Robert Grosvenor, 1st Marquess of Westminster, (22 March 1767 – 17 February 1845) was the son of the 1st Earl Grosvenor, whom he succeeded in 1802 as 2nd Earl Grosvenor. He was created Marquess of Westminster in 1831. He was an English Member of Parliament (MP) and an ancestor of the modern-day Dukes of Westminster. Grosvenor continued to develop the family's London estates, he rebuilt their country house, Eaton Hall in Cheshire where he also restored the gardens, and built a new London home,

Grosvenor House Grosvenor House was one of the largest townhouses in London, home of the Grosvenor family (better known as the Dukes of Westminster) for more than a century. Their original London residence was on Millbank, but after the family had developed ...

. He maintained and extended the family interests in the acquisition of works of art, and in horse racing and breeding racehorses.

Personal life

Robert Grosvenor was born on 22 March 1767 in the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

St George Hanover Square St George Hanover Square was a civil parish created in 1724 in the Liberty of Westminster, Middlesex, which was later part of the metropolitan area of London, England. The creation of the parish accompanied the building of St George's, Hanove ...

, London. He was the third son and the only surviving child of

Richard Grosvenor, 1st Earl Grosvenor Richard Grosvenor, 1st Earl Grosvenor (; 18 June 1731 – 5 August 1802), known as Sir Richard Grosvenor, Bt between 1755 and 1761 and as The Lord Grosvenor between 1761 and 1784, was a British peer, racehorse owner and art collector. H ...

and

Henrietta, Lady Grosvenor Henrietta de Hochepied, Baroness de Hochepied (née Vernon; formerly Baroness Grosvenor) – 1828) was an English aristocrat, socialite, and courtesan. Early life She was one of four daughters born to Lady Henrietta ( née Wentworth) Vernon (t ...

, and was initially known as Viscount Belgrave. He 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 ...

Harrow School (The Faithful Dispensation of the Gifts of God) , established = (Royal Charter) , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school , religion = Church of E ...

, and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

, where he graduated MA in 1786. In addition to his formal education,

William Gifford William Gifford (April 1756 – 31 December 1826) was an English critic, editor and poet, famous as a satirist and controversialist. Life Gifford was born in Ashburton, Devon, to Edward Gifford and Elizabeth Cain. His father, a glazier and ...

acted as his private tutor.Tedder, H. R., rev. H. C. G. Matthew (2004)
Grosvenor, Robert, first marquess of Westminster (1767–1845)
, ''

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 Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, Retrieved on 12 April 2010. Gifford accompanied Grosvenor when the latter undertook his

Grand Tour The Grand Tour was the principally 17th- to early 19th-century custom of a traditional trip through Europe, with Italy as a key destination, undertaken by upper-class young European men of sufficient means and rank (typically accompanied by a tuto ...

between 1786 and 1788. Gifford described him as a "most amiable" and "accomplished" pupil. On 28 April 1794 Grosvenor married Eleanor, the only child of Sir Thomas Egerton (later the 1st Earl Wilton). They had four children; in 1795 Richard, Lord Belgrave, who succeeded his father; in 1799 Thomas, who became the 2nd Earl of Wilton on the death of his grandfather; in 1801 Robert, later the 1st Baron Ebury; and finally a daughter, Amelia, who died in her early teenage years.

Political and public life

Grosvenor was elected as MP for East Looe in 1788 and served this constituency until 1790; during this time he was appointed a

Lord of the Admiralty This is a list of Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty (incomplete before the Restoration, 1660). The Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty were the members of The Board of Admiralty, which exercised the office of Lord High Admiral when it was n ...

. His first speech in the

House of Commons of Great Britain The House of Commons of Great Britain was the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain between 1707 and 1801. In 1707, as a result of the Acts of Union of that year, it replaced the House of Commons of England and the third estate of th ...

contained a quotation from the ancient Greek orator

Demosthenes Demosthenes (; el, Δημοσθένης, translit=Dēmosthénēs; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual prow ...

, which led to the

satirist This is an incomplete list of writers, cartoonists and others known for involvement in satire – humorous social criticism. They are grouped by era and listed by year of birth. Included is a list of modern satires. Under Contemporary, 1930-1960 ...

Peter Pindar calling him "the lord of Greek". In 1790 he was elected as MP for

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

and continued to serve in this seat until 1802. Between 1793 and 1801 he was a commissioner of the Board of Control. He raised a regiment of volunteers from the

city of Westminster The City of Westminster is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and London boroughs, borough in Inner London. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It occupies a large area of cent ...

to fight against France and in 1798 was appointed its major-commandant. When his father died on 5 August 1802 he became the 2nd Earl Grosvenor. Grosvenor was

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Chester in 1807–08, and was responsible for the building of Thomas Harrison's Northgate in the city in 1810. He served as

Lord Lieutenant of Flintshire This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Flintshire. Since 1802, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Flintshire. The office was abolished on 31 March 1974, and was replaced by the Lord Lieutenant of Clwy ...

from 1798 to 1845. When Grosvenor entered parliament, he continued the family tradition of being a

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 ...

and supporting

William Pitt the Younger William Pitt the Younger (28 May 175923 January 1806) was a British statesman, the youngest and last prime minister of Great Britain (before the Acts of Union 1800) and then first prime minister of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Ire ...

