George Henry Charles Byng, 3rd Earl of Strafford (22 February 1830 – 28 March 1898), styled Viscount Enfield between 1860 and 1886, was a British Liberal politician.

Background and education

Byng was the eldest son of George Byng, 2nd Earl of Strafford and his wife, Lady Agnes, daughter of

Henry Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey Henry William Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey (17 May 1768 – 29 April 1854), styled Lord Paget between 1784 and 1812 and known as the Earl of Uxbridge between 1812 and 1815, was a British Army officer and politician. After serving as a member ...

. He was educated at Eton and graduated from

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

in 1852.

Political career

In 1852 Byng entered Parliament as Member of Parliament for

Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy, from which its name derives. At the 2011 census, the three electoral wards (N ...

, a seat he held until 1857, when he became MP for

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

. He served under Lord Russell as Parliamentary Secretary to the Poor Law Board between 1865 and 1866 and under

William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British politican, starting as Conservative MP for Newark and later becoming the leader of the Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party. In a career lasting over 60 years, he ...

as Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs between 1871 and 1874.Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, In 1874, Lord Enfield left 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 ...

when he was defeated at the general election, but was then called up to the House of Lords in his father's barony of Strafford. He again held office under Gladstone as a

Lord-in-waiting Lords-in-waiting (male) or baronesses-in-waiting (female) are peers who hold office in the Royal Household of the sovereign of the United Kingdom. In the official Court Circular they are styled "Lord in Waiting" or "Baroness in Waiting" (without ...

in 1880 and as Under-Secretary of State for India between 1880 and 1883. Lord Strafford was also

First Civil Service Commissioner The First Civil Service Commissioner heads the Civil Service Commission, a statutory body which ensures that appointments to the Civil Service in the United Kingdom are made openly and on merit, and hears appeals from civil servants under the Civ ...

from 1880 to 1888 and

Lord Lieutenant of Middlesex This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Middlesex. From 1794 to 1965, all Lord Lieutenants were also Custos Rotulorum of Middlesex. The office was abolished on 1 April 1965, with the creation of Greater London and the post of Lor ...

from 1884 to 1888. When the first

Middlesex County Council Middlesex County Council was the principal local government body in the administrative county of Middlesex from 1889 to 1965. The county council was created by the Local Government Act 1888, which also removed the most populous part of the cou ...

was formed in 1889, he was chosen as a

County Alderman An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands ( wethouder) and Belgium ( schepen). The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking mem ...

, serving until 1895. Throughout his political career, he served with the part-time Royal West Middlesex Militia, becoming Lieutenant-Colonel on 30 October 1853 when his father was the

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

. On 21 September 1871 he took over from his father as Honorary Colonel of the regiment, being succeeded in his turn by his younger brother Henry on 15 June 1878. In 1886, he succeeded his father in the earldom of Strafford.

Interests

He was the third President of the

Folklore Society The Folklore Society (FLS) is a registered charity under English law based in London, England for the study of folklore. Its office is at 50 Fitzroy Street, London home of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. It wa ...

, serving in that role between 1885 and 1888. It has been argued that his links with the Society should be seen more as "aristocratic patronage" rather than active research interest in the topic.

Family

Lord Strafford married Lady Alice Harriet Frederica, eldest daughter of Francis Egerton, 1st Earl of Ellesmere, on 25 July 1854. They had no children. He died at the family home in St. James's Square in March 1898, aged 68, and was succeeded in the earldom by his younger brother,

Henry Henry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters * Henry (surname) * Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone Arts and entertainmen ...

. The Countess of Strafford died in December 1928.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Strafford, George Byng, 3rd Earl of 1830 births 1898 deaths Earls in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Enfield, George Byng, Viscount Liberal Party (UK) Lords-in-Waiting Lord-lieutenants of Middlesex Presidents of Middlesex County Cricket Club Enfield, George Byng, Viscount Enfield, George Byng, Viscount Enfield, George Byng, Viscount Enfield, George Byng, Viscount Enfield, George Byng, Viscount UK MPs who inherited peerages People educated at Eton College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford George Members of Middlesex County Council Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Tavistock Presidents of the Folklore Society Middlesex Militia officers