Lord William Pitt Lennox
Encyclopedia
Lord William Pitt Lennox (20 September 1799–18 February 1881) was a British army officer and writer.
, was born at Winestead Hall, Yorkshire, 20 Sept. 1799, and was a godson of William Pitt and a cousin of Charles James Fox
. He was educated at Westminster from 1808 to 1814.
On 13 May 1813, while still at school, he was gazetted to a cornetcy in the Royal Horse Guards
, and on 8 Aug. 1814 accompanied the Duke of Wellington
as an attaché in his embassy to Paris. In 1815 he was attached to General Sir Peregrine Maitland
's staff, was present at his mother's memorable ball in Brussels, and saw some portion of the battle of Waterloo
, but was prevented by the effects of a horse accident from taking an active part in it. For three years after Waterloo he acted as an aide-de-camp to Wellington. He then joined his regiment in England, was promoted to be a captain 28 March 1822, and retired by the sale of his commission 25 March 1829. He was an extra aide-de-camp to his father while he was governor-general of Canada, 1818–19, and was one of the pages at the coronation of George IV
, 19 July 1821.
He represented King's Lynn
, Norfolk, in conjunction with Lord George Bentinck
, as a moderate reformer and a supporter of the government from 10 Dec. 1832 to 29 Dec. 1834, and spoke on the Reform Bill, on fees paid on vessels in quarantine, and on the Anatomy Bill.
Lennox however was more interested in sport and literature, and preferred a life of gaiety and leisure. He was devoted to horse-racing, delighted in private theatricals, and once ran a hundred yards race in Hill Street, Berkeley Square, at midnight. He figured in Benjamin Disraeli's ‘Vivian Grey’ as Lord Prima Donna (1827). He contributed to the annuals during their popularity, and to ‘Once a Week’ and those serials which dealt with military and sporting topics. ‘Memoirs of Madame Malibran,’ by Lady Merlin, 2 vols. 1840, was based on a manuscript by Lennox. In 1858 he edited the ‘Review’ newspaper.
He wrote several feeble novels, which had a brief success; but his volumes of personal recollections contain interesting anecdotes about court and other celebrities. In later life, when he was far from rich, he often acted as a paid lecturer, and regularly contributed to the ‘Court Journal.’
He died at 34 Hans Place, Sloane Street, London, 18 Feb. 1881, and was buried in Brompton cemetery 25 Feb. He was married three times: first, 7 May 1824, to Mary Anne Paton (1802–1864), singer—this marriage was dissolved by the Scotch court of session in 1831; secondly, in 1854 to Ellen, daughter of John Smith—she died 3 Nov. 1859; and thirdly, 17 Nov. 1863, to Maria Jane, eldest daughter of the Rev. Capel Molyneux—she, in 1888, wrote a novel entitled ‘Castle Heather.’
Life
Lennox, fourth son of Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of RichmondCharles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond
Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond, 4th Duke of Lennox KG, PC was a British soldier and politician and Governor General of British North America.-Background:...
, was born at Winestead Hall, Yorkshire, 20 Sept. 1799, and was a godson of William Pitt and a cousin of Charles James Fox
Charles James Fox
Charles James Fox PC , styled The Honourable from 1762, was a prominent British Whig statesman whose parliamentary career spanned thirty-eight years of the late 18th and early 19th centuries and who was particularly noted for being the arch-rival of William Pitt the Younger...
. He was educated at Westminster from 1808 to 1814.
On 13 May 1813, while still at school, he was gazetted to a cornetcy in the Royal Horse Guards
Royal Horse Guards
The Royal Horse Guards was a cavalry regiment of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry.Founded August 1650 in Newcastle Upon Tyne by Sir Arthur Haselrig on the orders of Oliver Cromwell as the Regiment of Cuirassiers, the regiment became the Earl of Oxford's Regiment during the reign of...
, and on 8 Aug. 1814 accompanied the Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
as an attaché in his embassy to Paris. In 1815 he was attached to General Sir Peregrine Maitland
Peregrine Maitland
Sir Peregrine Maitland, KCB, GCB was a British soldier and colonial administrator who played first-class cricket from 1798 to 1808....
