George Henry FitzRoy, 4th Duke of Grafton (14 January 1760 – 28 September 1844), styled Earl of Euston until 1811, was a British peer and Whig 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 ...

from 1782 to 1811 when he succeeded to the Dukedom.

Early life

Euston was the son of

Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton Augustus Henry FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton (28 September 173514 March 1811), styled Earl of Euston between 1747 and 1757, was a British Whig statesman of the Georgian era. He is one of a handful of dukes who have served as Prime Minister of t ...

, and his wife, Anne Lidell. He was educated at

Harrow School Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (school founder), John Lyon, a local landowner an ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

, where he became a close friend of the

William Pitt the Younger William Pitt (28 May 1759 – 23 January 1806) was a British statesman who served as the last prime minister of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain from 1783 until the Acts of Union 1800, and then first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, p ...

. He married Lady Charlotte Maria Waldegrave (1761–1808), daughter of

James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave, (4 March 1715 – 13 April 1763) was an English politician and peer who is sometimes regarded as one of the shortest-serving prime ministers in British history. His brief tenure as First Lord of the Trea ...

, on 16 November 1784 at

Navestock Navestock is a civil parish in the Borough of Brentwood in south Essex, in the East of England region of the United Kingdom. It is located approximately northwest of the town of Brentwood and the M25 motorway cuts through the western edge of ...

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

Political career

From 1782 to 1784, Euston was 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 ...

, and in 1784, he and Pitt were elected as MPs for

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

. Euston held that seat until he succeeded his father in the dukedom in 1811. Euston used his position in parliament to advocate for Britain having friendly relations with the newly created United States. He succeeded his father as

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 ...

of the

West Suffolk Militia The West Suffolk Militia was an auxiliary military unit in the English county of Suffolk in East Anglia. First organised during the Seven Years' War it served on internal security and home defence duties in all of Britain's major wars. It later ...

on 2 June 1780 at the age of 20 and retained the command until 1808. He was appointed a deputy lieutenant of Northamptonshire on 9 May 1803. He also succeeded his father as

Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk This is a list of people who have served as Lord-Lieutenant of Suffolk. Since 1642, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Suffolk. Lord Lieutenants of Suffolk * Sir Anthony Wingfield 1551–1552 ''jointly with'' *? 1551– ...

on 3 July 1790. He was appointed a Knight Companion of the Garter (KG) in 1834.

Family

Grafton died on 28 September 1844 and was succeeded by his son Henry. He and his wife Charlotte had eleven children: * Lady Maria (Mary) Anne (1785–1855), married Sir William Oglander, 6th Baronet and had issue. * Lady Georgiana (1787–1855), unmarried * Lady Elizabeth Anne (1788–1867), married her first cousin

John Henry Smyth John Henry Smyth (20 March 1780 – 20 October 1822) was a Whig member of Parliament for Cambridge University from 9 June 1812 until his death. Early life Smyth was born on 20 March 1780. He was one of four sons and two daughters born to Lady ...

and had issue. * Henry, styled Earl of Euston, later 5th Duke of Grafton (1790–1863) * Lord Charles FitzRoy (1791–1865), married Lady Anne Cavendish (daughter of

George Cavendish, 1st Earl of Burlington George Cavendish, 1st Earl of Burlington (31 March 1754 – 9 May 1834), styled Lord George Cavendish before 1831, was a British nobleman and politician. He built Burlington Arcade. Background Cavendish was the third son of William Cavendish, ...

) and had issue. * Lady Isabella Frances (1792–1875), married Henry Joseph St. John (died 1857) * Lord William FitzRoy (1794–1804) * Lord Hugh George FitzRoy (1795–1797)Buried at St James's Church, Piccadilly, on 29 April 1797. Source: ''The Register Book for Burials. In the Parish of St James in Westminster in the County of Middlesex. 1754-1812''. 29 April 1797. * Lord Richard FitzRoy (1798–1798) * Lord Richard FitzRoy (1800–1801) * Lord James FitzRoy (1804–1834)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grafton, George FitzRoy, 4th Duke of 1760 births 1844 deaths People educated at Harrow School Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Children of prime ministers of Great Britain Deputy lieutenants of Northamptonshire

104 104 may refer to: *104 (number), a natural number *AD 104, a year in the 2nd century AD *104 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC * 104 (MBTA bus), Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority bus route *Hundred and Four (or Council of 104), a Carthaginia ...

Earls of Arlington House of Stuart Garter Knights appointed by William IV Lord-lieutenants of Suffolk Suffolk Militia officers Euston, George FitzRoy, Earl of Euston, George Euston, George FitzRoy, Earl of Euston, George FitzRoy, Earl of Euston, George FitzRoy, Earl of Euston, George FitzRoy, Earl of UK MPs who inherited peerages

George FitzRoy, 4th Duke of Grafton George Henry FitzRoy, 4th Duke of Grafton (14 January 1760 – 28 September 1844), styled Earl of Euston until 1811, was a British Peerage, peer and British Whig Party, Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1782 to 1811 when h ...

Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Cambridge University Owners of Epsom Derby winners British MPs 1780–1784 British MPs 1784–1790 British MPs 1790–1796 British MPs 1796–1800