The Hon. George Lamb (11 July 1784 – 2 January 1834) was a British politician and writer. He was the youngest son of

Peniston Lamb, 1st Viscount Melbourne Peniston Lamb, 1st Viscount Melbourne (29 January 1745 – 22 July 1828), known as Sir Peniston Lamb, 2nd Baronet, from 1768 to 1770, was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1768 to 1793. He was the father of Prime Minister ...

, and his wife

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

. Also, brother of

William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, (15 March 177924 November 1848), in some sources called Henry William Lamb, was a British Whig politician who served as Home Secretary (1830–1834) and Prime Minister (1834 and 1835–1841). His first pre ...

Frederick Lamb, 3rd Viscount Melbourne Frederick James Lamb, 3rd Viscount Melbourne, (17 April 1782 – 29 January 1853), known as The Lord Beauvale from 1839 to 1848, was a British diplomat. Family and education Lamb was a younger son of Peniston Lamb, 1st Viscount Melbourne, and ...

, and

Emily Lamb, Countess Cowper Emily Temple, Viscountess Palmerston (née Lamb, later Clavering-Cowper; 1787–1869), styled The Honourable Emily Lamb from 1787 to 1805 and Countess Cowper from 1805 to 1839, was a leading figure of the Almack's social set, sister to Prime M ...

. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

and

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

, where he graduated MA in 1805. However, due to his mother's numerous love affairs, George's true paternity is a matter of debate. It is widely rumored that George's biological father was George the IV, Prince of Wales. George IV, Prince of Wales, acted as George Lamb's godfather. On 17 May 1809, he married Caroline Rosalie Adelaide St. Jules, the illegitimate daughter of

William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire, (14 December 1748 – 29 July 1811), was a British nobleman, aristocrat, and politician. He was the eldest son of William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, by his wife, the heiress Lady Charlotte B ...

, by his mistress (and eventual second wife) Lady Elizabeth Foster. In 1805 his brother William had married Caroline's cousin

Lady Caroline Ponsonby Lady Caroline Lamb (née Ponsonby; 13 November 1785 – 25 January 1828) was an Anglo-Irish aristocrat and novelist, best known for ''Glenarvon'', a Gothic novel. In 1812 she had an affair with Lord Byron, whom she described as "mad, bad, and ...

, whose affair with the poet

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...

led her to describe him as "mad, bad, and dangerous to know". The Lambs had no children and it was speculated that the marriage was never consummated. George would neglect Caroline St. Jules by retiring to bed early to avoid sleeping with his wife. George found his wife to be a distraction from his theatre/literary career. Their marriage was almost in shambles. In 1816, Caroline St. Jules had an affair with Henry Brougham. In addition, Caroline St. Jules felt trapped in a marriage where her husband was neglectful and a drunk. Caroline St. Jules would confess her martial problems to her mother, Lady Elizabeth Foster. Lady Elizabeth Foster could not see Caroline St. Jules’ and George Lamb's marital problems in any positive light. Lady Elizabeth Foster was disappointed in George's treatment of Caroline and believed him to be "some kind of monster." Yet, Caroline St. Jules and George Lamb's marriage seemed to work out as time went on. Eventually, Caroline St. Jules and Henry Brougham ended their affair. Caroline reconciled with her husband, and they stayed together until George Lamb’s death in 1834. Even though Caroline St. Jules outlived George Lamb by almost 28 years, she never remarried. Caroline St. Jules died in 1862.https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/bbm%3A978-1-4039-7334-4%2F1.pdf George Lamb became a barrister at

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

, and was

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 ...

for

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

from March 1819 to March 1820, and for Dungarvan from 1822 until his death. He served in

Earl Grey Earl Grey is a title in the peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1806 for General Charles Grey, 1st Baron Grey. In 1801, he was given the title Baron Grey of Howick in the County of Northumberland, and in 1806 he was created Viscou ...

's administration as

Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department This article lists past and present Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State serving the Home Secretary of the United Kingdom at the Home Office. Non-permanent and parliamentary under-secretaries, 1782–present *April 1782: Evan Nepean *April 17 ...

from 1830 until his death. George Lamb's comic opera ''Whistle for it'' was produced in 1807, and his adaptations of

Timon of Athens ''Timon of Athens'' (''The Life of Tymon of Athens'') is a play written by William Shakespeare and probably also Thomas Middleton in about 1606. It was published in the ''First Folio'' in 1623. Timon lavishes his wealth on parasitic companion ...

in 1816. His most important work, a translation of the poems of

Catullus Gaius Valerius Catullus (; 84 - 54 BCE), often referred to simply as Catullus (, ), was a Latin poet of the late Roman Republic who wrote chiefly in the neoteric style of poetry, focusing on personal life rather than classical heroes. His s ...

, was published in 1821.

References

*''Concise Dictionary of National Biography'', 1932

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lamb, George 1784 births 1834 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Waterford constituencies (1801–1922) UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs 1832–1835 Younger sons of viscounts