William Henry Edgcumbe, 4th Earl of Mount Edgcumbe,

GCVO The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

, PC, DL (5 November 1833 – 25 September 1917), styled Viscount Valletort between 1839 and 1861, was a British courtier,

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

politician, and Volunteer officer.

Background

Edgcumbe was the son of

Ernest Edgcumbe, 3rd Earl of Mount Edgcumbe Ernest Augustus Edgcumbe, 3rd Earl of Mount Edgcumbe (23 March 1797 – 3 September 1861), styled Viscount Valletort between 1818 and 1837, was a British peer and politician. Background Mount Edgcumbe was the second but eldest surviving son of R ...

, and Caroline Augusta, daughter of Rear-Admiral Charles Feilding.'Earl of Mount Edgcumbe', ''Burke's''.

Career in Parliament and at Court

Edgcumbe was returned to Parliament for

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

in 1859, a seat he held until 1861 when he entered the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

on the death of his father.'Earl of Mount Edgcumbe', ''Debrett's''. In 1879 he sworn of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

and appointed

Lord Chamberlain of the Household Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

by the

Earl of Beaconsfield Earl of Beaconsfield, of Hughenden in the County of Buckingham, was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1876 for Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, a favourite of Queen Victoria. Victoria favoured Disraeli's Tory poli ...

, a post he held until the government fell in 1880. He later served under

Lord Salisbury Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury (; 3 February 183022 August 1903) was a British statesman and Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom three times for a total of over thirteen y ...

Lord Steward of the Household The Lord Steward or Lord Steward of the Household is an official of the Royal Household in England. He is always a peer. Until 1924, he was always a member of the Government. Until 1782, the office was one of considerable political importance ...

between 1885 and 1886 and again between 1886 and 1892. Edgcumbe was also an Aide-de-Camp to

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 ...

from 1887 to 1897 and a Member of the Council to the Prince of Wales from 1901 to 1917 as well as Keeper of the Seal of the Duchy of Cornwall from 1907 to 1917. Between 1877 and 1917 he served as

Lord-Lieutenant of Cornwall This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall. Since 1742, all the Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Cornwall. *John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford 1552–1554 *John Bourchier, 2nd Earl of Bath 1556–? ...

. He was also a

Provincial Grand Master Provincial Grand Master (abbreviated PGM or PrGM), sometimes called District Grand Master or Metropolitan Grand Master, is a fraternal office held by the head of a Provincial Grand Lodge, who is directly appointed by the organisation's Grand Master ...

, an office held by the head of a Provincial Grand Lodge. In early 1901 Lord Mount Edgcumbe was appointed by King Edward to lead a special diplomatic mission to announce the King's accession to the governments of

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...

, and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. During his visit to the Belgian court in March 1901, King Leopold presented him with the Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold.

Military career

As Viscount Valletort he was commissioned as a

Second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in the Cornwall

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 ...

(the Duke of Cornwall's Rangers) on 24 April 1852; at the time the regiment was commanded by his father. He was subsequently promoted to

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

on 3 June 1854 and

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on 2 June 1855.''Hart's'', 1860.''Army List'', various dates. On 29 February 1860, during the enthusiasm for the

Volunteer Movement The Volunteer Force was a citizen army of part-time rifle, artillery and engineer corps, created as a popular movement throughout the British Empire in 1859. Originally highly autonomous, the units of volunteers became increasingly integrated ...

, he raised the 16th (Stonehouse) Devonshire Rifle Volunteer Corps and served as its captain-commandant. Along with other units raised around

, the corps became part of the 2nd Administrative Battalion, Devonshire Rifle Volunteer Corps and Valletort was appointed

Lieutenant-Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

in command of the battalion on 8 August 1860. The battalion subsequently became the 2nd (Prince of Wales's) Volunteer Battalion, Devonshire Regiment (Valletort had been equerry to the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

); he maintained his links with the battalion until his death in 1917. On 9 February 1889, the Earl of Mount Edgcumbe was appointed

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

in command of the Plymouth Brigade, consisting of the five Volunteer Battalions of the

Devonshire Regiment The Devonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that served under various titles and served in many wars and conflicts from 1685 to 1958, such as the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Second World War. In 1958 ...

and the two of the

Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry (DCLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1959. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, by the merger of the 32nd (Cornwall Light ...

, which was charged with defending the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

's base at Plymouth in time of war. On 29 May 1889, Lord Mount Edgcumbe gave up command of the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, becoming its Honorary Colonel, though he continued to command the Plymouth Brigade until 1893. He was awarded the

Volunteer Decoration The Volunteer Officers' Decoration, post-nominal letters VD, was instituted in 1892 as an award for long and meritorious service by officers of the United Kingdom's Volunteer Force. Award of the decoration was discontinued in the United Kingdom ...

, and remained Hon Colonel of his battalion when it became the 5th (Prince of Wales's) Battalion, Devonshire Regiment in the

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry i ...

in 1908, and was president of the Cornwall Territorial Association.

Family

Lord Mount Edgcumbe married firstly, Lady Katherine Hamilton, daughter of

James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn, (21 January 1811 – 31 October 1885), styled Viscount Hamilton from 1814 to 1818 and The Marquess of Abercorn from 1818 to 1868, was a British Conservative statesman who twice served as Lord Lieutenant of Ir ...

, on 26 October 1858. They had four children: *Lady Victoria Frederica Caroline Edgcumbe (1859–1920), married

Lord Algernon Percy :'' Algernon Percy, 1st Earl of Beverley was also known as Lord Algernon Percy from 1766-86.'' Colonel Lord Algernon Malcolm Arthur Percy (2 October 1851 – 28 December 1933) was a British career soldier and Conservative politician who sat in t ...

, son of

Algernon Percy, 6th Duke of Northumberland Algernon George Percy, 6th Duke of Northumberland, (20 May 1810 – 2 January 1899), styled Lord Lovaine between 1830 and 1865 and Earl Percy between 1865 and 1867, was a British Conservative politician. He held office under the Earl of Derby as ...

and had issue. *Lady Alberta Louise Florence Edgcumbe (1861– 25 March 1941), married

Henry Lopes, 1st Baron Roborough Henry Yarde Buller Lopes, 1st Baron Roborough (24 March 1859 – 14 April 1938), known as Sir Henry Lopes, 4th Baronet from 1908 to 1938, of Maristow in the parish of Tamerton Foliot, Devon, was a British Conservative Party politician. Life Lo ...

and had issue. *Lady Edith Hilaria Edgcumbe (1862– 3 April 1931), married John St Aubyn, 2nd Baron St Levan and had issue. * Piers Alexander Hamilton Edgcumbe, 5th Earl of Edgcumbe (2 July 1865 – 18 April 1944). After Lady Katherine's death in September 1874, Lord Mount Edgcumbe married secondly, his first cousin, Caroline Cecilia, daughter of George Edgcumbe and widow of Atholl Liddell, 3rd Earl of Ravensworth, on 21 April 1906. She died in February 1909. Lord Mount Edgcumbe died in September 1917, aged 83.

Notes

References

* ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage,'' 100th Edn, London, 1953. * H.G. Hart, ''The New Annual Army List, and Militia List'' (various dates from 1840). * Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990.

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mount Edgcumbe, William Edgcumbe, 4th Earl of 4 Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order 1833 births 1917 deaths Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Deputy Lieutenants of Devon Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England Lord-Lieutenants of Cornwall Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Plymouth Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People from Maker, Cornwall UK MPs 1859–1865 UK MPs who inherited peerages