William John Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 5th Duke of Portland (17 September 1800 – 6 December 1879), styled Lord John Bentinck before 1824 and Marquess of Titchfield between 1824 and 1854, was a
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
officer and peer, most remembered for his
eccentric
Eccentricity or eccentric may refer to:
* Eccentricity (behavior), odd behavior on the part of a person, as opposed to being "normal"
Mathematics, science and technology Mathematics
* Off-center, in geometry
* Eccentricity (graph theory) of a v ...
behaviour. A recluse who preferred to live in seclusion, he had an elaborate underground maze excavated under his estate at
Welbeck Abbey
Welbeck Abbey in the Dukeries in North Nottinghamshire was the site of a monastery belonging to the Premonstratensian order in England and after the Dissolution of the Monasteries, a country house residence of the Dukes of Portland. It is one ...
near
Clumber Park
Clumber Park is a country park in The Dukeries near Worksop in Nottinghamshire, England. The estate, which was the seat of the Pelham-Clintons, Dukes of Newcastle, was purchased by the National Trust in 1946. It is listed Grade I on the Register ...
in North
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...
.
Life
He was born in London, the second son of
William Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland
William Henry Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland, (24 June 1768 – 27 March 1854), styled Marquess of Titchfield until 1809, was a British politician who served in various positions in the governments of George Canning and Lord ...
, and his wife
Henrietta Henrietta may refer to:
* Henrietta (given name), a feminine given name, derived from the male name Henry
Places
* Henrietta Island in the Arctic Ocean
* Henrietta, Mauritius
* Henrietta, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
United States
* Henrie ...
, daughter of
General John Scott.
He was baptised at
St George's Church, Hanover Square, on 30 September. One of nine children, he was known by his second Christian name, John, as all the male members of the family were named William. He was the brother of Charlotte Denison, future wife of
Evelyn Denison, 1st Viscount Ossington
John Evelyn Denison, 1st Viscount Ossington, PC (27 January 1800 – 7 March 1873) was a British statesman who served as Speaker of the House of Commons from 1857 to 1872. He is the eponym of Speaker Denison's rule.
Background and education
De ...
.
Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck was educated at home rather than at school. Known as Lord John Bentinck, he served in the army from 1818, entering as an
ensign
An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...
in the
Foot Guards and later transferred to the 7th Light Dragoon Guards in 1821, where he became a captain, then the
2nd Life Guards
The 2nd Regiment of Life Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. It was formed in 1788 by the union of the 2nd Troop of Horse Guards and 2nd Troop of Horse Grenadier Guards. In 1922, it was amalgamated ...
in 1823. He reportedly suffered from
lethargy
Lethargy is a state of tiredness, sleepiness, weariness, fatigue, sluggishness or lack of energy. It can be accompanied by depression, decreased motivation, or apathy. Lethargy can be a normal response to inadequate sleep, overexertion, overwo ...
due to his "delicate health".
In 1824, he became the
Marquess of Titchfield
A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman w ...
following the death of his elder brother
William Henry, and was elected
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 ...
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 ...
(MP) to succeed his brother in
King's Lynn
King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is located north of London, north-east of Peterborough, no ...
, a seat traditionally held by a member of his family.
He remained an MP until 1826, when he surrendered his seat on grounds of ill-health to his uncle
Lord William Bentinck
Lieutenant General Lord William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck (14 September 177417 June 1839), known as Lord William Bentinck, was a British soldier and statesman who served as the Governor of Fort William (Bengal) from 1828 to 1834 and the First G ...
.
From 1824 to 1834, he also held the rank of captain in the Royal West India Rangers, on
half pay Half-pay (h.p.) was a term used in the British Army and Royal Navy of the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries to refer to the pay or allowance an officer received when in retirement or not in actual service.
Past usage United Kingdom
In the Eng ...
, a
sinecure
A sinecure ( or ; from the Latin , 'without', and , 'care') is an office, carrying a salary or otherwise generating income, that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service. The term originated in the medieval chu ...
, since this regiment had been disbanded in 1819.
After leaving the army, he spent some time in continental Europe, his health being occasionally poor. His ailments included short-term memory loss and
sciatica
Sciatica is pain going down the leg from the lower back. This pain may go down the back, outside, or front of the leg. Onset is often sudden following activities like heavy lifting, though gradual onset may also occur. The pain is often described ...
.
On 27 March 1854, he succeeded his father as 5th
Duke of Portland
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...
. Although the title also gave him a seat in the
House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...
