in the transactions of his day and much consulted in the affairs of private life.
Until 1855 when he sold his stud he was an active member of the turf, and he trained successively with Lord George Bentinck
, and with the Duke of Portland. Greville died at Mayfair
, London
, and the celebrity which now attaches to his name is entirely due to the posthumous publication of a portion of a Journal or Diary which it was his practice to keep during the greater part of his life. These papers were given by him to his friend Henry Reeve
a short time before his death, with an injunction that they should be published, as far as was feasible, at not too remote a period after the writer's death.
was as great as in England. These journals were regarded as a faithful record of the impressions made on the mind of a competent observer, at the time, by the events he witnessed and the persons with whom he associated. Greville did not stoop to collect or record private scandal. His object appears to have been to leave behind him some of the materials of history, by which the men and actions of his own time would be judged. He records not so much public events as the private causes which led to them; and perhaps no English memoir-writer has left behind him a more valuable contribution to the history of the 19th century. Greville published anonymously, in 1845, a volume on the Past and Present Policy of England in Ireland, in which he advocated the payment of the Roman Catholic clergy; and he was also the author of several pamphlets on the events of his day.
The memoirs appeared in three sets—one volume for 1817 to 1837 and two for the period from 1837 to 1860, published in 1875, three volumes in 1885 and two in 1887. When the first series appeared in 1875 some passages caused extreme offence. The copies issued were as far as possible recalled and passages suppressed however a copy of this original manuscript remained in the Wallace family possession until it was sold and eventually acquired by a bookseller from New York, Gabriel Wells. Wells and the Doubleday publishing house produced The Greville Diary in two volumes in 1927 however these were criticised for poor editing and containing some inaccurate statements.
In 1874 when it became known that Greville's diary was going to be printed, the news of this caused an uproar. Queen Victoria wrote that she was "horrified and indignant at this dreadful and really scandalous book. Mr Greville's indiscretion, indelicacy, ingratitude, betrayal of confidence and shameful disloyalty towards his Sovereign make it very important that the book should be severely censored and discredited". She also said that "The tone in which he speaks of royalty is unlike anything which one sees in history, even of people hundreds of years ago, and is most reprehensible...Of George IV he speaks in such shocking language, language not fit for any gentleman to use". The Conservative Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli wrote to Lady Bradford on 26 October 1874:
His brother, Henry Greville (1801–1872), attaché to the British embassy in Paris
from 1834 to 1844, also kept a diary, of which part was published by Viscountess Enfield, Leaves from The Diary of Henry Greville (London, 1883–1884).
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er who played first-class cricket
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
from 1819 to 1827. His father Charles Greville was a son of 1st Earl of Warwick
Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick
Francis Greville, 1st Earl of Warwick KT , known as Lord Brooke from 1727 to 1746 and Earl Brooke from 1746 to 1759, was a British nobleman....
, and his mother was Lady Charlotte Bentinck, daughter of the 3rd Duke of Portland
William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland
William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland, KG, PC was a British Whig and Tory statesman, Chancellor of the University of Oxford and Prime Minister. He was known before 1762 by the courtesy title Marquess of Titchfield. He held a title of every degree of British nobility—Duke,...
(former leader of the Whig party and Prime Minister).
Early life
Much of Greville's childhood was spent at his maternal grandfather's house at BulstrodeBulstrode Park
Bulstrode Park is a large park to the northwest of the Buckinghamshire town of Gerrard's Cross in the English Home Counties. It dates back to before the Norman conquest.- First house:The previous house was built in 1686 for the infamous Judge Jeffreys...
. He was one of the Pages of Honour to George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
, and was educated at Eton
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...
