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William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland, PC (Ire), FRS (3 April 174528 May 1814) was a British diplomat and politician who sat in the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
from 1774 to 1793.


Early life

A member of the influential Eden family, Auckland was a younger son of Sir Robert Eden, 3rd Baronet, of
Windlestone Hall Windlestone Hall is a mid-16th century Elizabethan country house, heavily rebuilt in 1821 to form a Greek revival stately home, situated near Rushyford, County Durham, England. It is a Grade II* Listed building. As of 2022 it is back in private ...
, County Durham, and Mary, daughter of William Davison. His brothers included
Sir John Eden, 4th Baronet Sir John Eden, 4th Baronet (1740–1812), was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1774 and 1790. Eden was the eldest son of Sir Robert Eden, 3rd Baronet and his wife Mary Davison of Beamish, county Durham, and was born ...
, also an MP;
Sir Robert Eden, 1st Baronet, of Maryland Sir Robert Eden, 1st Baronet, of Maryland, 23rd Proprietary Governor of Maryland (14 September 1741 – 2 September 1784) was a British official and the last colonial Governor of Maryland. Although a popular governor and an able administrator, E ...
, the last royal
Governor of Maryland The Governor of the State of Maryland is the head of government of Maryland, and is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The Governor is the highest-ranking official in the state and has a broad range of appointive powe ...
; and
Morton Eden, 1st Baron Henley Morton Frederick Eden, 1st Baron Henley (8 July 1752 – 6 December 1830), was a British diplomat. Eden was a younger son of Sir Robert Eden, 3rd Baronet, and was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford. From 1776 to 1779, he was Minister t ...
, diplomat. He was educated at
Durham School Durham School is an independent boarding and day school in the English public school tradition located in Durham, North East England and was an all-boys institution until 1985, when girls were admitted to the sixth form. The school takes pupils ...
, Eton and
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 was called to the bar,
Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...
, in 1768.


