Sir Robert Gunning
Encyclopedia
Sir Robert Gunning, 1st Baronet GCB
(8 June 1731 – 22 September 1816) was a British diplomat. He served as the British
minister in Denmark
1765–1771, in Prussia
in 1771 and in Russia
1772–1776. Gunning was made a Baronet
on the 17 October 1778 and a Knight Companion of the Bath
on the 19 May 1779.
The Gunnings were an Irish family. His country seat was at Horton
which he purchased 1782; he was the eldest son of Robert Gunning - and his mother was Catherine, the daughter of John Edwards. The family was descended from Richard Gunning, who was an uncle of Peter Gunning
, the Bishop of Ely
who had settled in Ireland in the time of James I. The Gunning family stayed at Horton Hall until 1888 when it was sold to Pickering Phipps, the Northampton brewer. Later still, it was sold to George Winterbottom.
On 13 April 1771 he was appointed envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to the court of Prussia
, but did not leave Copenhagen
until the end of June, reaching Berlin
in the following month. On 13 Dec. he was transferred with the same rank to the court of Russia
, where he arrived early in the following June, and was received in the most distinguished manner by the empress
. His instructions, dated 28 May 1772, directed him to offer the services of the British government as mediator between Russia and the Porte
, with a view to effecting a treaty of peace, and to support the policy of the empress in Poland, but to attempt to secure toleration for the Greek church and other dissident religious bodies.
Gunning was also instructed at a later date to solicit the intervention of the empress on behalf of the city of Dantzig
in its quarrel with the king of Prussia
, who was accused of levying exorbitant dues for the use of Dantzig harbour, which, on the partition of Poland, had been ceded to him without the city's. Gunning made repeated representations to the Russian foreign ministers on the subject, but met with none but evasive answers. By the empress herself Gunning was uniformly treated with marked distinction. When he dined with her she would address the greater part of her conversation to him, and she frequently admitted him to private audiences. On one occasion she condescended to order through him four copies of Kennicott's edition of the Old Testament in Hebrew, for which he gave his cheque on his bankers.
The way in which Gunning discharged his duties were much appreciated by the King George III, who, unsolicited, nominated him as a Knight of the Bath on 2 June 1773, and requested the empress to invest him with the insignia of the order. She consented, and selected 9 July, the anniversary of her own accession, for the ceremony, and when it was over gave him the gold-hilted sword set with diamonds with which she had knighted him.
In the summer of 1775 he was instructed to sound out the Russian foreign minister, Panin
, as to the possibility of obtaining Russian troops in case of necessity for service in North America. Gunning received encouraging replies from Panin, and afterwards from the empress herself. A regular negotiation was soon afterwards opened for a contingent of twenty thousand disciplined Russian infantry completely equipped (except their field pieces), to be furnished by the empress, and placed under the command of an English General, and transported in English ships to Canada, for service against the revolted states.
A pretext for rupturing the negotiation was found in the demand of the British Government that the principal officers of the contingent should take the oath of allegiance to the British crown. Gunning's conduct in the affair was much praised by Lord Suffolk
. In the following November he sought and obtained his recall on account of ill-health.
He died at his seat at Horton
, near Northampton, on 22 September 1816.
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(8 June 1731 – 22 September 1816) was a British diplomat. He served as the British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
minister in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
1765–1771, in Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
in 1771 and in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
1772–1776. Gunning was made a Baronet
Baronet
A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
on the 17 October 1778 and a Knight Companion of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
on the 19 May 1779.
Family
Horton, Northamptonshire
Horton is named from the Old English meaning "muddy farmstead" and lies in the English county of Northamptonshire. It was originally an estate village, serving the now demolished Horton House and it is close to its neighbouring village Hackleton...
which he purchased 1782; he was the eldest son of Robert Gunning - and his mother was Catherine, the daughter of John Edwards. The family was descended from Richard Gunning, who was an uncle of Peter Gunning
Peter Gunning
Peter Gunning was an English Royalist church leader, Bishop of Chichester and later of Ely.-Life:He was born at Hoo St Werburgh, in Kent, and educated at The King's School, Canterbury, and Clare College, Cambridge, where he became a fellow in 1633. Having taken orders, he advocated the Royalist...
, the Bishop of Ely
Bishop of Ely
The Bishop of Ely is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Ely in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese roughly covers the county of Cambridgeshire , together with a section of north-west Norfolk and has its see in the City of Ely, Cambridgeshire, where the seat is located at the...
who had settled in Ireland in the time of James I. The Gunning family stayed at Horton Hall until 1888 when it was sold to Pickering Phipps, the Northampton brewer. Later still, it was sold to George Winterbottom.
