Henry Charles FitzRoy Somerset, 8th Duke of Beaufort KG, PC, DL (1 February 1824 – 30 April 1899), styled Earl of Glamorgan until 1835 and Marquess of Worcester from 1835 to 1853, was a

British peer The peerages in the United Kingdom are a legal system comprising both hereditary and lifetime titles, composed of various noble ranks, and forming a constituent part of the British honours system. The term '' peerage'' can be used both coll ...

, soldier, and Conservative Party politician. He served as

Master of the Horse Master of the Horse is an official position in several European nations. It was more common when most countries in Europe were monarchies, and is of varying prominence today. (Ancient Rome) The original Master of the Horse ( la, Magister Equitu ...

between 1858 and 1859 and again between 1866 and 1868.

Background and education

Born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

, he was the only son of

Henry Somerset, 7th Duke of Beaufort Major Henry Somerset, 7th Duke of Beaufort, KG (5 February 1792 – 17 November 1853), styled Earl of Glamorgan until 1803 and Marquess of Worcester between 1803 and 1835, was a British peer, soldier, and politician. Background Beaufort was t ...

by his second wife Emily Frances, daughter of Charles Culling Smith and his wife Lady Anne Wellesley. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...

.thepeerage.com Henry Charles FitzRoy Somerset, 8th Duke of Beaufort
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Military career

Beaufort was commissioned a Cornet and Sublieutenant in the

1st Life Guards The 1st Regiment of Life Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. It was formed in 1788 by the union of the 1st Troop of Horse Guards and 1st Troop of Horse Grenadier Guards. In 1922, it was amalgamated ...

on 17 August 1841. From 1842 to 1852, he was an aide-de-camp to the

Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...

, then

Commander-in-Chief of the Forces The Commander-in-Chief of the Forces, later Commander-in-Chief, British Army, or just the Commander-in-Chief (C-in-C), was (intermittently) the professional head of the English Army from 1660 to 1707 (the English Army, founded in 1645, was succ ...

(Beaufort's father had also been Wellington's aide-de-camp during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

). He was promoted lieutenant on 7 July 1843. On 13 August 1847, he purchased a captaincy in the 7th Hussars. On 15 June 1852, Beaufort was appointed a deputy lieutenant of

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, and after the death of Wellington in September, he continued to serve as aide-de-camp to the new Commander-in-Chief,

Viscount Hardinge Viscount Hardinge, of Lahore and of Kings Newton in the County of Derby, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1846 for the soldier and Tory politician Sir Henry Hardinge. His son, the second Viscount, represented D ...

, until the latter's death in 1856. On 21 April 1854, Beaufort purchased a commission as an unattached major, and on 5 May, he was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel Commandant of the Royal Gloucestershire Yeomanry, replacing his late father. During this time it was proposed to start "a cattle show" in Monmouth, and in 1857 Beaufort and

John Etherington Welch Rolls John Etherington Welch Rolls (4 May 1807 – 27 May 1870) was a High Sheriff of Monmouthshire, art collector, Deputy Lieutenant and Justice of the Peace. Rolls was President of, and co-founded the Monmouth Show. Life Rolls was born in 1807, a so ...

each put money into a fund to start the show. Rolls was the greater financial contributor and he became President of the show. This cattle show is now known as the

Monmouthshire Show The Monmouthshire Show is the largest one-day agricultural show in Wales, taking place annually in Monmouth on the first Saturday in July. Origin The origin of the show dates back to the 1790s when Monmouth's agricultural society organised p ...

. Beaufort was breveted lieutenant colonel on 26 October 1858, but sold his commission and left the Army on 11 June 1861. On 16 September 1863, he was made a deputy lieutenant of Monmouthshire. He was also appointed Honorary Colonel of the

1st Gloucestershire Engineer Volunteer Corps The 1st Gloucestershire Engineer Volunteer Corps was a Volunteer unit of Britain's Royal Engineers, serving from 1861 to 1908. A detachment of the unit served in the Second Boer War. Although the unit itself did not transfer to the Territorial Fo ...

on 20 November 1867. On 29 April 1874, he resigned the lieutenant-colonelcy of the Gloucestershire Yeomanry and became Honorary Colonel of the regiment. He resigned that commission on 2 July 1887. He also resigned the honorary colonelcy of the 1st Gloucestershire Engineer Volunteers on 2 December 1888.

