Colonel Henry Cecil Lowther, DL, JP (27 July 1790 – 6 December 1867) was an English Conservative politician and an amateur

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er who played

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

from 1819 to 1843. His long service in the House of Commons saw him become the

Father of the House Father of the House is a title that has been traditionally bestowed, unofficially, on certain members of some legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the title refers to the longest continuously- ...

Early life

Lowther was born on 27 July 1790 at Lowther Castle,

Westmorland Westmorland (, formerly also spelt ''Westmoreland'';R. Wilkinson The British Isles, Sheet The British IslesVision of Britain/ref> is a historic county in North West England spanning the southern Lake District and the northern Dales. It had an ...

. He was the second son of William Lowther, 1st Earl of Lonsdale, and his wife Lady Augusta (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Fane) (eldest daughter of

John Fane, 9th Earl of Westmorland John Fane, 9th Earl of Westmorland (5 May 1728 – 25 April 1774), known as Lord Burghersh until 1771, was an English peer and Member of Parliament. He was the eldest son of Thomas Fane, 8th Earl of Westmorland of Wormsley Park, Buckinghamshi ...

and, his first wife, Augusta Bertie, a granddaughter of Robert Bertie, 1st Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven). Lowther was Educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

Career

He entered the

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

on 16 July 1807 as a

cornet The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B, though there is also a sopr ...

in the 7th Hussars. He was promoted lieutenant on 21 July 1808 and captain on 4 October 1810. He served with the 7th Hussars during the campaign of 1809 in Spain, including the battles of Mayorga,

Sahagún Sahagún () is a town and municipality of Spain, part of the autonomous community of Castile and León and the province of León. It is the main populated place in the Leonese part of the Tierra de Campos natural region. Sahagún contains some ...

, Benevente, and the retreat to Corunna. From 1812 until 1814, he was in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

's army during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

, and was made a major in the

10th Hussars The 10th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army raised in 1715. It saw service for three centuries including the First World War and Second World War but then amalgamated with the 11th Hussars (Prince ...

on 12 November 1815. He received the Peninsular Medal with three clasps after the war. On 20 April 1817 he went into the

12th Regiment of Foot 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1 ...

as a

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. ...

, with which rank he retired on half-pay. In 1830, he transferred to the

44th Foot The 44th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment in the British Army, raised in 1741. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 56th (West Essex) Regiment of Foot to form the Essex Regiment in 1881. History Early history The regimen ...

. He raised six part-time

Troop A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Troop Ro ...

s of Westmorland Yeomanry Cavalry across Westmorland and Cumberland at his own expense in 1819 and commanded them until he was appointed

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 ...

of the Royal Cumberland Militia in 1830.

Political career

First elected in 1812 for

, a constituency long in the family interest, he continued to be returned until his death on 6 December 1867 at Barleythorpe Hall,

Rutland Rutland () is a ceremonial county and unitary authority in the East Midlands, England. The county is bounded to the west and north by Leicestershire, to the northeast by Lincolnshire and the southeast by Northamptonshire. Its greatest len ...

. In 1862, he became Father of the House. He was the last MP elected during the reign of

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

Cricket career

Between 1818 and 1839, Lowther played in 47

matches. A right-handed batsman and right arm slow roundarm bowler, he played most frequently for MCC.Henry Lowther
CricketArchive. Retrieved 2008-11-18. He played for the Gentlemen in the

Gentlemen v Players Gentlemen v Players was a long-running series of English first-class cricket matches. Two matches were played in 1806, but the fixture was not played again until 1819. It became an annual event, usually played at least twice each season, exc ...

series and also played once for both

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

and

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. ...

sides.''The Times'', 7, 9, 16 Dec.; F. Lillywhite, ''Cricket Scores and Biogs''. (1860), i. 399; ''Sporting Gazette'', 14 December 1867; ''Gent. Mag.'' (1868), i. 108.

Personal life

On 19 May 1817, Lowther was married to Lady Lucy Eleanor Sherard, daughter of Philip Sherard, 5th Earl of Harborough and the former Eleanor Monckton (second daughter and co-heiress of Col. Hon. John Monckton of Fineshade Abbey, eldest son, by his second wife, of

John Monckton, 1st Viscount Galway John Monckton (1695 – 15 July 1751) of Serlby, Nottinghamshire, was a British landowner and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1727 and 1751. He was elevated to the Irish peerage as the first Viscount Galway in 1727. Ear ...

). Together, they were the parents of seven children, three sons and four daughters, including: * Lady Eleanor Cecily Lowther (d. 1894), who married John Talbot Clifton, eldest son and heir of Thomas Clifton of Clifton Hall and Lytham Hall, in 1844. * Lady Augusta Mary Lowther (d. 1916), who married the Hon. Gerard Noel (politician), Gerard Noel, a son of Charles Noel, 1st Earl of Gainsborough. * Henry Lowther, 3rd Earl of Lonsdale (1818–1876), who married Emily Susan Caulfeild, the daughter of St George Caulfeild of Donamon Castle. * Arthur Lowther (1820–1855), who died unmarried. * William Lowther (diplomat), William Lowther (1821–1912), who married Hon. Charlotte Alice Parke, third daughter and co-heiress of James Parke, 1st Baron Wensleydale, in 1853. * Constantia Lowther (1831–1864), who married Maj.-Gen. Robert Blücher Wood, fifth son of Col. Thomas Wood and wife Lady Caroline Stewart (a daughter of Robert Stewart, 1st Marquess of Londonderry) in 1850. Lady Lucy died 8 June 1848. Lowther died on 6 December 1867. In 1873, his children were granted the style and precedence of the younger son of an Earl by Royal Warrant.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lowther, Henry 1790 births 1867 deaths 7th Queen's Own Hussars officers 10th Royal Hussars officers Suffolk Regiment officers British Militia officers British Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies People educated at Westminster School, London UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1835–1837 UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 UK MPs 1847–1852 UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1857–1859 UK MPs 1859–1865 UK MPs 1865–1868 Younger sons of earls 44th Regiment of Foot officers Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry officers English cricketers English cricketers of 1787 to 1825 English cricketers of 1826 to 1863 Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers Gentlemen cricketers Hampshire cricketers Surrey cricketers Lowther family, Henry A to K v L to Z cricketers Fast v Slow cricketers