; but he left the university early, having been appointed private secretary to Earl Bathurst
Henry Bathurst, 3rd Earl Bathurst
Henry Bathurst, 3rd Earl Bathurst KG PC was a British politician.-Background and education:Lord Bathurst was the elder son of Henry Bathurst, 2nd Earl Bathurst, by his wife Tryphena, daughter of Thomas Scawen...
before he was twenty. The interest of the Duke of Portland
William Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland
William Henry Cavendish Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland PC, FRS, FSA , styled Marquess of Titchfield until 1809, was a British politician who served in various positions in the governments of George Canning and Lord Goderich.-Background and education:Portland was the eldest son of...
had secured for him the secretaryship of the island of Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, which was a sinecure
Sinecure
A sinecure means an office that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service...
office, the duties being performed by a deputy, and the reversion of the clerkship of the council.
Cricket career
Mainly associated with Marylebone Cricket ClubMarylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
(MCC), he made 5 known appearances in first-class matches. He played for the Gentlemen in the Gentlemen v Players
Gentlemen v Players
The Gentlemen v Players game was a first-class cricket match that was generally played on an annual basis between one team consisting of amateurs and one of professionals . The first two games took place in 1806 but the fixture was not revived until 1819. It was more or less annual thereafter...
series. His brother was Algernon Greville
Algernon Greville
Algernon Frederick Greville was an English soldier and cricketer who served as private secretary to the Duke of Wellington....
.
Public career
Greville entered upon the discharge of the duties of a Clerk of the Council in ordinaryClerk of the Privy Council (United Kingdom)
The Clerk of the Privy Council is a civil servant in the government of the United Kingdom. He or she is the most senior civil servant in the Privy Council Office....
in 1821, and continued to perform them for nearly forty years. He therefore served under three successive sovereigns (George IV
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
, William IV
William IV of the United Kingdom
William IV was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death...
and Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
) and although no political or confidential functions are attached to that office, it is one which brings a man into habitual intercourse with the chiefs of all the parties in the state. Well-born, well-bred, handsome and accomplished, Greville led the easy life of a man of fashion, taking an occasional part in the transactions of his day and much consulted in the affairs of private life.
Until 1855 when he sold his stud he was an active member of the turf, and he trained successively with Lord George Bentinck
Lord George Bentinck
Lord George Frederick Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck , better known as simply Lord George Bentinck, was an English Conservative politician and racehorse owner, best known for his role in unseating Sir Robert Peel over the Corn Laws.Bentinck was a younger son of the 4th Duke of Portland, and elected a...
, and with the Duke of Portland. Greville died at Mayfair
Mayfair
Mayfair is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster.-History:Mayfair is named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place on the site that is Shepherd Market today...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and the celebrity which now attaches to his name is entirely due to the posthumous publication of a portion of a Journal or Diary which it was his practice to keep during the greater part of his life. These papers were given by him to his friend Henry Reeve
Henry Reeve
Henry Reeve was an English journalist.-Biography:He was the younger son of Henry Reeve, a Whig physician and writer from Norwich, and was born at Norwich. He was educated at the Norwich grammar school under Edward Valpy. During his holidays he saw a good deal of the young John Stuart Mill...
a short time before his death, with an injunction that they should be published, as far as was feasible, at not too remote a period after the writer's death.
Diary
The journals of the reigns of George IV and William IV (extending from 1820 to 1837) were accordingly so published in obedience to his directions about ten years after that event. Few publications have been received with greater interest by the public; five large editions were sold in little more than a year, and the demand in AmericaUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
was as great as in England. These journals were regarded as a faithful record of the impressions made on the mind of a competent observer, at the time, by the events he witnessed and the persons with whom he associated. Greville did not stoop to collect or record private scandal. His object appears to have been to leave behind him some of the materials of history, by which the men and actions of his own time would be judged. He records not so much public events as the private causes which led to them; and perhaps no English memoir-writer has left behind him a more valuable contribution to the history of the 19th century. Greville published anonymously, in 1845, a volume on the Past and Present Policy of England in Ireland, in which he advocated the payment of the Roman Catholic clergy; and he was also the author of several pamphlets on the events of his day.
