Francis Osborne, 5th Duke of Leeds
Encyclopedia
Francis Godolphin Osborne, 5th Duke of Leeds KG
, PC (29 January 1751 – 31 January 1799), styled Marquess of Carmarthen until 1789, was a British politician. He notably served as Foreign Secretary
under William Pitt the Younger
from 1783 to 1791.
, by his wife Lady Mary, daughter of Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin
, and Henrietta Godolphin, 2nd Duchess of Marlborough. He was educated at Westminster School
and at Christ Church, Oxford
.
for Eye
in 1774 and for Helston
from 1774 to 1775; in 1776 having received a writ of acceleration
as Baron Osborne, he entered the House of Lords
, and in 1777 Lord Chamberlain of the Queen
's Household. In the House of Lords
he was prominent as a determined foe of the prime minister, Lord North
, who, after he had resigned his position as chamberlain, deprived him of the office of Lord Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire
in 1780. He regained this, however, two years later.
Early in 1783 Leeds was selected as ambassador to France
, but he did not take up this appointment, becoming instead Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
under William Pitt the Younger
in December of the same year. As secretary he was little more than a cipher, and he left office in April 1791. He had done nothing to foster good relations with the newly independent United States: both John Adams
and Thomas Jefferson
complained of his obstructive attitude and " aversion to having anything to do with us ".Subsequently he took little part in politics: in 1792, hearing rumours that a new coalition might be formed, he unwisely offered himself as its head and met with a firm rebuff from both Pitt and the King.
, daughter of Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness
on 29 November 1773. Lady Amelia became Baroness Darcy de Knayth and Baroness Conyers in her own right in 1778. They were divorced in 1779. Their marriage produced three children:
He married secondly Catherine, daughter of Thomas Anguish, in 1788 and had issue. Leeds died in London in January 1799, aged 48, and was succeeded in the dukedom by his eldest son from his first marriage, George Osborne, 6th Duke of Leeds
. His second son from his first marriage, Lord Francis Osborne
, was created Baron Godolphin
in 1832. The dowager Duchess of Leeds died in October 1837, aged 73. Leeds's Political Memoranda were edited by Oscar Browning
for the Camden Society
in 1884, and there are eight volumes of his official correspondence in the British Museum
.
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
, PC (29 January 1751 – 31 January 1799), styled Marquess of Carmarthen until 1789, was a British politician. He notably served as Foreign Secretary
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly referred to as the Foreign Secretary, is a senior member of Her Majesty's Government heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and regarded as one of the Great Offices of State...
under William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger was a British politician of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He became the youngest Prime Minister in 1783 at the age of 24 . He left office in 1801, but was Prime Minister again from 1804 until his death in 1806...
from 1783 to 1791.
Background and education
Leeds was the son of Thomas Osborne, 4th Duke of LeedsThomas Osborne, 4th Duke of Leeds
Thomas Osborne, 4th Duke of Leeds KG, PC, DL, FRS , styled Earl of Danby from birth until 1729 and subsequently Marquess of Carmarthen until 1731, was a British peer, politician and judge.-Background:...
, by his wife Lady Mary, daughter of Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin
Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin
Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin, PC was a British politician, styled Viscount Rialton between 1706 and 1712.-Biography:...
, and Henrietta Godolphin, 2nd Duchess of Marlborough. He was educated at Westminster School
Westminster School
The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
and at 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...
.
Political career
Leeds was a Member of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Eye
Eye (UK Parliament constituency)
Eye was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected two Members of Parliament by the bloc vote system of election...
in 1774 and for Helston
Helston (UK Parliament constituency)
Helston, sometimes known as Helleston, was a parliamentary borough centred on the small town of Helston in Cornwall.Using the bloc vote system of election, it returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of England until 1707, then to House of Commons of Great Britain until 1800, and...
from 1774 to 1775; in 1776 having received a writ of acceleration
Writ of acceleration
A writ in acceleration, commonly called a writ of acceleration, was a type of writ of summons to the British House of Lords that enabled the eldest son and heir apparent of a peer with multiple peerage titles to attend the British House of Lords or Irish House of Lords, using one of his father's...
as Baron Osborne, he entered the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
, and in 1777 Lord Chamberlain of the Queen
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz
Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was the Queen consort of the United Kingdom as the wife of King George III...
's Household. In the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
he was prominent as a determined foe of the prime minister, Lord North
Frederick North, Lord North
Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford, KG, PC , more often known by his courtesy title, Lord North, which he used from 1752 until 1790, was Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1770 to 1782. He led Great Britain through most of the American War of Independence...
, who, after he had resigned his position as chamberlain, deprived him of the office of Lord Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire
Lord Lieutenant of the East Riding of Yorkshire
This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant for the East Riding of Yorkshire. The office was established after the English Restoration in 1660, when a Lord Lieutenant was appointed for each Riding of Yorkshire. Since 1721, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of the...
in 1780. He regained this, however, two years later.
