Francis Russell, 5th Duke of Bedford (23 July 1765 – 2 March 1802) was an English aristocrat and Whig politician, responsible for much of the development of central

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London, part of the London Borough of Camden in England. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural institution, cultural, intellectual, and educational ...

Life

Francis Russell, eldest son of Francis Russell, Marquess of Tavistock (died 1767), by his wife, Elizabeth (died 1768), daughter of William Keppel, 2nd Earl of Albemarle, was born at

Woburn Abbey Woburn Abbey (), occupying the east of the village of Woburn, Bedfordshire, England, is a country house, the family seat of the Duke of Bedford. Although it is still a family home to the current duke, it is open on specified days to visitors, ...

and baptized on 20 August 1765 at St Giles in the Fields. In January 1771 he succeeded his

grandfather Grandparents, individually known as grandmother and grandfather, or Grandma and Grandpa, are the parents of a person's father or mother – paternal or maternal. Every sexually reproducing living organism who is not a genetic chimera has a m ...

as Duke of Bedford, and was educated at

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

, afterwards spending nearly two years in foreign travel. Whilst abroad in 1784 he was involved in a menage a trois with Charles Maynard, second Viscount Maynard, and his wife Anne, Lady Maynard. This liaison was with Russell's grandmother's approval and it continued until 1787.A. A. Hanham, ‘Parsons, Anne ancymarried name Anne Maynard, Viscountess Maynard] (c.1735–1814/15)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, May 200
accessed 14 February 2017
/ref> Regarding

Charles James Fox Charles James Fox (24 January 1749 – 13 September 1806), styled ''The Honourable'' from 1762, was a British British Whig Party, Whig politician and statesman whose parliamentary career spanned 38 years of the late 18th and early 19th centurie ...

as his political leader, he joined the Whigs in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

, and became a member of the circle of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

, afterwards

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

. Having overcome some nervousness and educational defects, he began to speak in the House, and soon became one of the leading debaters in that assembly. He opposed most of the measures brought forward by the ministry of William Pitt, and objected to the grant of a pension to

Edmund Burke Edmund Burke (; 12 January ew Style, NS1729 – 9 July 1797) was an Anglo-Irish Politician, statesman, journalist, writer, literary critic, philosopher, and parliamentary orator who is regarded as the founder of the Social philosophy, soc ...

, an action which drew down upon him a scathing attack from Burke’s pen. Bedford was greatly interested in agriculture. He established a model farm at Woburn, and made experiments with regard to the breeding of sheep. He was a member of the original Board of Agriculture, and was the first president of the Smithfield Club. He died at Woburn on 2 March 1802, and was buried in the 'Bedford Chapel' at St. Michael’s Church, Chenies,

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

, England. The duke never married, and was succeeded in the title by his brother, John.

Trivia

In 1795, when the government levied a tax on hair powder, as a form of protest Bedford abandoned the powdered and tied hairstyle commonly worn by men of that era in favour of a cropped, unpowdered style, making a bet with friends to do likewise. The new style became known as the "Bedford Level", a pun on an area of

The Fens The Fens or Fenlands in eastern England are a naturally marshy region supporting a rich ecology and numerous species. Most of the fens were drained centuries ago, resulting in a flat, dry, low-lying agricultural region supported by a system o ...

reclaimed by the family and also known as the "Bedford Level", as well as referring to Bedford's radical ("

leveller The Levellers were a political movement active during the English Civil War who were committed to popular sovereignty, extended suffrage, equality before the law and religious tolerance. The hallmark of Leveller thought was its populism, as sh ...

") political views. It was also known as the " Bedford Crop". Although natural, the Bedford crop was usually styled with wax.

Influence on Bloomsbury

Francis Russell is responsible for much of the development of central

. Following the demolition of Bedford House on the north side of

Bloomsbury Square Bloomsbury Square is a garden square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden, London. Developed in the late 17th century, it was initially known as Southampton Square and was one of the earliest London squares. By the early 19th century, Be ...

, he commissioned James Burton to develop the land to the north into a residential area.

Russell Square Russell Square is a large garden square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden, built predominantly by the firm of James Burton (property developer), James Burton. It is near the University of London's main buildings and the British Mus ...

was designed as the focal point of the development. He commissioned

Humphry Repton Humphry Repton (21 April 1752 – 24 March 1818) was the last great designer of the classic phase of the English landscape garden, often regarded as the successor to Capability Brown. His style is thought of as the precursor of the more intric ...

to landscape the square after the success of Repton's work for the Duke at his Woburn Estate. A statue by Richard Westmacott, erected in 1809, has been conserved and stands on the south side of the square. It depicts Francis Russell as an agriculturalist with one hand on a plough, corn ears in the other and sheep at his feet. He looks out over the land he developed back towards

Racing career

Bedford established a stud at

and had considerable success as a breeder and owner of racehorses. When he was only twenty-one his first notable horse,

Skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Most modern sources define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition, other than being very tall high-rise bui ...

, was foaled, a colt which went on to win The Derby of 1789. Bedford bred two other Derby winners, Eager (1788), and the nameless Colt by Fidget (1794), as well as two Oaks winners, Portia (1788) and Caelia (1790).Skyscraper
at bloodlines.net, accessed 7 February 2012

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bedford, Francis Russell, 5th Duke Of 1765 births 1802 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge 405

Francis Francis may refer to: People and characters *Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church (2013–2025) *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) * Francis, a character played by YouTuber Boogie2 ...

British racehorse owners and breeders People educated at Westminster School, London F Owners of Epsom Derby winners Whig (British political party) politicians People from Woburn, Bedfordshire

Life

Trivia

Influence on Bloomsbury

Racing career

See also

References