Career

In 1771 Auckland published ''Principles of Penal Law'', and soon became a recognized authority on commercial and economic questions. In 1772 he took up an appointment as Under-Secretary of State for the North, a post he held until 1778. He was
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 ofte ...
for
Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aquar ...
from 1774 to 1784 and served as a Lord of Trade from 1776 to 1782. In 1778 he carried an Act for the improvement of the treatment of prisoners, and accompanied the
Earl of Carlisle Earl of Carlisle is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of England. History The first creation came in 1322, when Andrew Harclay, 1st Baron Harclay, was made Earl of Carlisle. He had already been summoned to Parliamen ...
as a commissioner to
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the C ...
on an unsuccessful
mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...
to bring an end to the
American War of Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
. During the War, he was head of the British spies in Europe, his budget reaching £200,000 by 1778. He probably oversaw a small group of intelligence collectors for Lord Suffolk. On his return in 1779 he published his widely-read ''Four Letters to the Earl of Carlisle''. In 1780 Auckland became
Chief Secretary for Ireland The Chief Secretary for Ireland was a key political office in the British administration in Ireland. Nominally subordinate to the Lord Lieutenant, and officially the "Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant", from the early 19th century un ...
, which he remained until 1782, and was admitted to the
Irish Privy Council His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal executi ...
in 1780. He represented
Dungannon Dungannon () is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the second-largest town in the county (after Omagh) and had a population of 14,340 at the 2011 Census. The Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council had its headquarters in t ...
in the
Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the Irish House of Lords, House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a h ...
between 1781 and 1783 and was Joint
Vice-Treasurer of Ireland The Lord High Treasurer of Ireland was the head of the Exchequer of Ireland, chief financial officer of the Kingdom of Ireland. The designation ''High'' was added in 1695. After the Acts of Union 1800 created the United Kingdom of Great Britain ...
between 1783 and 1784. While in Ireland he established the National Bank. Between 1784 and 1793 Auckland was Member of Parliament for
Heytesbury Heytesbury is a village (formerly considered to be a town) and a civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The village lies on the north bank of the Wylye, about southeast of the town of Warminster. The civil parish includes most of the small ne ...
. He was sworn of the
British Privy Council The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of ei ...
in 1784 and served as Envoy to France from 1785 to 1787 (on a mission dealing with commerce); he was Ambassador to Spain between 1787 and 1789 and Ambassador to the Netherlands between 1789 and 1793. In 1789 he was raised to the
Peerage of Ireland The Peerage of Ireland consists of those titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is one of the five divisio ...
as Baron Auckland and in 1793 he retired from public service, receiving a pension of £2300, and was further honoured when he was made Baron Auckland, of West Auckland in the County of Durham, in the Peerage of Great Britain. During his retirement in the country at
Beckenham Beckenham () is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley, in Greater London. Until 1965 it was part of the historic county of Kent. It is located south-east of Charing Cross, situated north of Elmers End and E ...
, he continued his friendship with
William Pitt the Younger William Pitt the Younger (28 May 175923 January 1806) was a British statesman, the youngest and last prime minister of Great Britain (before the Acts of Union 1800) and then first prime minister of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Ir ...
, his nearest neighbour at
Holwood House Holwood House is a country house in Keston, near Hayes, in the London Borough of Bromley, England. The house was designed by Decimus Burton, built between 1823 and 1826 and is in the Greek Revival style. It was built for John Ward who later emp ...
, who at one time had thoughts of marrying his daughter (see below). With Pitt's sanction he published his ''Remarks on the Apparent Circumstances of the War'' in 1795, to prepare public opinion for a peace. He was later included in Pitt's government as Joint
Postmaster General A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. The practice of having a government official responsib ...
in 1798. He severely criticized Pitt's resignation in 1801, from which he had endeavoured to dissuade him, and retained office under
Henry Addington Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth, (30 May 175715 February 1844) was an English Tory statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1804. Addington is best known for obtaining the Treaty of Amiens in 1802, an ...
. This terminated his friendship with Pitt, who excluded him from his administration in 1804 though he increased his pension. Auckland later served under
Lord Grenville William Wyndham Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville, (25 October 175912 January 1834) was a British Pittite Tory politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1806 to 1807, but was a supporter of the Whigs for the duration of ...
as
President of the Board of Trade The president of the Board of Trade is head of the Board of Trade. This is a committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, first established as a temporary committee of inquiry in the 17th century, that evolved gradually into a governmen ...
in the Ministry of All the Talents between 1806 and 1807. His ''Journal and Correspondence'', published in 1861–1862, throws much light on the political history of the time. The
subantarctic The sub-Antarctic zone is a region in the Southern Hemisphere, located immediately north of the Antarctic region. This translates roughly to a latitude of between 46° and 60° south of the Equator. The subantarctic region includes many islands ...
Auckland Islands The Auckland Islands ( Māori: ''Motu Maha'' "Many islands" or ''Maungahuka'' "Snowy mountains") are an archipelago of New Zealand, lying south of the South Island. The main Auckland Island, occupying , is surrounded by smaller Adams Island, ...
group to the south of
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country ...
, discovered in 1806, were named after him, as was Eden Quay in
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cen ...
.


