James Walter Grimston, 2nd Earl of Verulam (20 February 1809 – 27 July 1895), known as Viscount Grimston from 1815 to 1845, was a British peer and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

politician. He was the eldest son of James Walter Grimston, 1st Earl of Verulam, and Lady Charlotte Jenkinson. He succeeded his father as 2nd Earl of Verulam in November 1845. In 1860,

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

noted that Grimston was one of only three to hold peerages in all three Kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland.

Family

Lord Verulam married Elizabeth Joanna Weyland, daughter of

Richard Weyland Richard Weyland (25 March 1780 – 14 October 1864) was a British Whig politician. He was born the son of John Weyland of Woodrising Hall, Norfolk and Woodeaton, near Islip, Oxfordshire and educated at St John's College, Cambridge. His broth ...

, in 1844. They had six children: * Lady Harriot Elizabeth Grimston (c.1845 – 15 August 1888), married Maj.-Gen. Francis Harwood Poore on 6 March 1885 * Lady Jane Grimston (12 December 1848 – 2 November 1920), married Sir Alfred Jodrell, 4th Baronet on 25 February 1897 * James Walter Grimston, 3rd Earl of Verulam (1852–1924) * Cmdr. William Grimston (7 January 1855 – 10 May 1900) * Lady Maud Grimston (c.1857 – 3 September 1929), married Maj. Paulyn Rawdon-Hastings, son of the 1st Baron Donington and the 10th Countess of Loudoun, and had issue * Canon Robert Grimston (18 April 1860 – 8 July 1928), married Gertrude Villiers and had issue, including the

politician

Robert Grimston, 1st Baron Grimston of Westbury Robert Villiers Grimston, 1st Baron Grimston of Westbury, 1st Baronet (8 June 1897 – 8 December 1979) was a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician. Life and history Grimston was the eldest son of the Rev. and Hon. Robert Gr ...

. Lord Verulam died in July 1895, aged 86, and was succeeded in his titles by his eldest son

James James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

Politics and business

Verulam was elected to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

for

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

in 1830, a seat he held until 1831, and then represented

Newport, Cornwall Newport () is a suburb of the town of Launceston in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Originally a separate settlement, Newport is immediately north of the town from which it is separated by the River Kensey. Until the early nineteenth centu ...

from 1831 to 1832 and

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

from 1832 to 1845. The latter year Verulam succeeded his father in the earldom and entered 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 ...

. He later served in the first two administrations of the

Earl of Derby Earl of Derby ( ) is a title in the Peerage of England. The title was first adopted by Robert de Ferrers, 1st Earl of Derby, under a creation of 1139. It continued with the Ferrers family until the 6th Earl forfeited his property toward the en ...

as a

Lord-in-waiting Lords-in-waiting (male) or baronesses-in-waiting (female) are peers who hold office in the Royal Household of the sovereign of the United Kingdom. In the official Court Circular they are styled "Lord in Waiting" or "Baroness in Waiting" (without ...

(government whip in the House of Lords) in 1852 and from 1858 to 1859. Between 1845 and 1892 he also held the honorary post of

Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire This is an incomplete list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Hertfordshire. From 1660 the office holder was also Custos Rotulorum of Hertfordshire. * William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton 1553 – * Sir Ralph Sadleir 1570–? * ...

, in succession to his father. During a period of unrest in 1830 he raised the Cashio Troop of Hertfordshire Yeomanry Cavalry at the family seat of

Gorhambury House Gorhambury House is a Palladian architecture, Palladian-style house near St Albans, Hertfordshire, England. It was built between 1777 and 1784 to replace Old Gorhambury House, which was left to fall into ruin. It was designed by Sir Robert Tayl ...

and commanded it with the rank of

captain 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 ...

