Charles Langdale (formerly Stourton); 19 September 1787 – 1 December 1868) was a British politician,

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

layman, and biographer. He served as Whig

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

, wrote the memoirs of

Maria Fitzherbert Maria Anne Fitzherbert (''née'' Smythe, previously Weld; 26 July 1756 – 27 March 1837) was a longtime companion of George, Prince of Wales (later King George IV of the United Kingdom). In 1785, they secretly contracted a marriage that was i ...

, and was a leading Roman Catholic figure during the 19th century.

Origins

Langdale was born Hon. Charles Stourton in 1787, the fourth son of

Charles Stourton, 17th Baron Stourton Charles Philip Stourton, 17th Baron Stourton (1752–1816) was the son of William Stourton and Winifred Howard, a great-granddaughter of the 6th Duke of Norfolk and a leading Roman Catholic. The seventeenth Baron succeeded his father in 1781, a ...

by his wife Mary Langdale, a daughter and co-heiress of

Marmaduke Langdale, 5th Baron Langdale ''Marmaduke'' is a newspaper comic strip revolving around the Winslow family and their Great Dane, Marmaduke, drawn by Brad Anderson from June 1954 to 2015. Publication history The strip was created by Anderson, and sold to the John F. Dille ...

(1771–1777). He became the heir of his mother's cousin Philip Langdale (d.1815) of

Houghton Hall, East Riding of Yorkshire Houghton Hall, Sancton, near Market Weighton, is a Grade I listed Georgian country mansion in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, set in an estate of . Located on the estate is the village of Sancton and the vestigial remains of the ancient h ...

, who died with no sons, and to comply with the terms of his inheritance he adopted the surname Langdale by royal licence dated 1815, for himself and his descendants.

Education

He was educated at

Oscott College St Mary's College in New Oscott, Birmingham, often called Oscott College, is the Roman Catholic seminary of the Archdiocese of Birmingham in England and one of the three seminaries of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. Purpose Oscott Coll ...

and

Stonyhurst College Stonyhurst College is a co-educational Catholic Church, Roman Catholic independent school, adhering to the Society of Jesus, Jesuit tradition, on the Stonyhurst, Stonyhurst Estate, Lancashire, England. It occupies a Grade I listed building. Th ...

Politics and public life

Langdale campaigned for

Catholic Emancipation Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, and later the combined United Kingdom in the late 18th century and early 19th century, that involved reducing and removing many of the restricti ...

, and after the passing of the

Catholic Relief Act 1829 The Catholic Relief Act 1829, also known as the Catholic Emancipation Act 1829, was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom in 1829. It was the culmination of the process of Catholic emancipation throughout the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

he became

for

Beverley Beverley is a market town, market and minster (church), minster town and a civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, of which it is the county town. The town centre is located south-east of York's centre ...

following the 1832 general election, becoming one of the first Roman Catholics in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

. He represented Beverly until

1835 Events January–March * January 7 – anchors off the Chonos Archipelago on her second voyage, with Charles Darwin on board as naturalist. * January 8 – The United States public debt contracts to zero, for the only time in history. ...

, and represented

Knaresborough Knaresborough ( ) is a market and spa town and civil parish in the Borough of Harrogate, in North Yorkshire, England, on the River Nidd. It is east of Harrogate. History Knaresborough is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Chenares ...

between

1837 Events January–March * January 1 – The destructive Galilee earthquake causes 6,000–7,000 casualties in Ottoman Syria. * January 26 – Michigan becomes the 26th state admitted to the United States. * February – Charles Dickens's ...

and

1841 Events January–March * January 20 – Charles Elliot of the United Kingdom, and Qishan of the Qing dynasty, agree to the Convention of Chuenpi. * January 26 – Britain occupies Hong Kong. Later in the year, the first census of the i ...

. Throughout his life, Langdale took a leading part in all matters relating to the interests of Roman Catholics. He supported the foundation and became the chairman of the Catholic Poor School Committee, serving until his death. During his tenure, he played an important role in the negotiations for public funds for Roman Catholic schools. Shortly before his death, he was admitted as a lay brother of the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

. At his funeral,

Peter Gallwey Peter Gallwey (13 November 1820, Killarney – 23 September 1906, London) was a Jesuit priest and writer, who worked primarily in London. Life He was educated at Stonyhurst College, and joined the Society of Jesus at Hodder, 7 September 1836. H ...

described him as "the acknowledged father and patriarch of the oppressed Catholic community in England" and as "a father to us all".

Henry Edward Manning Henry Edward Manning (15 July 1808 – 14 January 1892) was an English prelate of the Catholic church, and the second Archbishop of Westminster from 1865 until his death in 1892. He was ordained in the Church of England as a young man, but con ...

Archbishop of Westminster The Archbishop of Westminster heads the Roman Catholic Diocese of Westminster, in England. The incumbent is the metropolitan of the Province of Westminster, chief metropolitan of England and Wales and, as a matter of custom, is elected presid ...

, in a funeral sermon in London, described him as having been for fifty years the foremost man among the Roman Catholic

laity In religious organizations, the laity () consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. In both religious and wider secular usage, a layperson ...

in England.

Biography of Maria Fitzherbert

Langdale had been a close friend of

during their youth; there was a family connection through her first husband George Weld, whose niece married his eldest brother William. In the publication ''Memoirs of Lord Holland'', it was claimed that Fitzherbert, a Roman Catholic, never believed her marriage vows to George, Prince of Wales, to be in any way binding (the marriage was considered invalid under the

Royal Marriages Act 1772 The Royal Marriages Act 1772 (12 Geo 3 c. 11) was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain which prescribed the conditions under which members of the British royal family could contract a valid marriage, in order to guard against marriages th ...

because it had not been approved by

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

and the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

). With a view to the vindication of her character, he published ''Memoirs of Mrs. Fitzherbert: with an account of her marriage with H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, afterwards King George IV'' at the request of his brother, Lord Stourton, one of the trustees named in Fitzherbert's will. He was refused access to her papers by the other trustees, but he was able to use the narrative drawn up by Lord Stourton. The memoirs showed that Fitzherbert believed herself to be George's wife.

Marriage and children

He married twice: *Firstly in 1817 to Charlotte Mary Clifford (died 1819), fifth daughter of

Charles Clifford, 6th Baron Clifford of Chudleigh Baron Clifford of Chudleigh, of Chudleigh in the County of Devon, is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1672 for Thomas Clifford. The title was created as "Clifford of Chudleigh" rather than simply "Clifford" to differentiat ...

, by whom he had two daughters. *Secondly in 1821 he married May Constable-Maxwell (died 1857), eldest daughter of Marmaduke William Haggerstone Constable-Maxwell, by whom he had at least five sons and six daughters.

Death and succession

He died in

Mayfair Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world. ...

, London, in 1868 and was buried near his seat, Houghton Hall, Yorkshire. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Charles Joseph Langdale (1822-1895).

Bibliography

Footnotes

References

;Attribution *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Langdale, Charles 1787 births 1868 deaths People educated at Stonyhurst College British Roman Catholics Whig (British political party) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1837–1841 Younger sons of barons People from Holme-on-Spalding-Moor