Sir Samuel Fludyer, 3rd Baronet (1800–1876) was the grandson of the first Baronet, Sir Samuel Fludyer, who was reckoned at the time of his death to be the richest man in the country with a wealth of £900,000. He was the only son of Sir Samuel Brudenell Fludyer, who inherited most of the first Sir Samuel's fortune, and had his children painted by

Thomas Lawrence Sir Thomas Lawrence (13 April 1769 – 7 January 1830) was an English portrait painter and the fourth president of the Royal Academy. A child prodigy, he was born in Bristol and began drawing in Devizes, where his father was an innkeeper at t ...

, the foremost portrait painter of the time, indicating the family's wealth and social standing. The portrait shows Sir Samuel (3rd Baronet) between his sisters Maria and Carolina Louisa. He was educated at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

and succeeded to the baronetcy in 1833. After an argument with his sisters Sir Samuel was admitted to

Ticehurst Private Asylum Ticehurst is both a village and a large civil parish in the Rother district of East Sussex, England. The parish lies in the upper reaches of both the Bewl stream before it enters Bewl Water and in the upper reaches of the River Rother flowing ...

in Sussex in 1839 and stayed there until his death.

Financial motivations

He was placed in the asylum under certificates from Drs Munro and Sutherland and on the order of his brother-in-law Cobbett Derby. As a result of his having been confined he died a bachelor and had no issue, and his considerable estate was divided equally between his sisters Maria Fludyer and Caroline Louisa Derby. His father's will stipulated that if Samuel died without an heir his fortune would be transferred to

George Fludyer George Fludyer (1761–1837) was an English politician, the Member of Parliament for Chippenham from 1782 to 1802, and for Appleby from 1818 to 1819. Early life Born in St John Bassishaw parish in London in 1761, he was the second son of Sir ...

, the second Sir Samuel's brother and his heirs male, along with the Baronetcy, but it reserved £80,000 for Samuel to leave at his discretion. Under the will of the third baronet, each of his sisters would inherit £10,000, but he left no residuary legatee.A Family Asylum: A History of the Private Madhouse at Ticehurst in Sussex, 1792-1917. A thesis presented by Charlotte MacKenzie for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the University of London. December 1986 In the end, the sisters inherited the whole £80,000 shared between them. In addition, the proprietors of the asylum gained from Sir Samuel's incarceration. At a charge of 12 guineas per week he was the highest paying patient at Ticehurst in the 1840s.The Anatomy of Madness: Essays in the History of Psychiatry, Volume 2 edited by William F. Bynum, Roy Porter, Michael Shepherd, Taylor and Francis, p 163

Subsequent developments

His case was one of five from Ticehurst taken up by the Lunacy Law Reform Committee (founded 1873), the others being John William Thomas, Thomas Preston (d. 1877), Walter Marshall (b. 1837) and Herman Charles Merivale. Louisa Lowe, a former secretary of the Lunacy Law Reform Society (founded 1873) took up the story in her diatribe against private asylums, ''The Bastilles of England'' (1883). The legislation under which he was incarcerated was replaced by the

Lunacy Act 1890 The Lunacy Act 1890 ( 53 & 54 Vict. c. 5) formed the basis of mental health law in England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales ...

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Fludyer, Samuel 1800 births 1876 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of Great Britain

Financial motivations

Subsequent developments

See also

References