Personal life

In 1776, Lord Auckland married Eleanor Elliot, daughter of Sir Gilbert Elliot, 3rd Baronet and Agnes Dalrymple-Murray-Kynynmound (daughter and heiress of
Hugh Dalrymple-Murray-Kynynmound Hugh Dalrymple-Murray-Kynnynmond ( Hugh Dalrymple) (1695 – 23 December 1741), was a Scottish landowner, lawyer and journalist. Early life He was a younger son of Sir David Dalrymple, 1st Baronet and Janet ( Rochead) Murray Dalrymple. At the time ...
). Eleanor was a sister of Gilbert Eliott, 1st Earl of Minto. They had six sons and eight daughters, including: * Eleanor Agnes Eden (1777–1851), who became the subject of intense public interest in 1797 when it was rumoured that she was about to marry the Prime Minister
William Pitt the Younger William Pitt the Younger (28 May 175923 January 1806) was a British statesman, the youngest and last prime minister of Great Britain (before the Acts of Union 1800) and then first prime minister of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Ir ...
; when the matter became public, however, Pitt denied that he had proposed to Eleanor, much to her father's fury. Instead, she married
Robert Hobart, 4th Earl of Buckinghamshire Robert Hobart, 4th Earl of Buckinghamshire, (6 May 17604 February 1816), styled Lord Hobart from 1793 to 1804, was a British Tory politician. Life Buckinghamshire was born at Hampden House, the son of George Hobart, 3rd Earl of Buckinghamshire ...
in 1799, and Pitt never married. * Catharine Isabella Eden (1778–1810), who married
Nicholas Vansittart, 1st Baron Bexley Nicholas Vansittart, 1st Baron Bexley, (29 April 1766 – 8 February 1851) was an English politician, and one of the longest-serving Chancellors of the Exchequer in British history. Background and education The fifth son of Henry Vansittart ...
. * Elizabeth Charlotte Eden (1780–1847), who married
Francis Osborne, 1st Baron Godolphin Francis Godolphin Osborne, 1st Baron Godolphin (18 October 1777 – 15 February 1850), styled Lord Francis Osborne from 1789 to 1832, was a British politician. Background Osborne was the second son of Francis Osborne, 5th Duke of Leeds and his wi ...
. * Caroline Eden (1781–1851), who married Arthur Vansittart (1775–1829) of
Shottesbrooke Shottesbrooke is a hamlet and civil parish administered by the unitary authority of the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the English county of Berkshire. The hamlet is mostly rural: 88% covered by agriculture or woodland and had a p ...
. * William Eden (1782–1810), who was Member of Parliament for
Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aquar ...
but seemingly committed suicide by drowning in 1810. *
George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland, (25 August 1784 – 1 January 1849) was an English Whig politician and colonial administrator. He was thrice First Lord of the Admiralty and also served as Governor-General of India between 1836 and 1842 ...
(1784–1849), who died unmarried. * Henry Eden (1787–1794), who died young. * Mary Louisa Eden (1788–1858), who married Andrew Colville, who was instrumental in opening up the
Red River Colony The Red River Colony (or Selkirk Settlement), also known as Assinboia, was a colonization project set up in 1811 by Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk, on of land in British North America. This land was granted to Douglas by the Hudson's Bay C ...
in
Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...
, Canada to poor Scottish emigrants. * Mary Dulcibella Eden (1793–1862), who married Charles Drummond (1790–1858), eldest son and heir of banker Charles Drummond (and grandson of
William Drummond, 4th Viscount Strathallan William Drummond, 4th Viscount Strathallan (1690 – 16 April 1746) was a Scottish peer and Jacobite, who died at the Battle of Culloden. Pardoned for his part in the 1715 Rising, he raised a troop of cavalry for Prince Charles in 1745 and ...
) and Frances Dorothy Lockwood (a daughter of Rev. Edward Lockwood of Dews Hall). *
Emily Eden Emily Eden (3 March 1797 – 5 August 1869) was an English poet and novelist who gave witty accounts of English life in the early 19th century. She wrote a celebrated account of her travels in India, and two novels that sold well. She was also a ...
(1797–1869), was a poet and novelist. Her letters were edited by Violet Dickinson and published in 1919. *
Robert Eden, 3rd Baron Auckland Robert John Eden, 3rd Baron Auckland (10 July 1799 – 25 April 1870), styled The Honourable Robert Eden from birth until 1849, was a British clergyman. He was Bishop of Sodor and Man from 1847 to 1854 and Bishop of Bath and Wells from 1854 to ...
(1799–1870), who married Mary Hurt (–1872), the sister of Francis Hurt of
Alderwasley Alderwasley ( ) is a village and civil parish in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England. The population of the civil parish as of the 2011 census was 469. Alderwasley Hall is the home to one of the sites of Alderwasley Hall School wh ...
Hall. * Frances Eden (1801–1849) Lord Auckland died in May 1814 and was succeeded by his second but eldest surviving son,
George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...
, who was created Earl of Auckland in 1839. Lady Auckland died in May 1818.


References

;Notes ;Sources


External links

*


See also

* Jean-Charles-Pierre Lenoir {{DEFAULTSORT:Auckland, William Eden, 1st Baron 1745 births 1814 deaths People from County Durham Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford 1 Peers of Great Britain created by George III Barons in the Peerage of Ireland Peers of Ireland created by George III Diplomatic peers William Eden Irish MPs 1776–1783 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Eden, William Members of the Privy Council of Ireland United Kingdom Postmasters General People educated at Durham School People educated at Eton College Eden, William British MPs 1774–1780 British MPs 1780–1784 British MPs 1784–1790 British MPs 1790–1796 Fellows of the Royal Society Ambassadors of Great Britain to Spain Ambassadors of Great Britain to the Netherlands Chief Secretaries for Ireland Presidents of the Board of Trade