. In 1832 it became a troop of the South Hertfordshire Yeomanry Cavalry, of which he became second-in-command with the rank of

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. He was promoted to lieutenant-colonel in 1847 when he and the commanding officer,

James Gascoyne-Cecil, 2nd Marquess of Salisbury James Brownlow William Gascoyne-Cecil, 2nd Marquess of Salisbury, (born James Brownlow William Cecil, 17 April 1791 – 12 April 1868), styled Viscount Cranborne from birth until 1823, was a British Conservative politician. He held office unde ...

, exchanged positions. He retained the command until 1864

Cricket and other sport

Verulam played

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...

as a right-handed batsman. He was mainly associated with

Marylebone Cricket Club The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's, Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London, England. The club was the governing body of cricket from 1788 to 1989 and retain ...

(MCC), making 21 appearances from 1830 to 1849. In contemporary scorecards to 1845, he was given as Lord Grimston.

Arthur Haygarth Arthur Haygarth (4 August 1825 – 1 May 1903) was a noted English amateur cricketer who became one of cricket's most significant historians. He played first-class cricket for the Marylebone Cricket Club and Sussex between 1844 and 1861, as wel ...

, ''Scores & Biographies'', Volumes 2–4 (1827–1854), Lillywhite, 1862 He was also a supporter of the boxing arts and in the early 1850s, he and his brother

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, prais ...

frequented middleweight champion Nat Langham's Rum Pum-Pas club, a dining and boxing establishment in Westminster popular with the aristocracy. Several members of his family were first-class cricketers: three of his brothers

Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

and

Francis Francis may refer to: People and characters *Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church (2013–2025) *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) * Francis, a character played by YouTuber Boogie2 ...

all played, as did his nephews Walter Grimston and Lord Hyde.

Folklore Society

Verulam was the first President of the

Folklore Society The Folklore Society (FLS) is a registered charity under English law based in London, England for the study of folklore. Its office is at 50 Fitzroy Street, London home of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. It wa ...

, serving in the role between 1878 and 1879. It has been suggested that Verulam - like the second and third Presidents of the Society,

Frederick Lygon, 6th Earl Beauchamp Frederick Lygon, 6th Earl Beauchamp (10 November 1830 – 19 February 1891), styled The Honourable Frederick Lygon between 1853 and 1866, was a British Conservative politician. Background and education Beauchamp was the third son of Henry Ly ...

and

George Byng, 3rd Earl of Strafford George Henry Charles Byng, 3rd Earl of Strafford (22 February 1830 – 28 March 1898), styled Viscount Enfield between 1860 and 1886, was a Liberal Party (UK), British Liberal politician. Background and education Byng was the eldest son of Geo ...

- was not a folklore scholar but lent his patronage to the Society through the efforts of W. J. Thoms, Director of the Society but known to Verulam as deputy librarian of the

Notes

References

* Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990, * Charles Mosley (ed.) ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage'', 107th edition, 3 vols. (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003), vol. 2, p. 2407. * Lt-Col J.D. Sainsbury, ''The Hertfordshire Yeomanry: An Illustrated History 1794–1920'', Welwyn: Hart Books/Hertfordshire Yeomanry and Artillery Historical Trust, 1994, ISBN 0-948527-03-X.

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Verulam, James Grimston, 2nd Earl Of 1809 births 1895 deaths English cricketers English cricketers of 1826 to 1863 19th-century British sportsmen Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers Grimston, James Grimston, Viscount Conservative Party (UK) Baronesses- and Lords-in-Waiting Lord-lieutenants of Hertfordshire Grimston, James Grimston, Viscount Grimston, James Grimston, Viscount Grimston, James Grimston, Viscount Grimston, James Grimston, Viscount Grimston, James Grimston, Viscount Grimston, James Grimston, Viscount UK MPs who inherited peerages Gentlemen cricketers Married v Single cricketers Non-international England cricketers Presidents of the Marylebone Cricket Club Gentlemen of England cricketers Hertfordshire Yeomanry officers 2

Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Hertfordshire Presidents of the Folklore Society A to K v L to Z cricketers