. However, after Pitt's death in 1806, he changed his allegiance and became a Whig. This led to his support for the victims of the

Peterloo massacre The Peterloo Massacre took place at St Peter's Field, Manchester, Lancashire, England, on Monday 16 August 1819. Fifteen people died when cavalry charged into a crowd of around 60,000 people who had gathered to demand the reform of parliament ...

, for

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 ...

, for the abolition of the

Corn Laws The Corn Laws were tariffs and other trade restrictions on imported food and corn enforced in the United Kingdom between 1815 and 1846. The word ''corn'' in British English denotes all cereal grains, including wheat, oats and barley. They were ...

, and his voting for the

Reform Bill In the United Kingdom, Reform Act is most commonly used for legislation passed in the 19th century and early 20th century to enfranchise new groups of voters and to redistribute seats in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ...

. He was a man of principle; he championed Queen Caroline and is reputed to have thrown either a Bible or a

Prayer Book A prayer book is a book containing prayers and perhaps devotional readings, for private or communal use, or in some cases, outlining the liturgy of religious services. Books containing mainly orders of religious services, or readings for them are ...

at the head of

King George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...

. And when the

Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister of ...

was presented with the

freedom Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...

of the city of

, Grosvenor refused to allow the

town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

to be used for the event. The relations between Grosvenor and the king later improved, and in the coronation honours of 1831 he was created Marquess of Westminster. He participated in the

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...

of Queen Victoria in 1837. On 11 March 1841 he was received as a

Knight of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George ...

Development of the estate

Soon after Robert Grosvenor inherited the Eaton estate, he rebuilt the country house at Eaton Hall in Cheshire, and he also developed the London estate, creating the areas now known as

Belgravia Belgravia () is a Districts of London, district in Central London, covering parts of the areas of both the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Belgravia was known as the 'Five Fields' Tudor Period, during the ...

and

Pimlico Pimlico () is an area of Central London in the City of Westminster, built as a southern extension to neighbouring Belgravia. It is known for its garden squares and distinctive Regency architecture. Pimlico is demarcated to the north by London V ...

. Eaton had become "an unfashionable and run-down estate". The existing country house had been built for his grandfather,

Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 3rd Baronet Sir Thomas Grosvenor, 3rd Baronet (20 November 1656 – 2 July 1700) was an English Member of Parliament, and an ancestor of the modern day Dukes of Westminster. He was the first member of the family to build a substantial house on the present ...

and designed by William Samwell. He appointed

William Porden William Porden (c. 1755 – 1822) was a versatile English architect who worked for the 1st Earl Grosvenor and the Prince Regent. Life Born in Kingston upon Hull, (Subscription required) he trained under James Wyatt and Samuel Pepys Cock ...

as architect, who had previously surveyed his London estate. The original plan was for the new house to cost £10,000 (equivalent to £ as of ), and for it to take two years to build. In the event it took just under ten years and cost over £100,000 (equivalent to £ as of ). The previous house was encased and surrounded by "every possible permutation of the

gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

style". It included

turret Turret may refer to: * Turret (architecture), a small tower that projects above the wall of a building * Gun turret, a mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon * Objective turret, an indexable holder of multiple lenses in an optical microscope * Mi ...

pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was mainly ...

s, arched windows, octagonal towers, and

buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral (s ...

es (both regular and flying). Four new wings were added to the house. When the future

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

visited in 1832 at the age of 13, she wrote in her journal: "The house is magnificent". However others described it as being "as extravagant and opulent as the very latest upholsterer-decorators could make it". It was described as "the most gaudy concern I ever saw" and "a vast pile of mongrel gothic which ... is a monument of wealth, ignorance and bad taste". To restore the gardens and grounds, Grosvenor employed John Webb, a pupil of

William Emes William Emes (1729 or 1730–13 March 1803) was an English landscape gardener. Biography Details of his early life are not known but in 1756 he was appointed head gardener to Sir Nathaniel Curzon at Kedleston Hall, Derbyshire. He left this post ...