Early in 1783 Leeds was selected as ambassador to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, but he did not take up this appointment, becoming instead Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly referred to as the Foreign Secretary, is a senior member of Her Majesty's Government heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and regarded as one of the Great Offices of State...
under William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger was a British politician of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He became the youngest Prime Minister in 1783 at the age of 24 . He left office in 1801, but was Prime Minister again from 1804 until his death in 1806...
in December of the same year. As secretary he was little more than a cipher, and he left office in April 1791. He had done nothing to foster good relations with the newly independent United States: both John Adams
John Adams
John Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
and Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
complained of his obstructive attitude and " aversion to having anything to do with us ".Subsequently he took little part in politics: in 1792, hearing rumours that a new coalition might be formed, he unwisely offered himself as its head and met with a firm rebuff from both Pitt and the King.
Family
Leeds married firstly in 1773 Lady Amelia DarcyAmelia Osborne, Marchioness of Carmarthen
Amelia Osborne , Marchioness of Carmarthen and de jure 12th Baroness Darcy de Knayth and 9th Baroness Conyers and 5th Countess of Mértola was a British peeress and a Portuguese countess....
, daughter of Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness
Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness
Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness PC , known before 1721 as Lord Darcy and Conyers, was a British diplomat and politician. From 1744 to 1746 he was ambassador at Venice and from 1749 to 1751 he represented his country at The Hague...
on 29 November 1773. Lady Amelia became Baroness Darcy de Knayth and Baroness Conyers in her own right in 1778. They were divorced in 1779. Their marriage produced three children:
- Lord George William Frederick OsborneGeorge Osborne, 6th Duke of LeedsGeorge William Frederick Osborne, 6th Duke of Leeds KG, PC , styled Earl of Danby until 1789 and Marquess of Carmarthen from 1789 to 1799, was a British peer and politician...
(21 July 1775 – 10 July 1838), later 6th Duke of Leeds; married Lady Charlotte Townshend, daughter of the 1st Marquess TownshendGeorge Townshend, 1st Marquess TownshendField Marshal George Townshend, 1st Marquess Townshend, PC , known as The Viscount Townshend from 1764 to 1787, was a British soldier who reached the rank of field marshal.-Early life:...
, on 17 August 1797 and had issue. - Lord Francis OsborneFrancis Osborne, 1st Baron GodolphinFrancis Godolphin Osborne, 1st Baron Godolphin , styled Lord Francis Osborne from 1789 to 1832, was a British politician.-Background:...
(18 October 1777 – 15 February 1850), later 1st Baron Godolphin; married The Hon. Elizabeth Eden, third daughter of the 1st Baron Auckland, on 31 March 1800 and had issue. - Lady Mary Henrietta Juliana Osborne (1776-1862); married Thomas Pelham, 2nd Earl of ChichesterThomas Pelham, 2nd Earl of ChichesterThomas Pelham, 2nd Earl of Chichester PC, PC , FRS , styled The Honourable Thomas Pelham from 1768 until 1783, The Right Honourable Thomas Pelham from 1783 to 1801, and then known as Lord Pelham until 1805, was a British Whig politician...
(28 April 1756 – 4 July 1826) in 1801 and had issue.
He married secondly Catherine, daughter of Thomas Anguish, in 1788 and had issue. Leeds died in London in January 1799, aged 48, and was succeeded in the dukedom by his eldest son from his first marriage, George Osborne, 6th Duke of Leeds
George Osborne, 6th Duke of Leeds
George William Frederick Osborne, 6th Duke of Leeds KG, PC , styled Earl of Danby until 1789 and Marquess of Carmarthen from 1789 to 1799, was a British peer and politician...
. His second son from his first marriage, Lord Francis Osborne
Francis Osborne, 1st Baron Godolphin
Francis Godolphin Osborne, 1st Baron Godolphin , styled Lord Francis Osborne from 1789 to 1832, was a British politician.-Background:...
, was created Baron Godolphin
Baron Godolphin
Baron Godolphin is a title that was created three times: first in the Peerage of England, then in the Peerage of Great Britain, and lastly in the Peerage of the United Kingdom...
in 1832. The dowager Duchess of Leeds died in October 1837, aged 73. Leeds's Political Memoranda were edited by Oscar Browning
Oscar Browning
Oscar Browning was an English writer, historian, and educational reformer. His greatest achievement was the cofounding, along with Henry Sidgwick, of the Cambridge University Day Training College in 1891...
for the Camden Society
Camden Society
The Camden Society, named after the English antiquary and historian William Camden, was founded in 1838 in London to publish early historical and literary materials, both unpublished manuscripts and new editions of rare printed books....
in 1884, and there are eight volumes of his official correspondence in the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
.