Marriages
- 27 March 1752, Elizabeth, daughter of John Harrison of Grantham, by whom he had no children
- 1757, Anne, daughter of Robert Sutton of Scofton, Nottinghamshire, by whom he had a son, George William, who succeeded to the title; a daughter Charlotte Margaret, maid of honour to Queen Charlotte, who married, on 6 January 1790, the Hon. Stephen Digby; and also another daughter, Barbara Evelyn Isabella, who married in 1795 Major-General Ross.
The diplomatic service
Gunning entered the diplomatic service, and on 23 November 1765 was appointed minister resident at the court of Denmark, where he arrived in April of the following year. His instructions were to assist the envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary, Walter Titley, and to keep the British government well informed of passing events. He seems to have performed his duties with regularity, tact, and ability, and on the death of Titley (27 Feb. 1768) he succeeded to the post of envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary.On 13 April 1771 he was appointed envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to the court of Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
, but did not leave Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
until the end of June, reaching Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
in the following month. On 13 Dec. he was transferred with the same rank to the court of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, where he arrived early in the following June, and was received in the most distinguished manner by the empress
Catherine I of Russia
Catherine I , the second wife of Peter the Great, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1725 until her death.-Life as a peasant woman:The life of Catherine I was said by Voltaire to be nearly as extraordinary as that of Peter the Great himself. There are no documents that confirm her origins. Born on...
. His instructions, dated 28 May 1772, directed him to offer the services of the British government as mediator between Russia and the Porte
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, with a view to effecting a treaty of peace, and to support the policy of the empress in Poland, but to attempt to secure toleration for the Greek church and other dissident religious bodies.
Gunning was also instructed at a later date to solicit the intervention of the empress on behalf of the city of Dantzig
Dantzig
- People :* Tobias Dantzig , mathematician from Latvia, father of George Dantzig* George Dantzig , American mathematician who introduced the simplex algorithm* David van Dantzig , Dutch mathematician...
in its quarrel with the king of Prussia
Frederick II of Prussia
Frederick II was a King in Prussia and a King of Prussia from the Hohenzollern dynasty. In his role as a prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire, he was also Elector of Brandenburg. He was in personal union the sovereign prince of the Principality of Neuchâtel...
, who was accused of levying exorbitant dues for the use of Dantzig harbour, which, on the partition of Poland, had been ceded to him without the city's. Gunning made repeated representations to the Russian foreign ministers on the subject, but met with none but evasive answers. By the empress herself Gunning was uniformly treated with marked distinction. When he dined with her she would address the greater part of her conversation to him, and she frequently admitted him to private audiences. On one occasion she condescended to order through him four copies of Kennicott's edition of the Old Testament in Hebrew, for which he gave his cheque on his bankers.
The way in which Gunning discharged his duties were much appreciated by the King George III, who, unsolicited, nominated him as a Knight of the Bath on 2 June 1773, and requested the empress to invest him with the insignia of the order. She consented, and selected 9 July, the anniversary of her own accession, for the ceremony, and when it was over gave him the gold-hilted sword set with diamonds with which she had knighted him.
In the summer of 1775 he was instructed to sound out the Russian foreign minister, Panin
Nikita Ivanovich Panin
Count Nikita Ivanovich Panin was an influential Russian statesman and political mentor to Catherine the Great for the first eighteen years of her reign. In that role he advocated the Northern Alliance, closer ties with Frederick the Great of Prussia and the establishment of an advisory privy...
, as to the possibility of obtaining Russian troops in case of necessity for service in North America. Gunning received encouraging replies from Panin, and afterwards from the empress herself. A regular negotiation was soon afterwards opened for a contingent of twenty thousand disciplined Russian infantry completely equipped (except their field pieces), to be furnished by the empress, and placed under the command of an English General, and transported in English ships to Canada, for service against the revolted states.
A pretext for rupturing the negotiation was found in the demand of the British Government that the principal officers of the contingent should take the oath of allegiance to the British crown. Gunning's conduct in the affair was much praised by Lord Suffolk
Henry Howard, 12th Earl of Suffolk
Henry Howard, 12th Earl of Suffolk, 5th Earl of Berkshire, KG, PC was a British politician, styled Viscount Andover from 1756 to 1757....
. In the following November he sought and obtained his recall on account of ill-health.
He died at his seat at Horton
Horton, Northamptonshire
Horton is named from the Old English meaning "muddy farmstead" and lies in the English county of Northamptonshire. It was originally an estate village, serving the now demolished Horton House and it is close to its neighbouring village Hackleton...
, near Northampton, on 22 September 1816.