Assheton Curzon, 1st Viscount Curzon (2 February 1730 – 21 March 1820), styled Lord Curzon between 1794 and 1802, was a British

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...

politician.

Background and education

Curzon was the second son of

Sir Nathaniel Curzon, 4th Baronet Sir Nathaniel Curzon, 4th Baronet (1676–1758) of Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire was an English Tory politician who represented three constituencies in the 18th century. Curzon was the son of Sir Nathaniel Curzon, 2nd Baronet of Kedleston, and his ...

of Kedleston, Derbyshire and Mary, daughter of

Sir Ralph Assheton, 2nd Baronet Sir Ralph Assheton, 2nd Baronet (11 February 1651 – 3 May 1716) of Middleton Hall, Greater Manchester, Middleton Hall and Whalley Abbey, Lancashire, was an England, English landowner and politician who represented Liverpool (UK Parliamen ...

Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Baron Scarsdale Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Baron Scarsdale (1726 – 5 December 1804) of Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire was an English Tory politician and peer. Early life Curzon was the son of Sir Nathaniel Curzon, 4th Baronet of Kedleston, and his wife Mary Assheton. ...

, was his elder brother (see

Viscount Scarsdale Viscount Scarsdale, of Scarsdale in Derbyshire, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1911 for the prominent Conservative politician and former Viceroy of India George Curzon, 1st Baron Curzon of Kedleston, who was ...

for earlier history of the family). He was educated at

Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the mi ...

Political career

Curzon sat as Member of Parliament for

Clitheroe Clitheroe () is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England; it is located north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for tourists visiting the area. In 2018, the Cl ...

from 1754 to 1777 and from 1792 to 1794. In the latter year he was raised to the peerage as Baron Curzon, of Penn in the County of Buckingham, and in 1802 he was further honoured when he was made Viscount Curzon, of Penn in the County of Buckingham.

Homes

In 1752 Curzon acquired

Hagley Hall Hagley Hall is a Grade I listed 18th-century house in Hagley, Worcestershire, the home of the Lyttelton family. It was the creation of George, 1st Lord Lyttelton (1709–1773), secretary to Frederick, Prince of Wales, poet and man of letters an ...

, near Rugeley in Staffordshire, remodelling the house and redesigning the grounds. In 1760 he built Penn House near Amersham in Buckinghamshire, replacing an earlier Tudor building with a red brick country mansion.

Family

Lord Curzon married firstly Esther Hanmer, daughter of William Hanmer and Elizabeth Jennens (sister of

Charles Jennens Charles Jennens (1700 – 20 November 1773) was an English landowner and patron of the arts. As a friend of Handel, he helped author the libretti of several of his oratorios, most notably ''Messiah''. Life Jennens was brought up at Gopsall H ...

), in 1756. After her death in July 1764, he married secondly Dorothy, daughter of

Sir Robert Grosvenor, 6th Baronet Sir Robert Grosvenor, 6th Baronet (7 May 1695 – 1 August 1755) of Eaton Hall, Cheshire, was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1733 to 1755. He was an ancestor of the present Dukes of Westminster. Grosvenor was t ...

, in 1766. After her death on 24 February 1774, he married thirdly Anna Margaretta, daughter of Amos Meredith and sister of

Sir William Meredith, 3rd Baronet Sir William Meredith, 3rd Baronet (c. 1725 – 2 January 1790), was a British landowner who sat in the House of Commons from 1754 to 1780. A Rockingham Whig, he served as a Lord of the Admiralty from 1765 to 1766. Early life Meredith was the so ...

, in 1777. She died in June 1804. There were two sons and four daughters from the two first marriages.The Peerage entry fo
Dugdale Stratford Dugdale
/ref> Lord Curzon died in March 1820, aged 90. His son from his first marriage, The Hon. Penn Assheton Curzon, had predeceased him, and he was therefore succeeded by the latter's third but eldest surviving son by his marriage to Sophia Howe, ''

suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...

'' Baroness Howe (the eldest daughter of

Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, (8 March 1726 – 5 August 1799) was a British naval officer. After serving throughout the War of the Austrian Succession, he gained a reputation for his role in amphibious operations aga ...

(of the first creation), and wife Mary Hartop),

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...

, who was created

Earl Howe Earl Howe is a title that has been created twice in British history, for members of the Howe and Curzon-Howe family respectively. The first creation, in the Peerage of Great Britain, was in 1788 for Richard Howe, but became extinct on his ...

in 1821. His son by his second wife, The Honourable Robert Curzon, represented Clitheroe in Parliament for many years and was the father of

Robert Curzon, 14th Baron Zouche Robert Curzon, 14th Baron Zouche (16 March 1810 – 2 August 1873), styled The Honourable Robert Curzon between 1829 and 1870, was an English traveller, diplomat and author, active in the Near East. He was responsible for acquiring several import ...

. Robert inherited Hagley Hall and various other unentailed properties. His daughter, The Hon. Charlotte Curzon, married Dugdale Stratford Dugdale of the historic

Stratford Family The House of Stratford () is a British aristocratic family, originating in Stratford-on-Avon between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries. The family has produced multiple titles, including Earl of Aldborough, Viscount Amiens, Baron Baltingl ...

, with their descendants becoming the

Dugdale Baronets There have been two Baronetcies created for persons with the surname Dugdale, both in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. The Dugdale Baronetcy, ''of Merevale and Blyth in the County of Warwick'', was created in the Baronetage of the United Ki ...

in 1936.

Notes

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Curzon, Assheton 1730 births 1820 deaths Peers of Great Britain created by George III Viscounts in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Younger sons of baronets Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies British MPs 1754–1761 British MPs 1761–1768 British MPs 1768–1774 British MPs 1774–1780 British MPs 1790–1796 Tory members of the Parliament of Great Britain Assheton