Robert Richardson-Gardner Vanity Fair 1877-02-17

Robert Richardson-Gardner (15 June 1827 – 4 January 1898) was a British

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

officer and Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1874 to 1890. He was also a Fellow of the

Society of Antiquaries of London A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Societ ...

Biography

Richardson-Gardner was born in

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Motto ...

, the son of John and Elizabeth Richardson, and was called to the bar at the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn an ...

in 1853, although he did not practice as a barrister. His father and several of his brothers were shipowners and dock proprietors in Swansea, although the family originated in

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

. He married Maria Louisa Gardner in 1854, only daughter and heiress of Henry Gardner, a wealthy brewer who, with his brothers, had owned the Cannon Brewery in St John Street,

Clerkenwell Clerkenwell () is an area of central London, England. Clerkenwell was an ancient parish from the mediaeval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington. The well after which it was named was redisco ...

, London. The couple adopted the surname Richardson-Gardner in 1865 by royal licence. In 1859 he was appointed Captain-Commandant of the newly formed 8th Hampshire Rifle Volunteers and in 1865 he was appointed Honorary Colonel of the 6th Tower Hamlets Rifle Volunteer Corps, a position he held until around 1872. Also in 1865 he was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Tower Hamlets. At the 1868 general election, Richardson-Gardner stood unsuccessfully for Windsor. However he was elected

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 ...

for the seat at the 1874 general election. On both occasions the unsuccessful candidate petitioned without success to have the result overthrown, citing bribery and corruption. He attended parliament infrequently and made one contribution during his time in the House of Commons. Shortly after his election he purchased an estate at Cowley Manor,

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

, which he sold in 1882 and later lived at Ensbury Manor, Kinson, Dorset. Richardson-Gardner resigned his seat in 1890, after the death of his wife the previous year at Chateau Louis XIII, their spectacular home in

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...

, France. In 1892 he married the young actress, Rosalie Lilian Aurora Bernard, who unsuccessfully petitioned him for a divorce on the grounds of cruelty and adultery in 1894. Richardson-Gardner also lived at 34 Grosvenor Square, 32 Park Lane, and 4 Ladbroke Square, all in London. He died at the Grand Hotel,

Monte Carlo Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...

in 1898, aged 70.Illustrated London News 1898
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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Richardson-Gardner, Robert 1827 births 1898 deaths Politicians from Swansea Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Windsor Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1874–1880 UK MPs 1880–1885 UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892