George Keppel, 6th Earl Of Albemarle
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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 ...
George Thomas Keppel, 6th Earl of Albemarle, (13 June 179921 February 1891), styled The Honourable from birth until 1851, was a British soldier, Liberal politician and writer.


Background and education

Born in
Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...
, he was the third and second surviving son of
William Keppel, 4th Earl of Albemarle William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is ...
, and his first wife Elizabeth, fourth daughter of Edward Southwell, 20th Baron de Clifford. In 1851, he succeeded his older brother
Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...
as earl. His lifelong friend was Sir Robert Adair. Keppel spent his childhood at his father's residence Elden Hall and was educated at
Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...
. In 1815, he entered the British Army as an ensign. He owned 9,800 acres in Norfolk and Leitrim.


Military career

Keppel fought with the 14th Regiment of Foot in the
Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...
. He joined the second battalion in
Corfu Corfu ( , ) or Kerkyra (, ) is a Greece, Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands; including its Greek islands, small satellite islands, it forms the margin of Greece's northwestern frontier. The island is part of the Corfu (regio ...
, and was transferred to the 22nd Foot, with which he served in
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and at the
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, returning home in 1819. Keppel was transferred as lieutenant to the 20th Regiment of Foot in 1820 and went to
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, where he was '' aide-de-camp'' to the
Governor-General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...
Marquess of Hastings until his resignation in 1823, when Keppel returned to England, travelling overland through
Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
,
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
and
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. Keppel was aide-de-camp to the
Marquess Wellesley A marquess (; ) is a Nobility, nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German-language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman with the rank of a marquess or the wife ...
,
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the K ...
, for two years, and was promoted captain in the 62nd Foot in 1825. He then studied in the senior department of the
Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC) was a United Kingdom, British military academy for training infantry and cavalry Officer (armed forces), officers of the British Army, British and British Indian Army, Indian Armies. It was founded in 1801 at Gre ...
, and in 1827 obtained a half-pay unattached
major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...
ity. In 1829 he visited the seat of the
Russo-Turkish war The Russo-Turkish wars ( ), or the Russo-Ottoman wars (), began in 1568 and continued intermittently until 1918. They consisted of twelve conflicts in total, making them one of the longest series of wars in the history of Europe. All but four of ...
and was with the British fleet in Turkish waters. He did not again serve on full pay but continued to rise in rank. By 1841 he became major and lieutenant-colonel, and was promoted to colonel in 1854 and to major-general in 1858. He was made lieutenant-general in 1866 and finally general in 1874.


Political career

Keppel represented East Norfolk in the Whig interest in the
British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 memb ...
from 1832 until three years later. He stood unsuccessfully for
King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is north-east of Peterborough, north-north-east of Cambridg ...
in 1837 and for
Lymington Lymington is a port town on the west bank of the Lymington River on the Solent, in the New Forest (district), New Forest district of Hampshire, England. The town faces Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, to which there is a Roll-on/roll-off, car ferry s ...
in 1841, however, sat for the latter eventually from 1847 to 1850, before succeeding his brother in the Earldom. In 1820, he was appointed Equerry to
Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex (27 January 1773 – 21 April 1843), was the sixth son and ninth child of George III, King George III and his queen consort, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. He was the only surviving son of George III ...
. In 1838, he was appointed High Sheriff of Leitrim. He served as Groom-in-Waiting between the latter year and 1841 and was private secretary to the
prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Lord John Russell John Russell, 1st Earl Russell (18 August 1792 – 28 May 1878), known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was a British Whig and Liberal statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1852 and again from 1865 to 186 ...
between 1846 and the next year. He was a deputy lieutenant of
Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...
from 1859 and was Fellow of the
Geological Society The Geological Society of London, known commonly as the Geological Society, is a learned society based in the United Kingdom. It is the oldest national geological society in the world and the largest in Europe, with more than 12,000 Fellows. Fe ...
(FGS) as well as the
Society of Antiquaries of London The Society of Antiquaries of London (SAL) is a learned society of historians and archaeologists in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1707, received its royal charter in 1751 and is a Charitable organization, registered charity. It is based ...
(FSA).


Family and death

On 4 August 1831, he married Susan Trotter, daughter of Sir Coutts Trotter, 1st Baronet in
Willesden Willesden () is an area of north-west London, situated 5 miles (8 km) north-west of Charing Cross. It is historically a parish in the county of Middlesex that was incorporated as the Municipal Borough of Willesden in 1933; it has formed ...
. They had four daughters and one son. Keppel died, aged 91 in
Portman Square Portman Square is a garden square in Marylebone, central London, surrounded by townhouses. It was specifically for private housing let on long leases having a ground rent by the Portman Estate, which owns the private communal gardens. It mar ...
in London and was buried in Quidenham. He was succeeded in his titles by his only son
William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...
, a great-great-grandfather of
Queen Camilla Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. Camilla was raised in East ...
.


Works

*''Personal Narrative of a Journey from India to England'' (1827) *''Personal Narrative of Travels in Babylonia, Assyria, Media and Scythia'' (1827) *''Narrative of a Journey across the Balcan'' (1831) *''Memoirs of the Marquess of Rockingham and his Contemporaries'' (1852) *''Fifty Years of My Life'' (1876)


References


External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Albemarle, George Keppel, 6th Earl Of 1799 births 1891 deaths British Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars British Army generals Deputy lieutenants of Norfolk George 6 Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London George Keppel, 6th Earl of Albemarle Keppel, George People educated at Westminster School, London Keppel, George Keppel, George Albemarle, E6 Fellows of the Geological Society of London High sheriffs of Leitrim People from Marylebone People from Forest Heath (district) People of the Battle of Waterloo Military personnel from the City of Westminster Younger sons of earls Politicians from the City of Westminster