, it took him three years to take his seat, not taking the oaths until 5 June 1857. He showed little interest in taking an active role in politics, although he supported the
Whigs and
Robert Peel
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet, (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850) was a British Conservative statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835 and 1841–1846) simultaneously serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer ...
. From 1859 until his death he was also Deputy
Lord Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire
This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire. Since 1694, all Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Nottinghamshire.
*Henry Manners, 2nd Earl of Rutland 1552–1563?
*Edward Manners, 3rd Earl of R ...
.
Welbeck Abbey
The duke's major building operations and developments at his estate of
Welbeck Abbey
Welbeck Abbey in the Dukeries in North Nottinghamshire was the site of a monastery belonging to the Premonstratensian order in England and after the Dissolution of the Monasteries, a country house residence of the Dukes of Portland. It is one ...
in which he took an active involvement appealed strongly to the popular imagination. They cost an enormous sum of money and employed thousands of men from the local area, both skilled and unskilled. While there were occasional labour disputes over wages and hours, the duke was on very good terms with his many employees and earned the nickname "the workman's friend".
Grounds
The house's
kitchen garden
The traditional kitchen garden, vegetable garden, also known as a potager (from the French ) or in Scotland a kailyaird, is a space separate from the rest of the residential garden – the ornamental plants and lawn areas. It is used for grow ...
s covered encased in high walls with recesses in which
brazier
A brazier () is a container used to burn charcoal or other solid fuel for cooking, heating or cultural rituals. It often takes the form of a metal box or bowl with feet. Its elevation helps circulate air, feeding oxygen to the fire. Braziers h ...
s could be put to ripen fruit. One of the walls, for peaches, measured over in length.
An immense riding house was constructed, long, wide, and high. It was lit by 4,000 gas jets. His stables held 100 horses but he never rode them in his riding house.
When
roller skating
Roller skating is the act of traveling on surfaces with roller skates. It is a recreational activity, a sport, and a form of transportation. Roller rinks and skate parks are built for roller skating, though it also takes place on streets, sid ...
became popular, he had a rink installed near the lake for the benefit of his staff, whom he encouraged to use it.
House
The duke had all the rooms of
Welbeck Abbey
Welbeck Abbey in the Dukeries in North Nottinghamshire was the site of a monastery belonging to the Premonstratensian order in England and after the Dissolution of the Monasteries, a country house residence of the Dukes of Portland. It is one ...
stripped of furniture, including
tapestries
Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike most woven textiles, where both the warp and the weft threads may ...
and
portrait
A portrait is a portrait painting, painting, portrait photography, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, Personality type ...
s, which he had stored elsewhere. He occupied a suite of four or five rooms in the west wing of the mansion which were sparsely furnished. By 1879, the building was in a state of disrepair, with the duke's rooms the only habitable ones. All the rooms had been painted pink, with bare
parquetry
Parquet (; French for "a small compartment") is a geometric mosaic of wood pieces used for decorative effect in flooring.
Parquet patterns are often entirely geometrical and angular—squares, triangles, lozenges—but may contain curves. T ...
floors and no furniture apart from a commode in one corner.
Underground
The duke's father, believing there would be a shortage of oak, had hundreds of trees planted. His son used the wood to construct a complex of underground rooms and tunnels.
The tunnels under the estate were reputed to have totalled , connecting various underground chambers and above-ground buildings. They included a long tunnel between the house and the riding house, wide enough for several people to walk side by side. A more roughly constructed tunnel ran parallel to this for the use of his workmen. A long tunnel ran north-east from the coach house, to emerge at the south Lodge, which was supposedly wide enough for two
carriage
A carriage is a private four-wheeled vehicle for people and is most commonly horse-drawn. Second-hand private carriages were common public transport, the equivalent of modern cars used as taxis. Carriage suspensions are by leather strapping an ...
s. It had domed skylights (readily visible on the surface) and by night was illuminated by
gaslight
Gas lighting is the production of artificial light from combustion of a gaseous fuel, such as hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, propane, butane, acetylene, ethylene, coal gas (town gas) or natural gas. The light is produced either direct ...
.
The underground chambers—all of which were painted pink—included a great hall long and wide, which was originally intended as a chapel, but which was instead used as a picture gallery and occasionally as a ballroom. The ballroom reportedly had a
hydraulic
Hydraulics (from Greek: Υδραυλική) is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counter ...
lift that could carry 20 guests from the surface and a ceiling that was painted as a giant sunset. The duke never organised any dances in the ballroom.
