George Thomas John Nugent, 1st Marquess of Westmeath (17 July 1785 – 5 May 1871), styled Lord Delvin between 1792 and 1814 and known as The Earl of Westmeath between 1814 and 1821, was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the State rel ...

peer.

Background

Nugent was born in Clonyn,

County Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of ...

, the only surviving son of George Frederick Nugent, 7th Earl of Westmeath, and Maryanne, daughter of

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

James St John Jeffereyes and Arabella Fitzgibbon. His parents divorced in 1796 after his father's discovery of his mother's affair with Augustus Cavendish-Bradshaw, which also resulted in a celebrated action for

criminal conversation At common law, criminal conversation, often abbreviated as ''crim. con.'', is a tort arising from adultery. "Conversation" is an old euphemism for sexual intercourse that is obsolete except as part of this term. It is similar to breach of pr ...

. Both his parents were quickly remarried, his mother to her lover, and his father to Lady Elizabeth Moore, daughter of

Charles Moore, 1st Marquess of Drogheda Field Marshal Charles Moore, 1st Marquess of Drogheda, (29 June 1730 – 22 December 1822) was a British Army officer and politician. He bore the colours of his regiment at the Battle of Culloden in April 1746 during the Jacobite rising of 1745 ...

.''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage,'' 100th Edn, London, 1953: 'Westmeath'.

Career

Delvin was an officer in the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarchy; due to this, it often ...

and served in the Egyptian Campaign.Arthur Sleigh, ''The Royal Militia and Yeomanry Cavalry Army List'', April 1850, London: British Army Despatch Press, 1850/Uckfield: Naval and Military Press, 1991, ISBN 978-1-84342-410-9, p. 153. He succeeded his father in the earldom in December 1814. He also succeeded him as

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

of the Westmeath Militia. In 1822, he was created Marquess of Westmeath in the

Peerage of Ireland The peerage of Ireland consists of those Peerage, titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lordship of Ireland, Lord or Monarchy of Ireland, King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great B ...

. As these were Irish peerages they did not entitle him to an automatic seat 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 ...

. However, in 1831 he was elected an Irish representative peer. The same year he was also appointed Lord-Lieutenant of Westmeath, a post he held until his death.

Family

Lord Westmeath was married three times. He married firstly Lady Emily Anne Bennet Elizabeth Cecil, daughter of

James Cecil, 1st Marquess of Salisbury James Cecil, 1st Marquess of Salisbury, (4 September 1748 – 13 June 1823), styled Viscount Cranborne until 1780 and known as the Earl of Salisbury between 1780 and 1789, was a British nobleman and politician. Background Salisbury was the s ...

, and Lady Emily Mary Hill, on 29 May 1812. They had two children: *William Henry Wellington Brydges Nugent, Lord Delvin (24 November 1818 – 16 November 1819) *Lady Rosa Emily Mary Anne Nugent (1814–1883), married

Fulke Greville-Nugent, 1st Baron Greville Colonel Fulke Southwell Greville-Nugent, 1st Baron Greville (17 February 1821 – 25 January 1883), known as Fulke Greville until 1866, was an Irish Liberal politician. Early life Greville was the second son of Algernon Greville, Esq., of Nort ...

. Lord Westmeath and Lady Emily divorced in 1827, having separated, been reconciled and then entered a second

legal separation Legal separation (sometimes judicial separation, separate maintenance, divorce ', or divorce from bed-and-board) is a legal process by which a married couple may formalize a separation while remaining legally married. A legal separation is gra ...

. Her unsuccessful efforts to obtain custody of her daughter later led her to campaign for reform of the law together with the prominent writer and feminist Caroline Norton. He married, secondly, Maria Jervis on 18 February 1858. They divorced in 1862. He married, lastly, Elizabeth Charlotte Verner, daughter of David Verner and niece of Sir William Verner, 1st Baronet, on 12 July 1864. He also had an illegitimate daughter, Eliza Nugent (c. 1806 - 14 September 1877), who married Alfred Harley, 6th Earl of Oxford and Mortimer. Through his other illegitimate daughter (by Maria Joséphine Touret), Cecilia Henrietta Nugent (1849-1886), who married Willem Boissevain (1849-1925), he is an ancestor of Annemarie, Duchess of Parma. Lord Westmeath died in May 1871, aged 85, when the marquessate became extinct. His two half-brothers, Robert and Thomas, had predeceased him, without issue. He was succeeded in his remaining titles by his kinsman, Anthony Nugent, of the junior branch of the family which had the title Baron Nugent of Riverston. The Marchioness of Westmeath died in September 1882.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Westmeath, George Nugent, 1st Marquess of Irish representative peers Marquesses in the Peerage of Ireland People educated at Eton College 1785 births 1871 deaths 19th-century Irish people Lord-lieutenants of Westmeath People from County Westmeath Irish abolitionists Earls of Westmeath Coldstream Guards officers Westmeath Militia officers Activists from County Westmeath

Background

Career

Family

References

See also

External links