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 ...

James Archibald Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie, 1st Baron Wharncliffe, PC (6 October 1776 – 19 December 1845) was a British soldier and politician. A grandson of Prime Minister John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, he held office under Sir Robert Peel as

Lord Privy Seal The Lord Privy Seal (or, more formally, the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal) is the fifth of the Great Officers of State (United Kingdom), Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and abov ...

between 1834 and 1835 and as

Lord President of the Council The lord president of the Council is the presiding officer of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom and the fourth of the Great Officers of State (United Kingdom), Great Officers of State, ranking below the Lord High Treasurer but above the ...

between 1841 and 1845.

Background and education

Stuart-Wortley was the son of Colonel James Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie, son of John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute and his wife Mary Wortley-Montagu, Baroness Mountstuart in her own right, daughter of Edward Wortley Montagu and

Lady Mary Pierrepont Lady Mary Wortley Montagu (née Pierrepont; 15 May 168921 August 1762) was an English aristocrat, writer, and poet. Born in 1689, Lady Mary spent her early life in England. In 1712, Lady Mary married Edward Wortley Montagu, who later served ...

. His father had assumed the additional surname of Wortley as heir to his mother, taking later also that of Mackenzie (which his son in later life discarded) as heir to his great-uncle

James Stuart-Mackenzie James Stuart-Mackenzie PC FRSE FSA (30 October 1718 – 8 April 1800) was a Scottish politician and joint founder of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1783. The second son of James Stuart, 2nd Earl of Bute, he served as Member of Parliament ...

of Rosehaugh. Stuart-Wortley's mother was Margaret, daughter of Lieutenant-General Sir David Cunynghame, 3rd Baronet. He was educated at

Charterhouse School (God having given, I gave) , established = , closed = , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , president ...

Military career

Stuart-Wortley was commissioned into the

48th Foot The 48th (Northamptonshire) Regiment of Foot was a regiment of the British Army, raised in 1741. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 58th (Rutlandshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Northamptonshire Regiment in 1881. History Early h ...

in 1790, transferred to the

7th Foot The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many wa ...

in 1791, and purchased a

Captaincy A captaincy ( es, capitanía , pt, capitania , hr, kapetanija) is a historical administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires. It was instituted as a method of organization, directly associated with the home-rule ...

in the 72nd Foot in 1793. He was promoted

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. ...

in 1797 and became

of the

12th Foot The Suffolk Regiment was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army with a history dating back to 1685. It saw service for three centuries, participating in many wars and conflicts, including the First and Second World Wars, before bein ...

six months later. In 1797 he transferred to the

Grenadier Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

, but resigned his commission in 1801.

Political career

Stuart-Wortley sat as

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...

Member of Parliament for the rotten borough of

Bossiney Bossiney ( kw, Boskyny, meaning ''Cyni's dwelling'') is a village in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is north-east of the larger village of Tintagel which it adjoins: further north-east are the Rocky Valley and Trethevy. Until 1832 t ...

in Cornwall between 1802 and 1818, when he was returned for

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

. His attitude on various questions became gradually more

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

, and his support of

Catholic Emancipation Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, and later the combined United Kingdom in the late 18th century and early 19th century, that involved reducing and removing many of the restricti ...

lost him his seat in 1826. He was then raised to the peerage as Baron Wharncliffe, of Wortley in the County of York, a recognition both of his previous parliamentary activity and of his high position among the country gentlemen. In 1831, as political tempers ran high over the issue of Reform, Wharncliffe succeeded in opening channels of communication between the Government and the Opposition. Greville noted in his diary on 19 November 1831 that:

”Wharncliffe has neither wealth, influence, nor superior abilities, nor even popularity with his own party. He is a spirited, sensible, zealous, honorable, consistent country gentleman; their knowledge of his moderation and integrity induced Ministers to commit themselves to him, and he will thus be in all probability enabled to render an essential service to his country…”

He at first opposed the 1832 Reform Bill but, having come to see the undesirability of a popular conflict, separated himself from the Tories (with a number of colleagues, collectively known as "the Waverers") and took an important part in modifying the attitude of the peers and helping to pass the bill, though his attempts at amendment only resulted in his pleasing neither party. He became

in Sir Robert Peel's short 1834 to 1835 ministry, and again joined him in 1841 as

, a post he held until 1845. In 1834, he was sworn of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

. In 1837 Lord Wharncliffe brought out an edition of the writings of his ancestress,

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu Lady Mary Wortley Montagu (née Pierrepont; 15 May 168921 August 1762) was an English aristocrat, writer, and poet. Born in 1689, Lady Mary spent her early life in England. In 1712, Lady Mary married Edward Wortley Montagu, who later served a ...

. The 1833 steam locomotive, ''

Lord Wharncliffe Earl of Wharncliffe, in the West Riding of the County of York, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. History The earldom was created in 1876 for Edward Montagu-Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie, 3rd Baron Wharncliffe. He was a descendan ...

'', was named after him; it ran on the

Dundee and Newtyle Railway The Dundee and Newtyle Railway opened in 1831 and was the first railway in the north of Scotland. It was built to carry goods between Dundee and the fertile area known as Strathmore; this involved crossing the Sidlaw Hills, and was accomplish ...

, of which he was a director.

Family

Lord Wharncliffe married Lady Elizabeth Caroline Mary Crichton (1779–1856), daughter of

John Crichton, 1st Earl Erne John Creighton, 1st Earl Erne PC (1731 – 15 September 1828), known as The Lord Erne between 1772 and 1781 and as The Viscount Erne between 1781 and 1789, was an Irish peer and politician. Erne was the eldest surviving son of Abraham Creighton, ...

and his second wife Lady Mary Hervey on 30 March 1799. They had five children: *

John Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie, 2nd Baron Wharncliffe John Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie, 2nd Baron Wharncliffe FRS (20 April 1801 – 22 October 1855), was a British Tory politician. He served briefly as Under-Secretary of State for War and the Colonies between December 1834 and January 1835. Ba ...

(1801–1855) *Hon.

Charles Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie Charles James Stuart-Wortley (3 June 1802 – 22 May 1844) was a British politician, the second son of James Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie, 1st Baron Wharncliffe. He was an observer at the French siege of Antwerp in 1832, and wrote an account of the ...

(1802–1844) *Hon. Caroline Mary Stuart-Wortley (1803-1806) *Hon.

James Archibald Stuart-Wortley James Archibald Stuart-Wortley, PC, QC (3 July 1805 – 22 August 1881) was a British Conservative Party politician and the husband of the philanthropist Jane Stuart-Wortley. Life He was born in 1805, the youngest son of James Archibald Stua ...

(1805–1881), Solicitor-General *Hon. Caroline Jane Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie (1809-12 June 1876),England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 married on 30 August 1830 Hon. John Chetwynd-Talbot (1806–1852) Lord Wharncliffe died in December 1845, aged 69, and was succeeded in the barony by his eldest son, John, whose son Edward, 3rd Baron was created Earl of Wharncliffe in 1876. Lady Wharncliffe died in April 1856.

References

External links

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Peers of the United Kingdom created by George IV