George Onslow, 1st Earl of Onslow PC (13 September 1731 – 17 May 1814), known as Lord Onslow from 1776 until 1801, was a British peer and politician.

Background

He was the only son of

Arthur Onslow Arthur Onslow (1 October 169117 February 1768) was an English politician. He set a record for length of service when repeatedly elected to serve as Speaker of the House of Commons, where he was known for his integrity. Early life and educat ...

, having no brothers but one sister, who died in 1751.''Burke's'': 'Onslow'. Following in the footsteps of his father, he was admitted to the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn an ...

on 14 November 1739, but was not

Called to the Bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

Career

Onslow sat as

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 Rye from 1754 to 1761 and for

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

from 1761 to 1774.''Burke's'': 'Onslow'. On 3 March 1759 he was commissioned as

Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

of the Surrey Militia which his kinsman

Richard Onslow, 3rd Baron Onslow Richard Onslow, 3rd Baron Onslow KB (1713 – 8 October 1776) was a British peer and politician, styled Hon. Richard Onslow from 1717 to 1740. He was the son of Thomas Onslow, 2nd Baron Onslow of Clandon Park, Surrey and educated at Eton Col ...

, had raised and briefly commanded as

Lord Lieutenant of Surrey This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Surrey. Since 1737, all Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Surrey. Lord Lieutenants of Surrey *William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton 1551–1553? *William Howard, ...

. On 3 November that year, the regiment was divided into two battalions and George Onslow was promoted to

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military 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 colonel was typically in charge of ...

and given command of the 2nd or Western Battalion, with the writer

Francis Grose Francis Grose (born before 11 June 1731 – 12 May 1791) was an English antiquary, draughtsman, and lexicographer. He produced ''A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue'' (1785) and ''A Provincial Glossary, with a Collection of Local Prove ...

as his

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

. The militia was disembodied in December 1762 at the end of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

and the two Surrey battalions amalgamated on 26 February 1763, when Onslow was made colonel of the combined regiment. He resigned the command on 20 October 1765 after he became a government minister. Later, when he was himself Lord Lieutenant of Surrey, his eldest son commanded the 2nd Royal Surrey Militia.'The Onslows' at Queen's Royal Surrey Regiment.
/ref> From 1765 to 1777, he was a junior

Lord of the Treasury In the United Kingdom there are at least six Lords Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury, serving as a commission for the ancient office of Treasurer of the Exchequer. The board consists of the First Lord of the Treasury, the Second Lord of the ...

. He then became successively

Comptroller of the Household The Comptroller of the Household is an ancient position in the British royal household, nominally the second-ranking member of the Lord Steward's department after the Treasurer of the Household. The Comptroller was an ''ex officio'' member of t ...

and

Treasurer of the Household The Treasurer of the Household is a member of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. The position is usually held by one of the government deputy Chief Whips in the House of Commons. The current holder of the office is Ma ...

. On 20 May 1776, he was created Baron Cranley, of Imber Court in the County of Surrey. On 8 October 1776, he also succeeded his second cousin Richard Onslow, 3rd Baron Onslow, as Baron Onslow. He was further honoured on 17 June 1801 when he was created Viscount Cranley, of Cranley in the County of Surrey, and Earl of Onslow, of Onslow in the County of Shropshire.

Family

Lord Onslow married Henrietta Shelley (d. May 1802), daughter of Sir John Shelley, 4th Baronet and his second wife Margaret Pelham, on 26 June 1753. They had four sons and one daughter: *

Thomas Onslow, 2nd Earl of Onslow Thomas Onslow, 2nd Earl of Onslow (15 March 1754 – 22 February 1827) was an English nobleman and courtier who succeeded to his title in 1814. Originally the Honourable Tom Onslow, he was styled Viscount Cranley from 1801 to 1814. He died in 1 ...

(15 March 1754 – 22 February 1827) *John Onslow (21 November 1755 – 4 February 1757) *Henry Onslow (9 February 1757 – 25 July 1757) *

Edward Onslow Edward Onslow (9 April 1758 – 18 October 1829) was a British aristocrat, the younger son of George Onslow, 1st Earl of Onslow. In 1781, Onslow was involved in a homosexual scandal, and was forced to resign his seat in Parliament (by acceptin ...

(9 April 1758 – 18 October 1829), married on 6 March 1783 Marie Rosalie de Bourdeille and had issue. *Henrietta Onslow (b. 18 March 1760, died in infancy) In 1778, Lord Onslow sold Imber Court in

Thames Ditton Thames Ditton is a suburban village on the River Thames, in the Elmbridge borough of Surrey, England. Apart from a large inhabited island in the river, it lies on the southern bank, centred 12.2 miles (19.6 km) southwest of Charing Cross ...

, and a large estate including farms and gardens, and the Imber Court Copper Mills. The Earl died on 17 May 1814 aged 82 and was succeeded by his eldest son.

Notes

References

* * ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage,'' 100th Edn, London, 1953.
Capt John Davis, ''Historical Records of the Second Royal Surrey or Eleventh Regiment of Militia'', London: Marcus Ward, 1877.
* * *

External links

*
Queen's Royal Surrey Regiment
{{DEFAULTSORT:Onslow, George Onslow, 1st Earl of 1731 births 1814 deaths British MPs 1754–1761 British MPs 1761–1768 British MPs 1768–1774 1 Lord-Lieutenants of Surrey Surrey Militia officers Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain People from Thames Ditton Treasurers of the Household Peers of Great Britain created by George III