Vere Fane, 4th Earl of Westmorland (13 February 1645 – 29 December 1693), styled The Honourable Vere Fane from 1644 to 1661 and Sir Vere Fane from 1661 to 1691, was a British peer and

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

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...

and twice for

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

Family

Vere Fane was born on 13 February 1645 in

Lamport Hall Lamport Hall in Lamport, Northamptonshire is a fine example of a Grade I Listed House. It was developed from a Tudor Manor but is now notable for its classical frontage. The Hall contains an outstanding collection of books, paintings and furnitu ...

, Lamport,

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

as the second son of

Mildmay Fane, 2nd Earl of Westmorland Mildmay Fane, 2nd Earl of Westmorland (24 January 1602 – 12 February 1666), styled Lord le Despenser between 1624 and 1628, was an English nobleman, politician and writer. Life One of seven sons of Francis Fane by his wife Mary Mildmay, g ...

and his wife Mary Vere; he was the younger half-brother of Charles Fane. As Charles died without issue in 1691, Vere inherited the

Earldom of Westmorland Earl of Westmorland is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of England. The title was first created in 1397 for Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, Ralph Neville. It was forfeited in 1571 by Charles Neville, 6th Earl of Westmorl ...

. On 13 July 1671, Fane married Rachel Bence, daughter of John Bence and Judith Andrews, at Allhallows', London. The couple had eleven children: *Lady Rachel Fane *Lady Catherine Fane (whose great-grandson would become the 12th Lord le Despencer). She married (marriage licence dated 21 February 1696) William Paul (1673–1711), of Bray, Berkshire. One of their co-heiress daughters married

Sir William Stapleton, 4th Baronet Sir William Stapleton, 4th Baronet ( 1698–1740), of Rotherfield Greys, Oxfordshire, was an English Jacobite and Tory politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1727 to 1740. Early life Stapleton was brought up on Nevis in the British Leew ...

. *Lady Elizabeth Fane *Lady Susan Fane *Lady Rachel Fane *Lady Mary Dashwood, mother to

Francis Dashwood Francis Dashwood, 11th Baron le Despencer, PC, FRS (December 1708 – 11 December 1781) was an English politician and rake, Chancellor of the Exchequer (1762–1763) and founder of the Hellfire Club. Life and career Early life Dashwood wa ...

, who inherited the Le Despencer barony upon the death of John Fane *John Fane (died in infancy) *

Vere Fane, 5th Earl of Westmorland Vere Fane, 5th Earl of Westmorland (25 May 1678 – 19 May 1698), styled The Honourable Vere Fane between 1678 and 1691 and Lord le Despenser between 1691 and 1693, was a British peer and member of the House of Lords. He was the second son (but ...

(1678-1698) *

Thomas Fane, 6th Earl of Westmorland Thomas Fane, 6th Earl of Westmorland (3 October 1681 – 4 June 1736), styled The Honourable Thomas Fane from 1691 to 1699, was a British peer and member of the House of Lords. He was the third son (second surviving son) of Vere Fane, 4th Earl ...

(1681–1736) *

John Fane, 7th Earl of Westmorland John Fane, 7th Earl of Westmorland (24 March 1685 – 26 August 1762), styled The Honourable John Fane from 1691 to 1733 and Lord Catherlough from 1733 to 1736, of Mereworth Castle in Kent, was a British Army officer and politician who sat in t ...

(1686–1762) *The Honourable

Mildmay Fane Mildmay Fane (c. October 1689 – 11 September 1715) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons for 8 months in 1715, before his early death. Fane was the fifth son of Vere Fane, 4th Earl of Westmorland and his wife Rachel, daught ...

(1689–1715) Fane died on 29 December 1693, probably from complications that arose from

diabetes Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...

. His oldest surviving son Vere inherited his father's earldom and further titles, but died without issue before reaching the age of 20.

Career

As was common in his family (his grandfather Francis, his father Mildmay and his older brother Charles had been Members of Parliament before they became earl; his sons John and Mildmay would do so as wellVCH Northants. Fams. 101; The Ancestor, xi. 148–9; PCC 22 Box.), Vere Fane served as a

. From 1671 to 1671, he was Member of Parliament for

; the year his Kent office ended, he became Member of Parliament for

, an office which he held until 1681. From 1689 to 1691, he was again Member of Parliament for Kent. He was classed as a Whig, but it seems that he was not particularly active. At the coronation of King Charles II on 23 April 1661, he was invested as a

Knight of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as one ...

. After the death of his brother

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

, who had no issue, on 18 September 1691, Vere Fane inherited the Earldom of Westmorland as well as his brother's further titles Baron Burghersh and Lord le Despencer.

References

Literature

* * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Westmorland, Vere Fane, 4th Earl of 1645 births 1693 deaths 17th-century English nobility Deputy Lieutenants of Kent Knights of the Bath Lord-Lieutenants of Kent Vere English MPs 1661–1679 English MPs 1679 English MPs 1680–1681 English MPs 1681 English MPs 1689–1690 English MPs 1690–1695 Earls of Westmorland Deaths from diabetes Barons le Despencer Barons Burghersh