The memoirs appeared in three sets—one volume for 1817 to 1837 and two for the period from 1837 to 1860, published in 1875, three volumes in 1885 and two in 1887. When the first series appeared in 1875 some passages caused extreme offence. The copies issued were as far as possible recalled and passages suppressed however a copy of this original manuscript remained in the Wallace family possession until it was sold and eventually acquired by a bookseller from New York, Gabriel Wells. Wells and the Doubleday publishing house produced The Greville Diary in two volumes in 1927 however these were criticised for poor editing and containing some inaccurate statements.
In 1874 when it became known that Greville's diary was going to be printed, the news of this caused an uproar. Queen Victoria wrote that she was "horrified and indignant at this dreadful and really scandalous book. Mr Greville's indiscretion, indelicacy, ingratitude, betrayal of confidence and shameful disloyalty towards his Sovereign make it very important that the book should be severely censored and discredited". She also said that "The tone in which he speaks of royalty is unlike anything which one sees in history, even of people hundreds of years ago, and is most reprehensible...Of George IV he speaks in such shocking language, language not fit for any gentleman to use". The Conservative Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli wrote to Lady Bradford on 26 October 1874:
I have not seen Chas. Greville's book, but have read a good deal of it. It is a social outrage. And committed by one who was always talking of what he called ‘perfect gentlemen.’ I don't think he can figure now in that category. I knew him intimately. He was the vainest being—I don't limit myself to man—that ever existed; and I don't forget CiceroCiceroMarcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
and Lytton BulwerEdward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron LyttonEdward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton PC , was an English politician, poet, playwright, and novelist. He was immensely popular with the reading public and wrote a stream of bestselling dime-novels which earned him a considerable fortune...
; but Greville wd. swallow garbage, and required it. Offended selflove is a key to most of his observations. He lent me a volume of his MS. once to read; more modern than these; I found, when he was not scandalous, he was prolix and prosy—a clumsy, wordy writer. The loan was made à propos of the character of Peel, which I drew in George Bentinck's Life, and which, I will presume to say, is the only thing written about Peel wh. has any truth or stuff in it. Greville was not displeased with it, and as a reward, and a treat, told me that he wd. confide to me his character of Peel, and he gave me the sacred volume, wh. I bore with me, with trembling awe, from Bruton St. to Gros[veno]r Gate. If ever it appears, you, who have taste for style and expression, will, I am sure, agree with me that, as a portrait painter, Greville is not a literary VandykeAnthony van DyckSir Anthony van Dyck was a Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England. He is most famous for his portraits of Charles I of England and his family and court, painted with a relaxed elegance that was to be the dominant influence on English portrait-painting for the next...
or ReynoldsJoshua ReynoldsSir Joshua Reynolds RA FRS FRSA was an influential 18th-century English painter, specialising in portraits and promoting the "Grand Style" in painting which depended on idealization of the imperfect. He was one of the founders and first President of the Royal Academy...
; a more verbose, indefinite, unwieldy affair, without a happy expression, never issued from the pen of a fagged subordinate of the daily press.
His brother, Henry Greville (1801–1872), attaché to the British embassy in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
from 1834 to 1844, also kept a diary, of which part was published by Viscountess Enfield, Leaves from The Diary of Henry Greville (London, 1883–1884).
Further reading
- H S AlthamHarry AlthamHarry Surtees Altham, CBE, DSO, MC was an English cricketer who became an important figure in the game as an administrator, historian and coach. His Wisden obituary described him as "among the best known personalities in the world of cricket"...
, A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914), George Allen & Unwin, 1962 - Arthur HaygarthArthur HaygarthArthur Haygarth was a noted amateur cricketer who became one of cricket's most significant historians....
, Scores & Biographies, Volumes 1-11 (1744–1870), Lillywhite, 1862–72
External links
- CricketArchive profile
- Works by Charles Greville at Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...