The Honourable ''The Honourable'' (British English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific style that is used as a prefix before the names or titles of certain ...

George Charles Grantley FitzHardinge Berkeley (10 February 1800 – 20 February 1881), known as Grantley Berkeley, was a British politician, writer and sportsman.

Background and education

Berkeley was the sixth son of

Frederick Berkeley, 5th Earl of Berkeley Frederick Augustus Berkeley, 5th Earl of Berkeley (24 May 1745 – 8 August 1810) was a British peer. Origins and education Berkeley was the eldest son and heir of Augustus Berkeley, 4th Earl of Berkeley by Elizabeth, daughter of Henry Drax, of E ...

, by Mary Cole, daughter of William Cole. He was the brother of

William Berkeley, 1st Earl FitzHardinge William FitzHardinge Berkeley, 1st Earl FitzHardinge (26 December 1786 – 10 October 1857), known as The Lord Segrave between 1831 and 1841, was a British landowner and politician. Background Berkeley was born at Mount Street, Grosvenor Square ...

Maurice Berkeley, 1st Baron FitzHardinge Admiral Maurice Frederick FitzHardinge Berkeley, 1st Baron FitzHardinge, (3 January 1788 – 17 October 1867) was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer he commanded gunboats on the Tagus, reinforcing the Lines of Torres Vedras, in Autumn 18 ...

, Henry FitzHardinge Berkeley, Thomas Berkeley, 6th Earl of Berkeley and

Craven Berkeley Craven FitzHardinge Berkeley (May 1805 – 1 July 1855) was a British Whig politician. Background Berkeley was the seventh son of Frederick Berkeley, 5th Earl of Berkeley, and Mary, daughter of William Cole. He was the younger brother of Willi ...

and the nephew of Sir George Cranfield Berkeley. He was educated at Corpus Christi College and the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infantry a ...

. He was commissioned into 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; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...

and afterwards transferred to the 82nd Regiment of Foot.

Political career

Berkeley sat as member of parliament for Gloucestershire West from 1832 to 1852 as a Whig. In 1836 he proposed the admission of ladies to the gallery of the House of Commons; this was granted in 1841. After 1852 he devoted himself largely to field sports and writing.

Writings

Berkeley was the author of a number of books, including ''Berkeley Castle'', ''Sandron Hall, or the Days of Queen Anne'' (1840), and ''My Life and Recollections'', 4 volumes, (1865–66).

Duel

In 1836, Berkeley assaulted magazine publisher James Fraser over a review he published in ''

Fraser's Magazine ''Fraser's Magazine for Town and Country'' was a general and literary journal published in London from 1830 to 1882, which initially took a strong Tory line in politics. It was founded by Hugh Fraser and William Maginn in 1830 and loosely directe ...

'' of ''Berkeley Castle''. He subsequently fought a duel with the review's author

William Maginn William Maginn (10 July 1794 – 21 August 1842) was an Irish journalist and writer. About Born at Cork he became a contributor to ''Blackwood's Magazine'', and after moving to London in 1824 became for a few months in 1826 the Paris correspon ...

. Three rounds of shots were fired, but no one was struck.

Family

Berkeley married Caroline Martha Benfield (1804–1873), daughter of

Paul Benfield Paul Benfield (1742–1810) was an English East India Company employee and trader, financier and politician. He is now known as a target for the rhetoric of Edmund Burke, and for his spectacular bankruptcy. Life Benfield went out to India as a ...

(1741–1810) and wife Mary Frances, née Swinburne (1771–1828), on 16 August 1824. Their two sons Swinburne and Edward died in 1865 and 1878 respectively. Berkeley died on 20 February 1881, aged 81.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Berkeley, Grantley 1800 births 1881 deaths Younger sons of earls Grantley Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst British duellists Coldstream Guards officers Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Gloucestershire Whig (British political party) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1835–1837 UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 UK MPs 1847–1852