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Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Earl Granville, (12 October 1773 – 8 January 1846), styled Lord Granville Leveson-Gower from 1786 to 1815 and The Viscount Granville from 1815 to 1833, was a British Whig statesman and diplomat from the
Leveson-Gower family Leveson-Gower ( ), also Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, is the name of a powerful British noble family. Over time, several members of the Leveson-Gower family were made knights, baronets and peers. Hereditary titles held by the family include the duked ...
.


Background and education

Granville was the second son and youngest child of
Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Marquess of Stafford Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Marquess of Stafford, KG PC (4 August 172126 October 1803), known as Viscount Trentham from 1746 to 1754 and as The Earl Gower from 1754 to 1786, was a British politician from the Leveson-Gower family. Background ...
from his marriage to Lady Susanna Stewart, daughter of Alexander Stewart, 6th Earl of Galloway. His elder, paternal half-brother was
George Leveson-Gower, 1st Duke of Sutherland George Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Duke of Sutherland KG, PC (9 January 175819 July 1833), known as Viscount Trentham from 1758 to 1786, as Earl Gower from 1786 to 1803 and as the Marquess of Stafford from 1803 to 1833, was an English politi ...
. Granville was educated at Dr. Kyle's school at Hammersmith, and then privately by John Chappel Woodhouse. He matriculated at Christ Church, Oxford, in April 1789 but never took a degree. Nevertheless, ten years later, in 1799, the honorary degree of DCL was conferred upon him.


Career

Granville began his career as a member of the House of Commons, representing
Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west o ...
from 1795 to 1799, and Staffordshire for the next sixteen years. From 1797 to 1799 he was
Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military 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 colonel was typically in charge o ...
of the 2nd Staffordshire Militia. Granville served as British ambassador to Russia (10 August 1804 – 28 November 1805 and 1806–1807) and France (1824–1828, 1830–1835, 1835–1841). In 1815 he was raised to the peerage as ''Viscount Granville'' of Stone Park in the County of Stafford. In 1833 during his second stint as ambassador to France, he was created ''Earl Granville'' and also ''Baron Leveson'' of Stone Park in the County of Stafford.


Personal life

While a recent historian describes Granville as "a drab figure, the original stuffed-shirt – starch outside, sawdust within,", he was celebrated as a male beauty in his own time, with Prime Minister
William Pitt the Younger William Pitt the Younger (28 May 175923 January 1806) was a British statesman, the youngest and last prime minister of Great Britain (before the Acts of Union 1800) and then first prime minister of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Ire ...
comparing him to "Hadrian's Antinous". Lord Granville married Lady Harriet Cavendish (1785–1862), daughter of
William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire, (14 December 1748 – 29 July 1811), was a British nobleman, aristocrat, and politician. He was the eldest son of William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, by his wife, the heiress Lady Charlotte B ...
and
Lady Georgiana Spencer Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (née Spencer; ; 7 June 1757 – 30 March 1806), was an English aristocrat, socialite, political organiser, author, and activist. Born into the Spencer family, married into the Cavendish family, she ...
, in 1809. They had two sons and two daughters: *Lady Susan Georgiana (d. 30 April 1866) married
George Pitt-Rivers, 4th Baron Rivers George Pitt-Rivers, 4th Baron Rivers (16 July 1810 – 28 April 1866), known as George Beckford until 1828, was a British peer and politician. He held a place as a Lord-in-waiting in several governments, migrating from the Tory to the Liberal Par ...
. Together they had twelve children, eight of whom survived infancy. * Lady Georgiana Charlotte (d. 19 Jan 1885) * Granville George (11 May 1815 - 31 Mar 1891) *Granville William (2 Oct. 1816 - 1833) * Hon. Edward Frederick (3 May 1819 - 30 May 1907) Prior to marrying Lady Harriet Cavendish in 1809, Granville was the lover of Lady Harriet's maternal aunt,
Henrietta Ponsonby, Countess of Bessborough Henrietta Ponsonby, Countess of Bessborough (16 June 1761 – 11 November 1821), born Lady Henrietta Frances Spencer (generally called Harriet), was the wife of Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough; the couple were the parents of Lady C ...
, née Lady Henrietta Frances Spencer, with whom he fathered two illegitimate children: Harriette Stewart and George Stewart. For seventeen years she "loved
ranville Ranville () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. Ranville was the first French village liberated on D-Day. The village was liberated by the British 13th Parachute Battalion, commanded by Lieute ...
to idolatry", but then, she understood that he must marry in order to further his career and assure his posterity, and so she actively collaborated in the arrangements for his wedding to Harriet (known in the family as "Harry-O"), who was understandably reluctant to marry her aunt's lover. Granville had numerous other love affairs, including with
Lady Hester Stanhope Lady Hester Lucy Stanhope (12 March 1776 – 23 June 1839) was a British aristocrat, adventurer, antiquarian, and one of the most famous travellers of her age. Her archaeological excavation of Ashkelon in 1815 is considered the first t ...
, the adventurer and antiquarian, who attempted suicide after he jilted her in 1804. It was speculated at the time, and by her biographers since, that Stanhope was pregnant at the time with Granville's child. Lord Granville died in January 1846, aged 72. The Countess Granville died in November 1862, aged 77. A younger son William died in 1833.Coleridge, Henry James. ''Life of Lady Georgiana Fullerton'', London. Richard Bentley & Son. 1888, p. 78
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References


Further reading

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External links

* * , * . Retrieved on 17 November 2008. {{DEFAULTSORT:Granville, Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Earl 1773 births 1846 deaths Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Russia British MPs 1790–1796 British MPs 1796–1800 Diplomatic peers Earls Granville Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies UK MPs 1801–1802 UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs who were granted peerages Leveson-Gower, Granville Leveson-Gower family Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to France Peers of the United Kingdom created by George III Peers of the United Kingdom created by William IV Staffordshire Militia officers