General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington (17 March 17535 September 1829), styled Viscount Petersham until 1779, was a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer and politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, 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 ...

between 1774 and 1779 when he succeeded to the

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

Earl of Harrington Earl of Harrington is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain that was created in 1742. History The earldom of Harrington was granted in 1742 to William Stanhope, 1st Earl of Harrington, William Stanhope, 1st Baron Harrington, the former Secret ...

Early life

Stanhope was the son of William Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Harrington, and Lady Caroline FitzRoy, daughter of

Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton (25 October 1683 – 6 May 1757) was a British peer and politician. Early life He was the only child and heir of Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton (1663–1690) (an illegitimate son of King Charles II ...

, and Lady Henrietta Somerset, daughter of Charles Somerset, Marquess of Worcester, and Rebecca Child. He was educated at Eton.Charles Stanhope at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
/ref>

Military career

Stanhope was commissioned into the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarchy; due to this, it often ...

in 1769. During the

Saratoga campaign The Saratoga campaign in 1777 was an attempt by the British to gain military control of the strategically important Hudson River valley during the American Revolutionary War. It ended in the surrender of a British army, which historian Edmund M ...

of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

as Viscount Petersham, he commanded the

29th Regiment of Foot The 29th (Worcestershire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1694. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 36th (Herefordshire) Regiment of Foot to become the 1st Battalion, the Worcestershire R ...

Grenadier A grenadier ( , ; derived from the word ''grenade'') was historically an assault-specialist soldier who threw hand grenades in siege operation battles. The distinct combat function of the grenadier was established in the mid-17th century, when ...

company and was an aide-de-camp to General

John Burgoyne General (United Kingdom), General John "Gentleman Johnny" Burgoyne (24 February 1722 – 4 August 1792) was a British Army officer, playwright and politician who sat in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1761 to 1792. He first saw acti ...

. He was Colonel of the

85th Regiment of Foot The 85th (Bucks Volunteers) Regiment of Foot was a British Army line infantry regiment, raised in 1793. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 53rd (Shropshire) Regiment of Foot to form the King's Shropshire Light Infantry in 1881. ...

(1778–1783), the 65th Regiment of Foot (1783–1788) and the

(1788–1792). He was finally Colonel of the 1st Life Guards from 1792 to his death. He was promoted full general in 1803 and made GCH in 1821. From 1805 to 1812 he was

Commander-in-Chief, Ireland Commander-in-Chief, Ireland, was title of the commander of the British forces in Ireland before 1922. Until the Act of Union in 1800, the position involved command of the distinct Irish Army of the Kingdom of Ireland. History Marshal of Ireland ...

, and he was sent on diplomatic errands to

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

and to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. Viscount Petersham can be seen in the famous painting "The Burial of General Fraser at Saratoga" standing above Simon Fraser.

Parliamentary career

He was briefly elected to serve as Member of Parliament for

Thetford Thetford is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Breckland District of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road (England), A11 road between Norwich and London, just east of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, coverin ...

in 1774 and then sat from 1776 to 1779 as one of the members for

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

Family

Elvaston Castle Derbyshire Morris edited

Lord Harrington was married to Jane Fleming, daughter of

Sir John Fleming, 1st Baronet Sir John Fleming, 1st Baronet (born c.1730, died 6 November 1763) was an Anglo-Irish baronet, created first Baronet Fleming. of Brompton Park in the County of Middlesex in the Baronetage of Great Britain on 22 April 1763. He married Jane Colem ...

, in 1778. She was an heiress of £100,000 and later became a

Lady of the Bedchamber Lady of the Bedchamber is the title of a lady-in-waiting holding the official position of personal attendant on a British queen regnant or queen consort. The position is traditionally held by the wife of a peer. A lady of the bedchamber would gi ...

Queen Charlotte Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (Sophia Charlotte; 19 May 1744 – 17 November 1818) was Queen of Great Britain and Ireland as the wife of King George III from their marriage on 8 September 1761 until her death in 1818. The Acts of Un ...

. Lord and Lady Harrington had eleven children: * Charles Stanhope, 4th Earl of Harrington (8 April 1780 – 3 March 1851). He was married to

Maria Foote Maria Stanhope, Countess of Harrington (24 July 1797? - 27 December 1867), better known as Maria Foote, was a British actress and peeress in the nineteenth century. Early life Foote was born 24 July 1797(?) at Plymouth. Her father, Samuel T. Fo ...

, daughter of Samuel Foote. *Maj-Gen. Hon. Lincoln Edwin Robert Stanhope (26 November 1781 – 29 February 1840). * Anna Maria Stanhope, Duchess of Bedford (3 September 1783 – 3 July 1857). She was married to Francis Russell, 7th Duke of Bedford. * Leicester FitzGerald Charles Stanhope, 5th Earl of Harrington (2 September 1784 – 7 September 1862). He married Elizabeth Green, daughter of William Green and Ann Rose Hall. *Hon. William Sefton George Stanhope (29 December 1785 – February 1786) *Rev. Hon. FitzRoy Henry Richard Stanhope (24 April 1787 – 11 April 1864). Dean of

St Buryan St Buryan () is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of St Buryan, Lamorna and Paul in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. In 2011 the parish had a population of 1412. The village of St Buryan is situated approximately west of ...

, Cornwall, and rector of Catton and of Wressle in Yorkshire. He married Caroline Wyndham, illegitimate daughter of the Hon. Charles Wyndham. They were parents of Charles Stanhope, 7th Earl of Harrington, his younger brother Percy Stanhope and of several other children. *Maj. Hon. Sir Francis Charles Stanhope (29 September 1788 – 9 October 1862). He had three children by Hannah Wilson, daughter of James Wilson of Parsonstown Manor,

County Meath County Meath ( ; or simply , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin to the southeast, County ...

. *Rev. Hon. Henry William Stanhope (2 August 1790 – 21 June 1872). Rector of Gawsworth. *Lady Caroline Anne Stanhope (20 November 1791 – 25 November 1853), married Edward Ayshford Sanford on 21 June 1841. *Lady Charlotte Augusta Stanhope (15 February 1793 – 15 February 1859), married

Augustus FitzGerald, 3rd Duke of Leinster Augustus Frederick FitzGerald, 3rd Duke of Leinster, etc. (21 August 1791 – 10 February/October 1874) was an Anglo-Irish peer and freemason, styled Marquess of Kildare from birth until 1804. He was born and died in Carton House. FitzGer ...

, on 16 June 1818. They were parents to Charles FitzGerald, 4th Duke of Leinster, and another three children. *Hon. Augustus Henry Edward Stanhope (25 March 1794 – 8 December 1831). On 8 May 1813, he married Jane Baldwin in the Parish Church of St John, Hampstead, under the name "Edward Stanhope" and disguised as a groom or labourer. The marriage was annulled in 1822 by reason of undue publication of banns (26 Geo. 2 c. 33).
Dodsley's Annual Register
', Volume 64, by Edmund Burke.

References

External links

*
Worcestershire Regiment website bio, with picture
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrington, Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl Of 1753 births 1829 deaths People educated at Eton College British Army personnel of the American Revolutionary War British Army generals British Life Guards officers Commanders-in-Chief, Ireland 3 Petersham, Charles Stanhope, Viscount British MPs 1768–1774 British MPs 1774–1780 Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain Members of the Privy Council of Ireland 29th Regiment of Foot officers Worcestershire Regiment officers

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...

Coldstream Guards officers