, who had been the previous designer of the

landscaping Landscaping refers to any activity that modifies the visible features of an area of land, including the following: # Living elements, such as flora or fauna; or what is commonly called gardening, the art and craft of growing plants with a goal o ...

around the house. New

terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk a ...

walls were created on the east side of the house. Belgrave Avenue, the approach to the house from the west, was levelled and drained, and 130,000 trees were planted along it. The paths along the approach, which was long, were made between and wide, so that they would be suitable for the use of

carriage A carriage is a private four-wheeled vehicle for people and is most commonly horse-drawn. Second-hand private carriages were common public transport, the equivalent of modern cars used as taxis. Carriage suspensions are by leather strapping an ...

s. On the east side of the house a serpentine lake was created on the near side of the River Dee. By the 1820s formal garden beds were becoming fashionable and

William Andrews Nesfield William Andrews Nesfield (1793–1881) was an English soldier, landscape architect and artist. After a career in the military which saw him serve under the Duke of Wellington, he developed a second profession as a landscape architect, designing so ...

was employed to design formal

parterre A ''parterre'' is a part of a formal garden constructed on a level substrate, consisting of symmetrical patterns, made up by plant beds, low hedges or coloured gravels, which are separated and connected by paths. Typically it was the part of ...

s around the house. He added more terracing,

balustraded A baluster is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its con ...

walls, and flower beds surrounded by

box A box (plural: boxes) is a container used for the storage or transportation of its contents. Most boxes have flat, parallel, rectangular sides. Boxes can be very small (like a matchbox) or very large (like a shipping box for furniture), and can ...

edging.

For the London estate, Grosvenor created a "fashionable new residential quarter" near Buckingham House (later

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It ...

). He appointed Thomas Cundy as architect and surveyor, and

Thomas Cubitt Thomas Cubitt (25 February 1788 – 20 December 1855) was a British master builder, notable for his employment in developing many of the historic streets and squares of London, especially in Belgravia, Pimlico and Bloomsbury. His great-great-g ...

as builder. The entry in the ''

'' states: "This urban development was to make the Grosvenors one of the richest families in Britain". He also bought more property in Cheshire, and elsewhere at

Shaftesbury Shaftesbury () is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is situated on the A30 road, west of Salisbury, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hilltop settlement in Dorset, being built about above sea level on a ...

in Dorset, and Stockbridge in Hampshire. The family's London house had been in

Millbank Millbank is an area of central London in the City of Westminster. Millbank is located by the River Thames, east of Pimlico and south of Westminster. Millbank is known as the location of major government offices, Burberry headquarters, the Millb ...

, but in 1806 Grosvenor bought a house in Upper Grosvenor Street and greatly extended it; this was to become Grosvenor House. He added an

art gallery An art gallery is a room or a building in which visual art is displayed. In Western cultures from the mid-15th century, a gallery was any long, narrow covered passage along a wall, first used in the sense of a place for art in the 1590s. The lon ...

to the

Park Lane Park Lane is a dual carriageway road in the City of Westminster in Central London. It is part of the London Inner Ring Road and runs from Hyde Park Corner in the south to Marble Arch in the north. It separates Hyde Park to the west from May ...

side of the house in 1827, and in 1843 built a new entrance in Upper Grosvenor Street consisting of a Doric screen between large

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

ed gateways that separated a ''

cour d'honneur A ''cour d'honneur'' (; ; german: Ehrenhof) is the principal and formal approach and forecourt of a large building. It is usually defined by two secondary wings projecting forward from the main central block (''corps de logis''), sometimes wit ...

'' from the street in the Parisian manner.

Personal interests

Grosvenor continued the family's interests in art and horse racing. He added to the art collection; his acquisitions included four paintings by

Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque traditio ...

for which he paid £10,000, and he paid £100 for Gainsborough's ''

The Blue Boy ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

''. To develop the facilities for horse racing, he expanded the Eaton Stud. The finest horse produced by the stud during Grosvenor's time was Touchstone. This horse won 16 of the 21 races for which it was entered, including the St Leger, and on two occasions, the Ascot Gold Cup and the

Doncaster Cup The Doncaster Cup is a Group 2 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 2 miles 1 furlong and 197 yards (3,600 metr ...

. After retirement, the horse sired 323 winners of over 700 races.

Death

Grosvenor died at Eaton Hall on 17 February 1845 and was buried in the family vault at St Mary's Church, Eccleston. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Marquess of Westminster. In 1998 a statue of Grosvenor, by Jonathan Wylder, was erected in

Belgrave Square Belgrave Square is a large 19th-century garden square in London. It is the centrepiece of Belgravia, and its architecture resembles the original scheme of property contractor Thomas Cubitt who engaged George Basevi for all of the terraces for t ...

, London. On the statue is a quotation by Ruskin that reads "When we build let us think we build for ever".

References

Citations Sources * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Westminster, Robert Grosvenor, 1st Marquess Of 1767 births 1845 deaths British MPs 1784–1790 British MPs 1790–1796 British MPs 1796–1800 British racehorse owners and breeders

Robert Grosvenor, 1st Marquess of Westminster Robert Grosvenor, 1st Marquess of Westminster, (22 March 1767 – 17 February 1845) was the son of the 1st Earl Grosvenor, whom he succeeded in 1802 as 2nd Earl Grosvenor. He was created Marquess of Westminster in 1831. He wa ...

Knights of the Garter Lords of the Admiralty Belgrave, Robert Grosvenor, Viscount Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain Belgrave, Robert Grosvenor, Viscount UK MPs 1801–1802 Westminster, M1 UK MPs who were granted peerages People educated at Westminster School, London People educated at Harrow School Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Fellows of the Royal Society 1 Peers of the United Kingdom created by William IV