The Honourable ''The Honourable'' (Commonwealth English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific Style ...

Gerald Valerian Wellesley (1770–1848) was a British

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

of the

Church of Ireland The Church of Ireland (, ; , ) is a Christian church in Ireland, and an autonomy, autonomous province of the Anglican Communion. It is organised on an all-Ireland basis and is the Christianity in Ireland, second-largest Christian church on the ...

. He was the fourth surviving son of

Garret Wesley, 1st Earl of Mornington A garret is a habitable attic, a living space at the top of a house or larger residential building, traditionally small with sloping ceilings. In the days before elevators this was the least prestigious position in a building, at the very t ...

and Anne Hill-Trevor, and the brother of politician

Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley Richard Colley Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley, (20 June 1760 – 26 September 1842) was an Anglo-Irish politician and colonial administrator. He was styled as Viscount Wellesley until 1781, when he succeeded his father as 2nd Earl of ...

, general

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (; 1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was a British Army officer and statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures in Britain during t ...

, and diplomat

Henry Wellesley, 1st Baron Cowley Henry Wellesley, 1st Baron Cowley Order of the Bath, GCB (20 January 1773 – 27 April 1847) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish diplomat and politician. He was the younger brother of the soldier and politician Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of ...

. When he was born his family were part of the Anglo-Irish

Protestant Ascendancy The Protestant Ascendancy (also known as the Ascendancy) was the sociopolitical and economical domination of Ireland between the 17th and early 20th centuries by a small Anglicanism, Anglican ruling class, whose members consisted of landowners, ...

based in

Trim Trim or TRIM may refer to: Cutting * Cutting or trimming small pieces off something to remove them ** Book trimming, a stage of the publishing process ** Pruning, trimming as a form of pruning often used on trees Decoration * Trim (sewing), or ...

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 ...

. In 1806 he performed the

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

wedding ceremony of his brother Arthur and

Catherine Pakenham Catherine Sarah Dorothea Wellesley, Duchess of Wellington (' Pakenham; 14 January 1773 – 24 April 1831), known before her marriage as Kitty Pakenham, was the wife of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. Early life Catherine Pakenham was ...

. He rose to be

Prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Catholic Church, Catholic or Anglicanism , Anglican clergy, a form of canon (priest) , canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in part ...

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England **County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham *Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States Durham may also refer to: Places ...

, but future promotion was halted by his complex relationship with his wife Lady Emily Cadogan whom Wellesley had married while he was a rector in Chelsea. Their son, Sir George Wellesley, became an

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

. In 1826 he was a source of conflict between his brother Wellington and his political ally 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 Liverpool Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool (7 June 1770 – 4 December 1828) was a British Tory statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1812 to 1827. Before becoming Prime Minister he had been Foreign Secretary, ...

. Wellington pushed for his brother to be granted a vacant Irish

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

, and was supported by Richard who was now the Viceroy of Ireland, but Liverpool objected as he was living with a woman who wasn't his wife. The dispute, which strained the relationship between the two, was resolved after Liverpool enlisted the support of both the

Chief Secretary for Ireland The Chief Secretary for Ireland was a key political office in the British Dublin Castle administration, administration in Ireland. Nominally subordinate to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord Lieutenant, and officially the "Chief Secretar ...

and the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

to support his case.Gash p.203-4

References

Bibliography

* Gash, Norman. ''Lord Liverpool: The Life and Political Career of Robert Banks Jenkinson''. Faber & Faber, 2016. * Muir, Rory. ''Wellington: The Path to Victory, 1769-1814''. Yale University Press, 2010. {{DEFAULTSORT:Wellesley, Gerald Valerian 1770 births 1848 deaths People from County Meath 18th-century Irish Anglican priests 19th-century Irish Anglican priests Wellesley family