Vice-Admiral William Waldegrave, 8th Earl Waldegrave, CB (27 October 1788 – 24 October 1859) was a British naval commander and politician. Waldegrave was the son of

George Waldegrave, 4th Earl Waldegrave George Waldegrave, 4th Earl Waldegrave, Viscount Chewton, PC, ADC (23 November 1751 – 22 October 1789) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1774 to 1780. The eldest son of the 3rd Earl of Waldegrave, he was educated a ...

and his wife, the former Lady Elizabeth Laura Waldegrave. His parents were first cousins. He was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

. In 1802, he became a

Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

in 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 ...

, rising to the ranks of

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 ...

in 1806 and

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

in 1809. He fought during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, commanding frigate HMS ''Macedonian'' (which was later captured by the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

). On his return to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, he married Elizabeth Whitbread, the daughter of Samuel Whitbread and took over from his father-in-law's post as

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 ...

(MP) for

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

in 1815. Leaving that post in 1818, Waldegrave then commanded HMS ''Seringapatam'' from 1829 to 1832 and HMS ''Revenge'' from 1839 to 1842 and was created a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...

in 1840. He retired from the navy in 1846 as a

Rear-Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarded ...

, inherited his childless nephew's titles in 1846 and was married for a second time that year, to Sarah Milward, née Whitear. He was promoted to Vice-Admiral in 1858 and died a year later, three days before his seventy-first birthday. His eldest son,

William Waldegrave, Viscount Chewton William Frederick Waldegrave, Viscount Chewton (29 June 1816 in Cardington, Bedfordshire – 8 October 1854) was a British army officer. Early life and education Waldegrave was the eldest son of William Waldegrave, 8th Earl Waldegrave and was ...

had died in 1854 and he was succeeded by his grandson,

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Waldegrave, William Waldegrave, 8th Earl 1788 births 1859 deaths People from Mendip District People educated at Eton College Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Earls Waldegrave Royal Navy vice admirals

William Waldegrave, 8th Earl Waldegrave Vice-Admiral William Waldegrave, 8th Earl Waldegrave, CB (27 October 1788 – 24 October 1859) was a British naval commander and politician. Waldegrave was the son of George Waldegrave, 4th Earl Waldegrave and his wife, the former Lady Elizab ...

UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs who inherited peerages