George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland, (25 August 1784 – 1 January 1849) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

Whig politician and colonial administrator. He was thrice

First Lord of the Admiralty The First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy. He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible for the di ...

and also served as

Governor-General of India The Governor-General of India (1773–1950, from 1858 to 1947 the Viceroy and Governor-General of India, commonly shortened to Viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom and after Indian independence in 1 ...

between 1836 and 1842. The province of Auckland, which includes the present regions of Northland, Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty and Gisborne along with the city of

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

, in New Zealand, was named after him. Lord Auckland signed the Tripartite Treaty in June 1838 with Maharaja Ranjit Singh of the

Sikh Empire The Sikh Empire was a state originating in the Indian subcontinent, formed under the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who established an empire based in the Punjab. The empire existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahor ...

and

Shah Shuja Shāh Shujā' ( fa, شاه شجاع, meaning: ''brave king'') may refer to the following: * Shah Shoja Mozaffari, the 14th-century Muzaffarid ruler of Southern Iran *Shah Shuja (Mughal prince) (1616-1661), the second son of Shah Jahan *Shah Shujah ...

of Afghanistan.

Background and education

Born in

Beckenham Beckenham () is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley, in Greater London. Until 1965 it was part of the historic county of Kent. It is located south-east of Charing Cross, situated north of Elmers End and E ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

, Auckland was the second son of William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland, and Eleanor, daughter of Sir Gilbert Elliot, 3rd Baronet. His sister was the traveller and author

Emily Eden Emily Eden (3 March 1797 – 5 August 1869) was an English poet and novelist who gave witty accounts of English life in the early 19th century. She wrote a celebrated account of her travels in India, and two novels that sold well. She was also a ...

, who would visit India for long periods and write about her experiences. He was educated at Eton, and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniq ...

, and was

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 ...

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.) Lincol ...

, in 1809. He became heir apparent to the barony after his elder brother William Eden drowned in the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

in 1810.

Political career, 1810–1836

Auckland was returned to Parliament for

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aq ...

in 1810 (succeeding his elder brother, William), a seat he held until 1812, and again between 1813 and 1814. The latter year he succeeded his father in the barony and took his seat in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...

, supporting the reform party. In 1830 he became

President of the Board of Trade The president of the Board of Trade is head of the Board of Trade. This is a committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, first established as a temporary committee of inquiry in the 17th century, that evolved gradually into a government ...

and

Master of the Mint Master of the Mint is a title within the Royal Mint given to the most senior person responsible for its operation. It was an important office in the governments of Scotland and England, and later Great Britain and then the United Kingdom, between ...

under Lord Grey, and serving as one of the deputy Speakers of the House of Lords. He was

under Grey and then

Lord 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 pr ...

in 1834 and again under Melbourne in 1835. He gave a commission to

William Hobson Captain William Hobson (26 September 1792 – 10 September 1842) was a British Royal Navy officer who served as the first Governor of New Zealand. He was a co-author of the Treaty of Waitangi. Hobson was dispatched from London in July 1 ...

to sail for the

East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around ...

, which Hobson ultimately rewarded in the naming of his newly created city of

, New Zealand in 1840.

Mount Eden Mount Eden is a suburb in Auckland, New Zealand whose name honours George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland. It is south of the Central Business District (CBD). Mt Eden Road winds its way around the side of Mount Eden Domain and continues to weave b ...

in Auckland, the town of

Eden, New South Wales Eden is a coastal town in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The town is south of the state capital Sydney and is the most southerly town in New South Wales, located between Nullica Bay to the south and Calle Calle Bay, the ...

and Auckland County, New South Wales were also named after him.

Governor-General of India, 1836–1842

In 1836 Lord Auckland was appointed of

. His private secretary was John Russell Colvin, who rose to be lieutenant-governor of the North-West Provinces and named his son Auckland Colvin after him. As a legislator, he dedicated himself especially to the improvement of native schools and the expansion of the commercial industry of India. But complications in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...

interrupted this work in 1838. Lord Auckland decided on war, and on 1 October 1838 in Simla published the

Simla Manifesto Shimla (; ; also known as Simla, the official name until 1972) is the capital and the largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared as the summer capital of British India. After independence, the ...

, dethroning Dost Mahommed Khan. After successful early operations he was created Baron Eden, of Norwood in the County of Surrey, and Earl of Auckland. However the Afghan campaign ultimately ended in disaster. He handed over the governor-generalship to Lord Ellenborough and returned to England the following year.

Political career, 1842–1849

In 1846 he again became First Lord of the Admiralty, this time under

Lord John Russell John Russell, 1st Earl Russell, (18 August 1792 – 28 May 1878), known by his courtesy title Lord John Russell before 1861, was a British Whig and Liberal statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1852 and a ...

. In the words of a modern historian: " nisterial talent in the House of Lords was not so plentiful as to disqualify the author of one of the worst disasters in British military history". He held this office until his death three years later.

Personal life and character

Lord Auckland died on

New Year's Day New Year's Day is a festival observed in most of the world on 1 January, the first day of the year in the modern Gregorian calendar. 1 January is also New Year's Day on the Julian calendar, but this is not the same day as the Gregorian one. Whi ...

1849, following what was described as a fit. He was aged 64. Lord Auckland was unmarried and on his death the earldom became extinct, while he was succeeded in the barony by his younger brother,

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

. In a recently published (2013) history Lord Auckland is described as "a clever and capable but somewhat complacent and detached Whig nobleman". In appearance he was slim and younger looking than his years. As a respected First Lord of the Admiralty Lord Auckland depended heavily on competent staff but his indecisive personality and indifference to Indian history and culture led to disastrous decisions being made during his term as Governor-General there.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Auckland, George Eden, 1st Earl Of 1784 births 1849 deaths Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Earls in the Peerage of the United Kingdom 2

George Eden George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland, (25 August 1784 – 1 January 1849) was an English Whig politician and colonial administrator. He was thrice First Lord of the Admiralty and also served as Governor-General of India between 1836 and 1842 ...

Governors-General of India Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Lords of the Admiralty Masters of the Mint Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs who inherited peerages UK MPs who were granted peerages Whig (British political party) MPs for English constituencies British military personnel of the First Anglo-Afghan War Presidents of the Royal Asiatic Society Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Younger sons of barons Presidents of the Board of Trade Peers of the United Kingdom created by Queen Victoria Committee members of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge