The Trial of Queen Caroline 1820 by Sir George Hayter

Major-General Lord George William Russell (8 May 1790 – 16 July 1846) was a British soldier, politician and diplomat. He was the second son of the

6th Duke of Bedford John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford, (6 July 1766 – 20 October 1839), known as Lord John Russell until 1802, was a British Whig politician who notably served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in the Ministry of All the Talents. He was the fath ...

and brother to John Russell, the Whig and

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 ...

Prime Minister. His children were Blanche Russell,

Francis Russell, 9th Duke of Bedford Francis Charles Hastings Russell, 9th Duke of Bedford KG (16 October 1819 – 14 January 1891) was an English politician and agriculturalist. Life Known as Hastings, the 9th Duke was born in Curzon Street, London, the son of Major-General Lo ...

, Arthur Russell the Whig and

MP for

Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town within West Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy from which its name derives. At the 2011 census the three electoral wards (North, South and South West) had a population of 13,028 ...

and Odo Russell, the British diplomat and first British Ambassador to the German Empire.

Life

Upon gaining the rank of lieutenant in the

1st Dragoon Guards The 1st King's Dragoon Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army. The regiment was raised by Sir John Lanier in 1685 as the 2nd Queen's Regiment of Horse, named in honour of Queen Mary, consort of King James II. It was renamed the 2nd K ...

, Russell was appointed '' aide-de-camp'' (ADC) to Sir George Ludlow on his

Copenhagen Expedition The Second Battle of Copenhagen (or the Bombardment of Copenhagen) (16 August – 7 September 1807) was a British bombardment of the Danish capital, Copenhagen, in order to capture or destroy the Dano-Norwegian fleet during the Napoleonic War ...

in 1807. 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 ...

he fought in the

Battle of Talavera The Battle of Talavera (27–28 July 1809) was fought just outside the town of Talavera de la Reina, Spain some southwest of Madrid, during the Peninsular War. At Talavera, a British army under Sir Arthur Wellesley combined with a Spanish ar ...

on 27 July 1809 where he was wounded. He was then ADC to

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

Thomas Graham in 1810 and fought at the

Battle of Barossa The Battle of Barrosa (Chiclana, 5 March 1811, also known as the Battle of Chiclana or Battle of Cerro del Puerco) was part of an unsuccessful manoeuvre by an Anglo-Iberian force to break the French siege of Cádiz during the Peninsular War ...

in 1811. He was ADC to Viscount Wellington (later the Duke of Wellington) in 1812 and again in 1817, when the Duke was Ambassador in Paris. The second son of

John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford, (6 July 1766 – 20 October 1839), known as Lord John Russell until 1802, was a British Whig politician who notably served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland in the Ministry of All the Talents. He was the fathe ...

and brother of

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As modern pr ...

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 ag ...

, he sat as

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) for

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

from 1812 until 1830. He was invested as a Companion,

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

(CB) in 1831. He held the office of

Minister to Lisbon Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

in August 1833, the office of

Minister to Württemberg Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

in November 1833 and the office of Ambassador to Berlin in 1835. He was invested as a Knight Grand Cross, Order of the Bath (GCB) in 1838 and gained the rank of

major-general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in November 1841. Russell married

Elizabeth Anne Rawdon Elizabeth Anne, Lady William Russell (2 October 1793 – 10 August 1874) was the wife of Lord George Russell and a well-known socialite. Early life Elizabeth Anne Theophila Rawdon was born on 2 October 1793, child of Frances (''née'' Hall-St ...

, granddaughter of

Elizabeth Rawdon, Countess of Moira Elizabeth Rawdon, Countess of Moira in the Peerage of Ireland (23 March 1731 – 11 April 1808) was a literary patron and antiquarian; she also held five English peerages in her own right. She was born at Donington Park, Leicestershire, England a ...

. The couple were the parents of Blanche Russell,

Lord Arthur John Edward Russell Lord Arthur John Edward Russell (13 June 1825 – 4 April 1892) was a British Liberal Party politician. He was born in London on 13 June 1825. He was the second of three sons of Major-General Lord George William Russell and Elizabeth Anne Raw ...

and

Odo Russell, 1st Baron Ampthill Odo William Leopold Russell, 1st Baron Ampthill, (20 February 182925 August 1884), styled Lord Odo Russell between 1872 and 1881, was a British diplomat and the first British Ambassador to the German Empire. Background and education Russell w ...

References

Bibliography

* Lloyd, E. M. & Seccombe, T. "Russell, Lord George William (1790–1846)", rev. James Falkner, ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'', Oxford University Press, 200

(Retrieved 28 Feb 2006) (subscription required)

External links

* * 1790 births 1846 deaths Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Prussia British Army generals British Army personnel of the Peninsular War Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath G Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 Younger sons of dukes {{UK-army-bio-stub