Henry Somerset, 2nd Duke of Beaufort, KG PC (2 April 1684 – 24 May 1714) was an English peer and politician. He was the only son of

Charles Somerset, Marquess of Worcester Charles Somerset, Marquess of Worcester (25 December 1660 – 13 July 1698) was an English nobleman and politician. He was the eldest surviving son of Henry Somerset, 1st Duke of Beaufort and Mary Capell, and was styled Lord Herbert of Raglan ...

, and Rebecca Child. He was styled Earl of Glamorgan until 1698, and Marquess of Worcester from 1698 until his grandfather's death on 21 January 1700, when he succeeded him as 2nd Duke of Beaufort. Bookplate-Henry Duke of Beaufort

Life

Born at

Monmouth Castle Monmouth Castle ( cy, Castell Trefynwy) is a castle close to the centre of the town of Monmouth, the county town of Monmouthshire, on a hill above the River Monnow in south east Wales. Once an important border castle, and birthplace of Henry ...

, he entertained Queen Anne and the Prince Consort with splendour at

Badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players pe ...

in August 1702. He held aloof from public affairs until the fall of

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

heralded the collapse of the ''

Whig Junto The Whig Junto is the name given to a group of leading Whigs who were seen to direct the management of the Whig Party and often the government, during the reigns of William III and Anne. The Whig Junto proper consisted of John Somers, later ...

'' in 1710, when he is said to have remarked to the queen that he could at length call her a queen in reality. A thorough-going Tory, he was, after some opposition from

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish Satire, satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whig (British political party), Whigs, then for the Tories (British political party), Tories), poe ...

, admitted a member of the "Brothers’ Club" on 21 February 1711. He was made captain of the

gentlemen pensioners His Majesty's Body Guard of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms is a bodyguard to the British Monarch. Until 17 March 1834, they were known as The Honourable Band of Gentlemen Pensioners. Formation The corps was formed as the Troop of G ...

in 1712, and appointed a

Knight of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. It is the most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George ...

in October 1712. Dying at the age of thirty, on 24 May 1714, Beaufort was succeeded by his son Henry. The 2nd Duke is buried at

St Michael and All Angels Church, Badminton St Michael and All Angels is a Grade I listed church on the estate of the Duke of Beaufort in the village of Great Badminton, Gloucestershire, England. Attached to the Duke of Beaufort's residence, Badminton House, it is an active Anglican parish ...

Family

He married three times: * On 7 July 1702 to Lady Mary Sackville, daughter of

Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset and 1st Earl of Middlesex, KG (24 January 164329 January 1706) was an English poet and courtier. Early life Sackville was born on 24 January 1643, son of Richard Sackville, 5th Earl of Dorset (1622–1677) ...

, who died 18 June 1705, with whom he had no issue; * On 26 February 1706 to Lady Rachel Noel, daughter of

Wriothesley Baptist Noel, 2nd Earl of Gainsborough Wriothesley Baptist Noel, 2nd Earl of Gainsborough (c. 1661 – 21 September 1690) was an English peer and Member of Parliament, styled Viscount Campden from 1683 to 1689. Early life Wriothesley Noel was born circa 1661. He was the son of Edward ...

, who died 13 September 1709 after giving birth, and * On 14 September 1711 at

St Mary's Church, Wimbledon St Mary's Church, Wimbledon, is a Church of England church and is part of the Parish of Wimbledon, south-west London, England. It has existed since the 12th century and may be the church recorded in the Domesday Book in the Mortlake Hundred. It ...

to Lady Mary Osborne (d. 4 February 1722), daughter of

Peregrine Osborne, 2nd Duke of Leeds Admiral Peregrine Osborne, 2nd Duke of Leeds (1659 – 25 June 1729), styled Viscount Osborne between 1673 and 1689, Earl of Danby between 1689 and 1694 and Marquess of Carmarthen between 1694 and 1712, was an English Tory politician. Backg ...

, with whom he had no issue. With his second wife he had two sons: #

Henry Somerset, 3rd Duke of Beaufort Henry Somerset-Scudamore, 3rd Duke of Beaufort (23 March 1707 – 26 February 1745), born Henry Somerset, was an English nobleman and peer who supported Jacobitism. Life He was the elder son of Henry Somerset, 2nd Duke of Beaufort and his se ...

his heir and successor; and #

Charles Noel Somerset, 4th Duke of Beaufort Charles Noel Somerset, 4th Duke of Beaufort (12 September 1709 – 28 October 1756) was a British Tory politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1731 until 1745 when he succeeded to the peerage as Duke of Beaufort. Life Somerset was the ...

his brother's heir and successor.

Notes

;Attribution 1684 births 1714 deaths

102 102 may refer to: * 102 (number), the number * AD 102, a year in the 2nd century AD * 102 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC * 102 (ambulance service), an emergency medical transport service in Uttar Pradesh, India * 102 (Clyde) Field Squadron, Royal ...

*10 Garter Knights appointed by Anne Lord-Lieutenants of Gloucestershire Lord-Lieutenants of Hampshire Masters of foxhounds in England Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain Henry Somerset, 02nd Duke of Beaufort Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms {{England-duke-stub