William Nelson, 1st Earl Nelson, 2nd Duke of Bronte (20 April 1757 – 28 February 1835), was an Anglican

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

and an older brother of

Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte (29 September 1758 – 21 October 1805) was a British flag officer in the Royal Navy. His inspirational leadership, grasp of strategy, and unconventional tactics brought abo ...

Life

Born in

Burnham Thorpe Burnham Thorpe is a small village and civil parish on the River Burn and near the coast of Norfolk, England. It is famous for being the birthplace of Vice Admiral Horatio Nelson, victor at the Battle of Trafalgar and one of Britain's greatest he ...

, he was a son of the Reverend Edmund Nelson (1722–1802), and the Nelson family had been settled in

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

for many generations. The Reverend Edmund Nelson was Rector of Hillborough and of Burnham Thorpe in that county and married

Catherine Suckling Catherine Suckling (9 May 1725 – 26 December 1767) was the mother of Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson. Catherine had eleven children of which Nelson was the third surviving son. Family and marriage Catherine was born on 9 May 1725 in Barsh ...

, whose maternal grandmother Mary was the sister of

Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, (26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745; known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole) was a British statesman and Whig politician who, as First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Leader ...

and of

Horatio Walpole, 1st Baron Walpole of Wolterton Horatio is an English male given name, an Italianized form of the ancient Roman Latin '' nomen'' (name) '' Horatius'', from the Roman ''gens'' (clan) '' Horatia''. The modern Italian form is ''Orazio'', the modern Spanish form '' Horacio''. It app ...

. Their fifth but third-surviving son was the renowned naval commander Horatio Nelson. He was educated at

Christ's College, Cambridge Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 170 graduate students. The college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as ...

, matriculating in 1774, graduating

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

1778,

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

1781,

D.D. A Doctor of Divinity (D.D. or DDiv; la, Doctor Divinitatis) is the holder of an advanced academic degree in divinity. In the United Kingdom, it is considered an advanced doctoral degree. At the University of Oxford, doctors of divinity are ra ...

1802. He was ordained deacon in 1779 and priest in 1781. He became rector of

Brandon Parva Brandon Parva is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Brandon Parva, Coston, Runhall and Welborne, in the South Norfolk district, in the county of Norfolk, England. It is near East Dereham and Norwich. History Brandon Parva's ...

in Norfolk in January 1784, and went to sea that year as a naval chaplain on the HMS ''Boreas'' (commanded by his brother the future Admiral), but obtained his discharge in October 1786 and returned to Brandon Parva. He became rector of

Hilborough Hilborough is a village and a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is south of Swaffham, west-southwest of Norwich and north-northeast of London. The population of the parish (including Bodney) at the 2011 Census was 243. ...

in 1797, and a prebendary of

Canterbury Cathedral Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England. It forms part of a World Heritage Site. It is the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury, currently Justin Welby, leader of the ...

in 1803. William Nelson succeeded by a special remainder, which included his father's and sisters' male issue, to one of Horatio Nelson's baronies ('' Baron Nelson'', of the Nile and of

in the County of Norfolk, created in 1801) upon the latter's death at the

Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (180 ...

on 21 October 1805, as well as to the

dukedom of Bronte The Dukedom of Bronte ( it, Ducato/Ducea di Bronte ("Duchy of Bronte")) was a dukedom with the title Duke of Bronte ( it, Duca di Bronte), referring to the town of Bronte in the province of Catania, Sicily. It was granted on 10 October 1799 at P ...

, of the

Kingdom of the Two Sicilies The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies ( it, Regno delle Due Sicilie) was a kingdom in Southern Italy from 1816 to 1860. The kingdom was the largest sovereign state by population and size in Italy before Italian unification, comprising Sicily and a ...

. A month later, on 20 November 1805, in honour of his late brother's achievements, he was created

Earl Nelson Earl Nelson, ''of Trafalgar and of Merton in the County of Surrey'', is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 20 November 1805 for the Rev. William Nelson, 2nd Baron Nelson, one month after the death of his younge ...

and

Viscount Merton A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

, both of Trafalgar and of Merton in the County of Surrey, again with a special remainder including the male issue of his sisters. He was reportedly an ambitious man, and used Nelson's mistress Emma Hamilton's generosity and hospitality when it served his purpose, including hosting his son Horatio at her home during the

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 ...

school holidays, but cut both her and

Horatia Nelson Horatia Nelson, christened as Horatia Nelson Thompson (29 January 1801 – 6 March 1881), was the illegitimate daughter of Emma, Lady Hamilton, and Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson. Life Early years Born in a house rented by Sir Willi ...

, Emma's daughter by Lord Nelson, off after Nelson's death. He did not respect his brother's wishes to look after Horatia. He moved to Trafalgar Park after Standlynch Park was renamed thus by an Act of Parliament in 1814. He died without surviving male issue, Horatio (recently made Viscount Trafalgar) having died at the age of 19 of tuberculosis in 1808, and all of his British titles passed to Thomas Bolton, the son of his sister Susannah. The Sicilian dukedom of Bronte passed to his daughter

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...

, wife of Samuel Hood, 2nd

Baron Bridport Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

. There is a memorial to him in the crypt at

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

Family

Nelson married firstly Sarah Yonge, daughter of Rev. Henry Yonge, on 9 November 1786. They had two children: *

Charlotte Mary Nelson Charlotte Mary Hood, Baroness Bridport, 3rd Duchess of Bronte (née Nelson; 20 September 1787 – 29 January 1873) was the daughter of William Nelson, 1st Earl Nelson and Sarah Yonge. She died at the age of 85 in Cricket St. Thomas, Somerse ...

(1787–1873), 3rd Duchess of Bronte, married

Samuel Hood, 2nd Baron Bridport Samuel Hood, 2nd Baron Bridport (7 September 1788 – 6 January 1868), of Redlynch, Wiltshire, Redlynch House in Wiltshire, of Cricket House at Cricket St Thomas in Somerset, and of 12 Wimpole Street in Westminster, was a British politician and p ...

* Horatio Nelson (1788–1808), styled Viscount Merton and Viscount Trafalgar After Sarah's death on 13 April 1828, at the age of 71, Nelson married the much younger Hilare Barlow, daughter of Admiral Sir Robert Barlow, on 26 March 1829.

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, William 1st Earl Nelson Nelson, William Nelson, 1st Earl People from King's Lynn and West Norfolk (district) Nelson, William Nelson, 1st Earl Nelson, William Nelson, 1st Earl Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge Horatio Nelson Earls Nelson