Harry Grey, 3rd Earl of Stamford (10 June 1685 – 16 November 1739), was an English peer. He was somewhat

eccentric Eccentricity or eccentric may refer to: * Eccentricity (behavior), odd behavior on the part of a person, as opposed to being "normal" Mathematics, science and technology Mathematics * Off- center, in geometry * Eccentricity (graph theory) of a ...

, displaying this mainly in the construction of whimsical buildings.

Life

Harry Grey was born the eldest son of John Grey, who was the third son of

Henry Grey, 1st Earl of Stamford Henry Grey, 1st Earl of Stamford ( 1599 – 21 August 1673), known as the Lord Grey of Groby from 1614 to 1628, was an English nobleman and military leader. He was the eldest son of Sir John Grey and Elizabeth Nevill. His mother was probabl ...

. His mother was Catherine Ward, the daughter of

Edward Ward, 7th Baron Dudley Edward Ward, 7th Baron Dudley and 2nd Baron Ward (1631–1701) succeeded his father, Humble Ward as the 2nd Baron Ward in 1670 and his mother, Frances Ward as 7th Baron Dudley in 1697. He married Frances Brereton, the daughter of the Parliamenta ...

. He married, on 6 July 1704, Dorothy Wright, the daughter of Nathan Wright, and had seven children by her: *Lady Dorothy Grey (15 September 1706 – 19 July 1781) *Lady Catherine Grey (

Bradgate House Bradgate House may refer to: * Bradgate House (16th century) * Bradgate House (19th century) Bradgate House is a 19th-century ruin in Groby, Leicestershire, England. Built in 1856 for the seventh Earl of Stamford, George Harry Grey, it was inte ...

, 11 November 1711 –

Velsen Velsen () is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is located on both sides of the North Sea Canal. On the north side of the North Sea Canal there is a major steel plant, Tata Steel IJmuiden, formerly known as ...

, 11 Apr 1748), who studied in Leiden. In 1735, she ran away with John William Trip (1716–1738), and married him in March 1736. In July 1736, their daughter, Petronella Johanna Wilhelmina, was born. As a mother and a widow, she secondly married Gillis van den Bempden (1697–1748), a wealthy and notorious

burgomaster Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, ) is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief magistrate or executive of a city or town. The name in English was derived from the Dutch . In so ...

of Amsterdam, in January 1740. *

Harry Grey, 4th Earl of Stamford Harry Grey, 4th Earl of Stamford (18 June 1715 – 30 May 1768) was an English peer, styled Lord Grey from 1720 to 1739. Biography Harry Grey was born at Enville Hall, the eldest son of Henry Grey, 3rd Earl of Stamford. He was educated at R ...

(1715–1768) *Lady Diana Grey (1717 – 14 January 1780), who married 7 September 1736, George Middleton of Seaton and Fettercairn (d. 1772). *Lady Jane Grey (1719 – 29 June 1752), who married in June 1738, George Drummond, 3rd of

Blair Drummond Blair Drummond is a small rural community northwest of Stirling in the Stirling (council area), Stirling district of Scotland, predominantly located along the A84 road. Lying to the north of the River Forth, the community is within the registrat ...

. *Lady Anne Grey (1721 – 9 October 1784), who married 9 October 1744, Sir Richard Acton, 5th Baronet. *Hon. John Grey (1724 – 25 February 1777) In 1709, Henry inherited the estate at Enville in

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

from a distant relative. In 1720, Henry succeeded as

Earl of Stamford Earl of Stamford was a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1628 for Henry Grey, 2nd Baron Grey of Groby. This Grey family descended through Lord John Grey, of Pirgo, Essex, younger son of Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dor ...

on the death of his first cousin,

Thomas Grey, 2nd Earl of Stamford Thomas Grey, 2nd Earl of Stamford, PC (31 January 1720) was an English politician. Biography Grey was the only son of Thomas, Lord Grey of Groby, and inherited his title from his grandfather. His mother was Lady Dorothy Bourchier, daughter o ...

. He then inherited the Grey estates at

Bradgate Park Bradgate Park () is a public park in Charnwood Forest, in Leicestershire, England, northwest of Leicester. It covers . The park lies between the villages of Newtown Linford, Anstey, Leicestershire, Anstey, Cropston, Woodhouse Eaves and Swithla ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

, thus uniting the two Grey estates.Grey Family
/ref> Subsequently, he chose to live at

Enville Hall Enville Hall is an English Tudor country house in the village of Enville, Staffordshire. It is a Grade II listed building. The house has a 16th and 17th-century U-shaped core formed by the hall range and two flanking wings enclosing a south facin ...

, allowing the Bradgate Park house to fall into disrepair. On his death, he was succeeded in the

earldom Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. In modern Britain, an earl is a member of the peerage, ranking below a marquess and above a viscount. A feminine form of ''earl'' never developed; instead, ''countess'' is used. The titl ...

by his eldest son, Henry Grey.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stamford, Harry Grey, 3rd Earl of 1685 births 1739 deaths

Harry Harry may refer to: Television * ''Harry'' (American TV series), 1987 comedy series starring Alan Arkin * ''Harry'' (British TV series), 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons * ''Harry'' (New Zealand TV series), 2013 crime drama starring Oscar K ...

17th-century English nobility 18th-century English nobility People from South Staffordshire District Earls of Stamford Barons Grey of Groby