's staff, was present at his mother's memorable ball in Brussels, and saw some portion of the battle of Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
, but was prevented by the effects of a horse accident from taking an active part in it. For three years after Waterloo he acted as an aide-de-camp to Wellington. He then joined his regiment in England, was promoted to be a captain 28 March 1822, and retired by the sale of his commission 25 March 1829. He was an extra aide-de-camp to his father while he was governor-general of Canada, 1818–19, and was one of the pages at the coronation of 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...
, 19 July 1821.
He represented King's Lynn
King's Lynn (UK Parliament constituency)
King's Lynn was a constituency in Norfolk, known as Lynn or Bishop's Lynn prior to 1537, which returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until 1885, and one member thereafter. Until 1918 it was a parliamentary borough, after which the name...
, Norfolk, in conjunction 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...
, as a moderate reformer and a supporter of the government from 10 Dec. 1832 to 29 Dec. 1834, and spoke on the Reform Bill, on fees paid on vessels in quarantine, and on the Anatomy Bill.
Lennox however was more interested in sport and literature, and preferred a life of gaiety and leisure. He was devoted to horse-racing, delighted in private theatricals, and once ran a hundred yards race in Hill Street, Berkeley Square, at midnight. He figured in Benjamin Disraeli's ‘Vivian Grey’ as Lord Prima Donna (1827). He contributed to the annuals during their popularity, and to ‘Once a Week’ and those serials which dealt with military and sporting topics. ‘Memoirs of Madame Malibran,’ by Lady Merlin, 2 vols. 1840, was based on a manuscript by Lennox. In 1858 he edited the ‘Review’ newspaper.
He wrote several feeble novels, which had a brief success; but his volumes of personal recollections contain interesting anecdotes about court and other celebrities. In later life, when he was far from rich, he often acted as a paid lecturer, and regularly contributed to the ‘Court Journal.’
He died at 34 Hans Place, Sloane Street, London, 18 Feb. 1881, and was buried in Brompton cemetery 25 Feb. He was married three times: first, 7 May 1824, to Mary Anne Paton (1802–1864), singer—this marriage was dissolved by the Scotch court of session in 1831; secondly, in 1854 to Ellen, daughter of John Smith—she died 3 Nov. 1859; and thirdly, 17 Nov. 1863, to Maria Jane, eldest daughter of the Rev. Capel Molyneux—she, in 1888, wrote a novel entitled ‘Castle Heather.’
Chief works
- ‘Compton Audley, or Hands not Hearts,’ 1841, 3 vols.
- ‘Tuft Hunter,’ 1843, 3 vols.
- ‘Percy Hamilton, or the Adventures of a Westminster Boy,’ 1851, 3 vols.
- ‘Three Years with the Duke of Wellington in Private Life,’ 1853.
- ‘Philip Courtenay, or Scenes at Home and Abroad,’ 1855, 3 vols.
- ‘The Story of my Life,’ 1857, 3 vols.
- ‘The Victoria Cross, the Rewarded and their Services,’ 1857.
- ‘Merrie England, its Sports and Pastimes,’ 1858.
- ‘Pictures of Sporting Life and Character,’ 1860, 2 vols.
- ‘Recollections of a Sportsman,’ 1862, 2 vols.
- ‘Life of the Fifth Duke of Richmond,’ anon., 1862.
- ‘Fifty Years' Biographical Reminiscences,’ 1863, 2 vols.
- ‘The Adventures of a Man of Family,’ 1864, 3 vols.
- ‘Drafts on my Memory,’ 1866, 2 vols.
- ‘Sport at Home and Abroad,’ 1872, 2 vols.
- ‘My Recollections,’ 1874, 2 vols.
- ‘Celebrities I have known,’ 1876–7, 4 vols.
- ‘Coaching, with Anecdotes of the Road,’ 1876.
- ‘Fashion then and now,’ 1878, 2 vols.
- ‘Lord of Himself,’ 1880, 3 vols.
- ‘Plays, Players, and Playhouses at Home and Abroad,’ 1881, 2 vols.