British politician (1824?1899)
Garter-encircled arms of Charles Somerset, 8th Duke of Beaufort, KG
Henry Charles FitzRoy Somerset, 8th Duke of Beaufort
,
KG
,
PC
(1 February 1824 ? 30 April 1899), styled
Earl of Glamorgan
until 1835 and
Marquess of Worcester
from 1835 to 1853,
[1]
was a British peer, soldier, and
Conservative
politician. He served as
Master of the Horse
,
Member of Parliament
for
East Gloucestershire
, and
Lord Lieutenant of Monmouthshire
.
Background and education
[
edit
]
Born in
Paris
, Beaufort was the only son of
Henry Somerset, 7th Duke of Beaufort
by his second wife Emily Frances (1800?1889), daughter of
Charles Culling Smith
and his wife
Lady Anne Wellesley
(the sister of
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
).
[2]
He was educated at
Eton College
.
Throughout his life he was known as 'Charles Beaufort' to distinguish him from his father; his sons, all given the first name Henry, also went by their middle names.
[
citation needed
]
Military career
[
edit
]
Beaufort was commissioned a Cornet and Sublieutenant in the
1st Life Guards
on 17 August 1841. From 1842 to 1852, he was an
aide-de-camp
to the
Duke of Wellington
, then
Commander-in-Chief of the Forces
[2]
(Beaufort's father had also been Wellington's aide-de-camp during the
Peninsular War
). He was promoted lieutenant on 7 July 1843. On 13 August 1847, he purchased a captaincy in the
7th Hussars
.
[3]
On 15 June 1852, Beaufort was appointed a
deputy lieutenant
of
Gloucestershire
, and after the death of Wellington in September, he continued to serve as aide-de-camp to the new Commander-in-Chief,
Viscount Hardinge
, until the latter's death in 1856.
[2]
On 21 April 1854, Beaufort purchased a commission as an unattached major,
[4]
and on 5 May, he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel Commandant of the
Royal Gloucestershire Yeomanry
, replacing his late father.
[5]
During this time it was proposed to start "a cattle show" in
Monmouth
, and in 1857 Beaufort and
John Etherington Welch Rolls
each put money into a fund to start the show. Rolls was the greater financial contributor and he became President of the show.
[6]
This cattle show is now known as the
Monmouthshire Show
.
Beaufort was breveted lieutenant colonel on 26 October 1858,
[7]
but sold his commission and left the Army on 11 June 1861.
[8]
On 16 September 1863, he was made a
deputy lieutenant
of
Monmouthshire
. He was also appointed Honorary Colonel of the
1st Gloucestershire Engineer Volunteer Corps
on 20 November 1867. On 29 April 1874, he resigned the lieutenant-colonelcy of the Gloucestershire Yeomanry and became Honorary Colonel of the regiment.
[9]
He resigned that commission on 2 July 1887.
[10]
He also resigned the honorary colonelcy of the 1st Gloucestershire Engineer Volunteers on 2 December 1888.
[11]
Political career
[
edit
]
In 1846, Beaufort was returned as a
Member of Parliament
(MP) for
East Gloucestershire
, holding the seat until succeeding his father in the dukedom in November 1853. He was appointed
Master of the Horse
on 26 February 1858, as part of
Lord Derby's
second government
and was made a
Privy Counsellor
the same day. He left office in 1859, when Derby's ministry fell.
[1]
Beaufort was again appointed Master of the Horse in
Derby's third government
in 1866. On 19 March 1867, he was made a
Knight of the Garter
and appointed
Lord Lieutenant of Monmouthshire
later that year. He lost the Mastership of the Horse in 1868 when the government fell, but remained Lord Lieutenant for the remainder of his life.
[1]
Beaufort conceived and planned the
Badminton Library
series of sporting books, the publication of which began in 1885 with a volume on
Hunting
,
[12]
and acted as its overseeing editor.
Family
[
edit
]
Beaufort married Lady Georgiana Charlotte Curzon (29 September 1825 ? 14 May 1906), daughter of
Richard Curzon-Howe, 1st Earl Howe
, on 3 July 1845. They had six children:
Somerset died in 1899, aged 75 at
Stoke Gifford
,
Gloucestershire
, from
gout
and was buried on 5 May 1899 at
St Michael and All Angels Church, Badminton
.
He owned 51,000 acres, mostly in the counties of Monmouth and Gloucester.
[13]
Ancestry
[
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]
Ancestors of Henry Somerset, 8th Duke of Beaufort
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References
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External links
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