Other subterranean rooms included a long library, an
observatory
An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. His ...
with a large glass roof, and a vast
billiards
Cue sports are a wide variety of games of skill played with a cue, which is used to strike billiard balls and thereby cause them to move around a cloth-covered table bounded by elastic bumpers known as .
There are three major subdivisions of ...
room.
Eccentricity
The duke was highly
introvert
The traits of extraversion (also spelled extroversion Retrieved 2018-02-21.) and introversion are a central dimension in some human personality theories. The terms ''introversion'' and ''extraversion'' were introduced into psychology by Carl J ...
ed and well known for his eccentricity; he did not want to meet people and never invited anyone to his home. He employed hundreds through his various construction projects, and though well paid, the employees were not allowed to speak to him or acknowledge him. The one worker who raised his hat to the duke was promptly dismissed. The
tenants
A leasehold estate is an ownership of a temporary right to hold land or property in which a lessee or a tenant holds rights of real property by some form of title from a lessor or landlord. Although a tenant does hold rights to real property, a l ...
on his estates were aware of his wishes and knew they were required to ignore him if they passed by.
His rooms had double letterboxes, one for in-coming and another for out-going mail. Only his
valet
A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, valet de chambre was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "vale ...
was permitted to see him in person in his quarters—he would not even let the doctor in, while his tenants and workmen received all their instructions in writing.
His business with his solicitors, agents, and the occasional politician was handled by post. The duke maintained an extensive correspondence with a wide-ranging network of family and friends, including
Benjamin Disraeli
Benjamin Disraeli, 1st Earl of Beaconsfield, (21 December 1804 – 19 April 1881) was a British statesman and Conservative politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He played a central role in the creation o ...
and
Lord Palmerston
Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, (20 October 1784 – 18 October 1865) was a British statesman who was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century. Palmerston dominated British foreign policy during the period ...
. He is not known to have kept company with any ladies and his shyness and introverted personality increased over time. His reclusive lifestyle led to rumours that the duke was disfigured, mad, or prone to wild orgies, but contemporary witnesses and surviving photographs present him as a normal-looking man.
He ventured outside mainly by night, when he was preceded by a lady servant carrying a
lantern
A lantern is an often portable source of lighting, typically featuring a protective enclosure for the light sourcehistorically usually a candle or a wick in oil, and often a battery-powered light in modern timesto make it easier to carry and h ...
ahead of him. If he did walk out by day, the duke wore two overcoats, an extremely tall hat, an extremely high collar, and carried a very large umbrella
behind which he tried to hide if someone addressed him.
If the duke had business in London, he would take his carriage to
Worksop
Worksop ( ) is a market town in the Bassetlaw District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is located east-south-east of Sheffield, close to Nottinghamshire's borders with South Yorkshire and Derbyshire, on the River Ryton and not far from the nor ...
where he had it loaded onto a railway wagon. Upon his arrival at his London residence,
Harcourt House in
Cavendish Square
Cavendish Square is a public garden square in Marylebone in the West End of London. It has a double-helix underground commercial car park. Its northern road forms ends of four streets: of Wigmore Street that runs to Portman Square in the much lar ...
, all the household staff were ordered to keep out of sight as he hurried into his study through the front hall.
He insisted on a chicken roasting at all hours of the day and the servants brought him his food on heated trucks that ran on rails through the tunnels.
Children
There is evidence to believe that the duke had a daughter, Fanny (later Fanny Lawson; 1855–1917), and possibly two sons, William (c. 1852–1870) and Joseph, all of them illegitimate. Fanny had two sons, George and Bertram Lawson, both of whom served with distinction in the military during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, and has numerous descendants living today. The duke had numerous intimate and discreet relationships during his lifetime, and his family was told that due to an accident in his youth he would probably be unable to have children. That diagnosis was incorrect; a modern medical opinion considers infertility "unlikely" as a result of that accident.
![Grave of the Duke of Portland in Kensal Green Cemetery](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Grave_of_the_Duke_of_Portland_in_Kensal_Green_Cemetery.jpg)
Death
The duke died on 6 December 1879 at his London residence, Harcourt House. He was buried in a simple grave in a large plot at
Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of Queens Park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, it was founded by the barrister George Frederic ...
close to the Anglican chapel. As his younger brother, Henry William, had died without male issue on 31 December 1870, the title of Duke of Portland devolved upon his cousin,
William Cavendish-Bentinck.
The department of
holds a number of papers relating to the 5th Duke: the 5th Duke's personal and political papers (Pw K) are part of the Portland (Welbeck) Collection; and the Portland (London) Collection (Pl) contains papers relating to the estate business of the 5th Duke, and to the "
Druce Case".