Political career

In 1846, Beaufort was returned as a

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 o ...

(MP) for East Gloucestershire, holding the seat until succeeding his father in the dukedom in November 1853. He was appointed

on 26 February 1858, as part of Lord Derby's second government and was made a

Privy Counsellor 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 ...

the same day. He left office in 1859, when Derby's ministry fell. Beaufort was again appointed Master of the Horse in Derby's third government in 1866. On 19 March 1867, he was made a

Knight of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George ...

and appointed

Lord Lieutenant of Monmouthshire This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Monmouthshire. Before the English Civil War, the lieutenancy of Monmouthshire was held by the Lord Lieutenant of Wales, except for the period from 1602 to 1629, when it formed a separate lie ...

later that year. He lost the Mastership of the Horse in 1868 when the government fell, but remained Lord Lieutenant for the remainder of his life. Beaufort conceived and planned the

Badminton Library The ''Badminton Library'', called in full ''The Badminton Library of Sports and Pastimes'', was a sporting and publishing project conceived by Longmans Green & Co. and edited by Henry Somerset, 8th Duke of Beaufort (1824–1899). Between 1885 a ...

series of sporting books, the publication of which began in 1885 with a volume on ''Hunting'', and acted as its overseeing editor.

Family

Beaufort married Lady Georgiana Charlotte Curzon (29 September 1825 – 14 May 1906), daughter of

Richard Curzon-Howe, 1st Earl Howe Richard William Penn Curzon-Howe, 1st Earl Howe (11 December 1796 – 12 May 1870), was a British peer and courtier. Background He was the third but eldest surviving son of The Hon. Penn Assheton Curzon (the eldest son of Assheton Curzon, 1s ...

, on 3 July 1845. They had six children: * Henry Adelbert Wellington FitzRoy Somerset, 9th Duke of Beaufort (1847–1924); married Louise Emily Harford and had issue. * Lord Henry Richard Charles Somerset (1849–1932); married Lady Isabella Caroline Cocks and had issue. * Major Lord Henry Arthur George Somerset (1851–1926); died unmarried. *Major Lord Henry Edward Brudenell Somerset (1853–1897); married Fanny Julia Dixie, daughter of Sir Alexander Dixie, 10th Baronet, and had issue. *Lady Blanche Elizabeth Adelaide Somerset (c. 1854–1897); married

John Beresford, 5th Marquess of Waterford John Henry de la Poer Beresford, 5th Marquess of Waterford (21 May 184423 October 1895), styled Earl of Tyrone from 1859 to 1866, was an Irish peer and Conservative politician. He served as Master of the Buckhounds under Lord Salisbury from 1885 ...

and had issue. Somerset died in 1899, aged 75 at

Stoke Gifford Stoke Gifford is a village and parish in South Gloucestershire, England, in the northern suburbs of Bristol. It had around 11,000 residents at the 2001 census, increasing to 15,494 at the 2011 census. It is home to Bristol Parkway station an ...

, from

gout Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender, hot and swollen joint, caused by deposition of monosodium urate monohydrate crystals. Pain typically comes on rapidly, reaching maximal intens ...

and was buried on 5 May 1899 at

St Michael and All Angels Church, Badminton St Michael and All Angels is a Grade I listed church on the estate of the Duke of Beaufort in the village of Great Badminton, Gloucestershire, England. Attached to the Duke of Beaufort's residence, Badminton House, it is an active Anglican parish ...

Ancestry

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Beaufort, Henry Somerset, 8th Duke of 1824 births 1899 deaths 7th Queen's Own Hussars officers British Life Guards officers Worcester, Henry Somerset, Marquess of Deputy Lieutenants of Gloucestershire Deputy Lieutenants of Monmouthshire 108 *16 *08 Henry Somerset, 08th Duke of Beaufort Knights of the Garter Lord-Lieutenants of Monmouthshire English people of Irish descent Masters of foxhounds in England Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People educated at Eton College Worcester, Henry Somerset, Marquess of Worcester, Henry Somerset, Marquess of Worcester, Henry Somerset, Marquess of UK MPs who inherited peerages Royal Gloucestershire Hussars officers Presidents of the Marylebone Cricket Club British landowners 19th-century British businesspeople