Henry Edward Fox-Strangways, 5th Earl of Ilchester PC (13 February 1847 – 6 December 1905), known as Henry Fox-Strangways until 1865, was a British peer and Liberal politician. He served as

Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

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 ...

between January and February 1874.

Early life and education

Lord Ilchester was the son of

Hon Hon or HON may refer to: People Given name * Cho Hŏn (1544–1592), Joseon militia leader * Ho Hon (1885–1951), North Korean politician Surname * Han (surname) (Chinese: 韩/韓), also romanized Hon * Louis Hon (1924–2008), French fo ...

John Fox-Strangways The Honourable John George Charles Fox-Strangways (6 February 1803 – 8 September 1859) was a British diplomat, Whig politician, and courtier. Early life Fox-Strangways was the posthumous third son of Henry Fox-Strangways, 2nd Earl of Ilches ...

, fourth son of Henry Thomas Fox-Strangways, 2nd Earl of Ilchester. His mother was Amelia Marjoribanks, daughter of Edward Marjoribanks. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

.thepeerage.com Henry Edward Fox-Strangways, 5th Earl of Ilchester
/ref> Lord Ilchester succeeded his uncle,

William Fox-Strangways, 4th Earl of Ilchester William Thomas Horner Fox-Strangways, 4th Earl of Ilchester Royal Society, FRS (7 May 1795 – 10 January 1865), styled The Honourable William Fox-Strangways until 1858, was a British diplomat, Whig (British political faction), Whig politician a ...

, in the earldom of Ilchester in 1865 and was able to take his seat in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

on his 21st birthday in 1868. In 1874 he acquired the

Holland House Holland House, originally known as Cope Castle, was an early Jacobean architecture, Jacobean country house in Kensington, London, situated in a country estate that is now Holland Park. It was built in 1605 by the diplomat Sir Walter Cope. The b ...

estate in London from the estate of his distant cousin Henry Fox, 4th and last Baron Holland who died in 1859.

Career

In January 1874, at the age of only 26, Ilchester was appointed

in the Liberal administration of

, a post he held until the government fell the following month. He was admitted to the Privy Council in February of that year. Lord Ilchester never held political office again but served as

Lord Lieutenant of Dorset The Lord Lieutenant is the monarch's representative in the English county of Dorset. The office of the Lord Lieutenant was created during the reign of Henry VIII (1509–1547), taking over the military duties of the Sheriff of Dorset and contro ...

from 1885 to 1905.

Marriage and children

In 1872 Lord Ilchester married Lady Mary Eleanor Anne Dawson (died 1935), a daughter of

Richard Dawson, 1st Earl of Dartrey Richard Dawson, 1st Earl of Dartrey Order of St. Patrick, KP (7 September 1817 – 12 May 1897), styled the Hon. Richard Dawson until 1827 and the Lord Cremorne from 1827 to 1866, was an Anglo-Irish Liberal Party (UK), Liberal, and later Libera ...

, with whom he had three children:Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003 * Giles Stephen Holland Fox-Strangways, 6th Earl of Ilchester (31 May 1874 – 29 October 1959) * Lady Muriel Augusta Fox-Strangways (23 November 1876 – 7 January 1920) *

Denzil Vesey Fox-Strangways (26 February 1879 – 7 March 1901)

Death and burial

He died in December 1905, aged 58, and was buried in the family vault at

Melbury Osmond Melbury Osmond is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southern England. It lies approximately south of the Somerset town of Yeovil. The underlying geology is Cornbrash limestone, with adjacent Oxford clay. Within the clay can ...

, Dorset. He was succeeded in his titles by his elder son Giles.

Arms

The arms of the head of the Fox-Strangways family are

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...

ed ''Quarterly of four: 1st & 4th: Sable, two lions passant paly of six argent and gules'' (Strangways); ''2nd & 3rd: Ermine, on a chevron azure three foxes' heads and necks erased or on a canton of the second a fleur-de-lys of the third'' (Fox)."Earl of Ilchester" in Montague-Smith, P.W. (ed.), ''Debrett's Peerage, Baronetage, Knightage and Companionage'' (Kelly's Directories Ltd, Kingston-upon-Thames, 1968), p. 607

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ilchester, Henry Edward Fox-Strangways, 5th Earl 1847 births 1905 deaths People educated at Eton College 05 Lord-lieutenants of Dorset Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Members of London County Council Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms Henry 05