The Harley Gallery shows exhibitions from the Portland Collection, in the museum which is situated in the converted site of the Fifth Duke's Gas Works.
The Portland Estate Papers held at the Nottinghamshire Archives also contain items relating to the 5th Duke's properties.
Druce case
![T](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/T.C._Druce_or_the_5th_Duke_of_Portland.jpg)
]
In 1897, a widow, Anna Maria Druce, claimed that the duke had led a double life as her father-in-law, a London upholsterer by the name of Thomas Charles Druce, who had supposedly died in 1864. The widow claimed that the duke had faked the death of his
alter ego
An alter ego (Latin for "other I", " doppelgänger") means an alternate self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other self, one with a differen ...
Druce to return to a secluded aristocratic life and that therefore her son was heir to the Portland estate. Her application to have Druce's grave in
Highgate Cemetery
Highgate Cemetery is a place of burial in north London, England. There are approximately 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves across the West and East Cemeteries. Highgate Cemetery is notable both for some of the people buried there as ...
opened to show that the coffin buried in it was empty and weighted with lead was blocked by Druce's
executor
An executor is someone who is responsible for executing, or following through on, an assigned task or duty. The feminine form, executrix, may sometimes be used.
Overview
An executor is a legal term referring to a person named by the maker of a ...
. The case became the subject of continuing and unsuccessful legal proceedings.
When it was discovered that Druce's children by a former wife were living in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, Anna Maria Druce's claims were backgrounded, but she was placed in an asylum in 1903.
[ The case was taken up by George Hollamby Druce from 1903 onwards, who set up companies to finance his legal proceedings in 1905, and in 1907 even instituted a charge of perjury against Herbert Druce, the elder son of Thomas Charles Druce by his second wife, for having sworn that he had witnessed his father's death in 1864. Herbert had been born before his parents' marriage and thus was not eligible to claim the Portland title even if his father had been the duke.
The photograph which illustrates this article is that produced by the prosecution as being of the duke, but the defence denied this and said it was of Druce. Evidence of a fake burial was given by a witness named Robert C. Caldwell of New York and others, and it was eventually agreed that Druce's grave should be opened. This was done on 30 December 1907 under the supervision of Inspector ]Walter Dew
Detective Chief Inspector Walter Dew (17 April 1863 – 16 December 1947) was a British Metropolitan Police officer who was involved in the hunt for both Jack the Ripper and Dr Crippen.
Early life
Dew was born at Far Cotton, in Hardingstone, ...
and Druce's body was found present and successfully identified. Caldwell's evidence was so unreliable that the prosecution disowned him during the trial, and it transpired that he had habitually appeared in court giving sensational, and false, testimony. He was found insane and died in an asylum in 1911. Several witnesses were in turn charged with perjury
Perjury (also known as foreswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an inst ...
.[
]
In popular culture
* R. Austin Freeman's crime novel '' Dr. Thorndyke Intervenes'' (1933) was based on the Druce-Portland case.
* In 1997, Mick Jackson published a book loosely based on the duke's life called '' The Underground Man'', which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize
The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a Literary award, literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United King ...
.
* Bill Bryson
William McGuire Bryson (; born 8 December 1951) is an American–British journalist and author. Bryson has written a number of nonfiction books on topics including travel, the English language, and science. Born in the United States, he has b ...
discusses him in some detail during a visit to Welbeck Abbey in the travel book ''Notes from a Small Island
''Notes from a Small Island'' is a humorous travel book on Great Britain by American author Bill Bryson, first published in 1995.
Overview
Bryson wrote ''Notes from a Small Island'' when he decided to move back to his native United States, but ...
''.
* The Druce-Portland case is the subject of detailed examination in the book ''The Dead Duke, His Secret Wife, and the Missing Corpse'', published in September 2014.
Arms
Titles
* Lord John Bentinck (1800–1824)
* Marquess of Titchfield (1824–1854)
* His Grace The Duke of Portland (1854–1879)
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Follies and Monuments: Welbeck Abbey
Biography of the 5th Duke, with links to online catalogues, from Manuscripts and Special Collections, The University of Nottingham
{{DEFAULTSORT:Portland, John Bentinck, 5th Duke Of
1800 births
1879 deaths
Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery
John, 5th Duke of Portland
105
People from Welbeck
Bentinck, John
Bentinck, John
Portland, D5
British Life Guards officers
British landowners
19th-century British businesspeople