Joseph Gage
Encyclopedia
Joseph Edward Gage was an entrepreneur
and speculator. He was the son of Joseph Gage of Sherborne Castle
and Elizabeth Penruddock and the brother of Thomas Gage, 1st Viscount Gage
Bt
As a young man in Paris
borrowed money from Richard Cantillon
to speculate in shares in Mississippi Company
and the South Sea Company. He made a vast paper fortune, whereupon he offered Augustus II the Strong
the King of Poland 3,000,000 pounds for his crown. When this offer was declined he made a similar offer for the crown of Sardinia
. Later he was granted a silver mine, and entered into the service of the King of Spain, given the command of his armies in Sicily
and Lombardy
, and created a grandee
(March 1743) of the first class of the kingdom of Spain. He was also presented by the King of Naples
with the order of San Gennaro, and a pension of 4000 ducats a year. He married Lady Mary Herbert who was also involved in Gages' financial speculations. She was twice bailed out by her father, William Herbert, 1st Marquess of Powis
after incurring substantial losses.
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
and speculator. He was the son of Joseph Gage of Sherborne Castle
Sherborne Castle
Sherborne Castle is a 16th-century Tudor mansion southeast of Sherborne in Dorset, England. The park formed only a small part of the Digby estate.-Old castle:Sherborne Old Castle is the ruin of a 12th-century castle in the grounds of the mansion...
and Elizabeth Penruddock and the brother of Thomas Gage, 1st Viscount Gage
Thomas Gage, 1st Viscount Gage
Thomas Gage, 1st Viscount Gage Bt was the son of Joseph Gage of Sherborne Castle and Elizabeth Penruddock.He married Benedicta Maria Theresa Hall in 1717. Gage's first son was born in 1718...
Bt
Baronet
A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
As a young man 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...
borrowed money from Richard Cantillon
Richard Cantillon
Richard Cantillon was an Irish-French economist and author of Essai sur la Nature du Commerce en Général , a book considered by William Stanley Jevons to be the "cradle of political economy". Although little information exists on Cantillon's life, it is known that he became a successful banker and...
to speculate in shares in Mississippi Company
Mississippi Company
The "Mississippi Company" became the "Company of the West" and expanded as the "Company of the Indies" .-The Banque Royale:...
and the South Sea Company. He made a vast paper fortune, whereupon he offered Augustus II the Strong
Augustus II the Strong
Frederick Augustus I or Augustus II the Strong was Elector of Saxony and King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania ....
the King of Poland 3,000,000 pounds for his crown. When this offer was declined he made a similar offer for the crown of Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
. Later he was granted a silver mine, and entered into the service of the King of Spain, given the command of his armies in Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
and Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
, and created a grandee
Grandee
Grandee is the word used to render in English the Iberic high aristocratic title Grande , used by the Spanish nobility; Portuguese nobility, and Brazilian nobility....
(March 1743) of the first class of the kingdom of Spain. He was also presented by the King of Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
with the order of San Gennaro, and a pension of 4000 ducats a year. He married Lady Mary Herbert who was also involved in Gages' financial speculations. She was twice bailed out by her father, William Herbert, 1st Marquess of Powis
William Herbert, 1st Marquess of Powis
William Herbert, 1st Marquess of Powis, PC was an English nobleman.He succeeded his father, the 2nd Baron Powis, as 3rd Baron Powis in 1667, and was created Earl of Powis in 1674 by King Charles II and Viscount Montgomery, of the Town of Montgomery, and Marquess of Powis in 1687 by King James II,...
after incurring substantial losses.
See also
- Viscount GageViscount GageViscount Gage, of Castle Island in the County of Kerry of the Kingdom of Ireland, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1720 for Thomas Gage, along with the subsidiary title of Baron Gage, of Castlebar in the County of Mayo, also in the Peerage of Ireland. In 1744 he also...