John Hayes St Leger (1756–1800) was an Irish army officer, courtier, rake and politician. He was Member of the Parliament of Great Britain for from 1791 to 1796.

Life

He was the eldest son of John St Leger of Grangemellon (1726–1769) and his wife Mary Butler, daughter of Thomas Butler; Anthony St Leger and Barry St Leger were his uncles. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

. He was brought up as a teenager in St James's Place, London, by his paternal grandmother Levina, widow of Sir John St Leger. She died there in 1771. St Leger spent some time at the French court. He acquired the nickname "Handsome Jack", and came to know George, Prince of Wales. While

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 ...

warned against the family reputation, his son came to see St Leger as "one of the best fellows". In 1785 financial problems caused him to break off his life in England, spending time in Ireland. His fortunes were restored in 1786, when he was heir to his uncle Anthony.

Military career

St Leger was a captain in the 55th Foot in 1778, and a major in the

90th Foot The 90th Perthshire Light Infantry was a Scottish light infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1794. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 26th (Cameronian) Regiment of Foot to form the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in ...

in 1779, transferring the following year to the 65th Foot, where in 1782 he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel. After his absence in Ireland, he was appointed captain and lieutenant-colonel (regimental and army ranks, respectively) in the

1st Foot Guards "Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it." , colors = , colors_label = , march = Slow: " Scipio" , mascot = , equipment = , equipment ...

. In the aftermath of the

invasion of Ceylon The Invasion of Ceylon was a military campaign fought as a series of amphibious operations between the summer of 1795 and spring of 1796 between the garrison of the Batavian colonies on the Indian Ocean island of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and a Bri ...

in 1795, St Leger was given a command at

Trincomallee Trincomalee (; ta, திருகோணமலை, translit=Tirukōṇamalai; si, ත්‍රිකුණාමළය, translit= Trikuṇāmaḷaya), also known as Gokanna and Gokarna, is the administrative headquarters of the Trincomalee Dis ...

in 1796.

Political career

In the 1790s, the Prince of Wales backed the Whig opposition. St Leger was brought in at Okehampton in 1790 on the interest of

Francis Russell, 5th Duke of Bedford Francis Russell, 5th Duke of Bedford (23 July 1765 – 2 March 1802) was an English aristocrat and Whig politician, responsible for much of the development of central Bloomsbury. Life Francis Russell, eldest son of Francis Russell, Marquess of ...

, in an election complicated by a double return.

Associations

St Leger was one of a group of close companions of George, Prince of Wales, who shared an interest in

prizefighting Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...

. Others were George Hanger,

Gerard Lake Gerard Lake, 1st Viscount Lake (27 July 1744 – 20 February 1808) was a British general. He commanded British forces during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 and later served as Commander-in-Chief of the military in British India. Background He was ...

and Richard Barry, 6th Earl of Barrymore. Lake became

equerry An equerry (; from French ' stable', and related to 'squire') is an officer of honour. Historically, it was a senior attendant with responsibilities for the horses of a person of rank. In contemporary use, it is a personal attendant, usually up ...

to the Prince in 1780, and St Leger served as his Groom of the Bedchamber from 1784. During his hiatus in Ireland from 1785, St Leger with

Buck Whaley Thomas Whaley (15 December 1765 – 2 November 1800), commonly known as Buck Whaley or Jerusalem Whaley, was an Irish gambler and member of the Irish House of Commons. Early life Whaley was born in Dublin in December 1765, the eldest surviving s ...

revived the Dublin Hell Fire Club, and is assumed to be the Captain St Leger who was involved with Peg Plunkett. He also associated with

Charles Manners, 4th Duke of Rutland Charles Manners, 4th Duke of Rutland, KG, PC (15 March 175424 October 1787) was a British politician and nobleman, the eldest legitimate son of John Manners, Marquess of Granby. He was styled Lord Roos from 1760 until 1770, and Marquess of Gra ...

Dublin Castle Dublin Castle ( ga, Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a former Motte-and-bailey castle and current Irish government complex and conference centre. It was chosen for its position at the highest point of central Dublin. Until 1922 it was the se ...

, pursuing in a public way his wife Mary Isabella; after the Duke's death in 1787 they were lovers.. The author

Frances Burney Frances Burney (13 June 1752 – 6 January 1840), also known as Fanny Burney and later Madame d'Arblay, was an English satirical novelist, diarist and playwright. In 1786–1790 she held the post as "Keeper of the Robes" to Charlotte of Mecklen ...

wrote in her diary for 1787 of encountering the three colonels of the Prince's entourage,

Samuel Hulse Field Marshal Sir Samuel Hulse, GCH (27 March 1746 – 1 January 1837) was a British Army officer. He saw his first active duty during the Gordon Riots in June 1780 before commanding the 1st Battalion of the 1st Regiment of Foot Guards at ...

, Lake and St Leger. She disapproved of their way of life. Finding the "celebrated" St Leger subdued to the point of silence with his good friend Lake, she surmised they might have feared being put in a novel.

Death

"Handsome Jack" St Leger never married. He died at

Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

on 31 January 1800. His estate at Park Hill, near

Rotherham Rotherham () is a large minster and market town in South Yorkshire, England. The town takes its name from the River Rother which then merges with the River Don. The River Don then flows through the town centre. It is the main settlement of ...

, passed to his brother Anthony Butler St Leger. From there it came to John, son of Lt.-Gen. John Chester (1779–1857), who changed his surname to St Leger.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:St Leger, John Hayes 1756 births 1800 deaths British Army officers Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies People educated at Eton College