Leicester FitzGerald Charles Stanhope, 5th Earl of Harrington, CB (2 September 17847 September 1862), styled The Honourable Leicester Stanhope until 1851, was an English peer and soldier.

Early life

Leicester Stanhope was born in Dublin in 1784, the third son of

Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington General Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington (17 March 17535 September 1829), styled Viscount Petersham until 1779, was a British Army officer and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1774 and 1779 when he succeeded to the pe ...

, and

Jane Stanhope, Countess of Harrington Jane Stanhope, Countess of Harrington (née Fleming; 23 May 1755 – 3 February 1824), was a society hostess and heiress who served as a lady of the Bedchamber to the British queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Early life Jane Fleming w ...

(née Fleming).

Career

Stanhope became a Cornet and Sublieutenant in the

1st Regiment of Life Guards The 1st Regiment of Life Guards was a Cavalry regiments of the British Army, cavalry regiment in the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. It was formed in 1788 by the union of the 1st Troop of Horse Guards and 1st Troop of Horse Grenadi ...

on 1 October 1799. He was promoted lieutenant on 20 October 1802. He exchanged into the 9th Regiment of Foot on 19 March 1803, and on 2 April 1803 purchased a captaincy in the 10th (Prince of Wales's Own) Regiment of (Light) Dragoons. On 9 November 1803, he exchanged into the

Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards) The Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. It was formed in 1685 as the Lord Lumley's Regiment of Horse. It was renamed as His Majesty's 1st Regiment of Carabiniers in 1740, the 3rd Regiment of Horse (Carab ...

, and on 27 January 1813, into the 17th Regiment of Light Dragoons. In 1807 he served in South America, and was present at the attack on

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

. Promoted major, he was appointed Deputy Adjutant-General in the

East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies) is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The ''Indies'' broadly referred to various lands in Eastern world, the East or the Eastern Hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainl ...

on 29 June 1815, as a brevet lieutenant-colonel. He exchanged into the 47th Regiment of Foot while serving there and was appointed Deputy Quartermaster-General on 24 April 1817. From late 1817 to 1818, Stanhope and his regiment took part in the

Third Anglo-Maratha War The Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817–1819) was the final and decisive conflict between the British East India Company and the Maratha Empire, Maratha Confederacy in India. The war left the Company in control of most of India. It began with an in ...

. On 14 October 1818, he was appointed a

Companion of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior military officers or senior civil servants, and the monarch awards it on the advice of His ...

for his service in the conflict. He resigned as quartermaster on 29 March 1821 and purchased an unattached lieutenant-colonelcy on 26 June 1823. He was brevetted colonel on 10 January 1837. He is known as a worker with

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...

in the cause of

Greek independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...

, although while he was in Greece in 1823 and 1824 his relations with Byron were not altogether harmonious. He wrote ''A Sketch of the History and Influence of the Press in British India'' (1823), and ''Greece'', ''in 1823 and 1824''.

Personal life and death

On 23 April 1831, at

St James's Church, Piccadilly St James's Church, Piccadilly, also known as St James's Church, Westminster, and St James-in-the-Fields, is an Anglican church on Piccadilly in the centre of London, England. The church was designed and built by Sir Christopher Wren. The churc ...

, he married Elizabeth Green, daughter of William Green and Ann Rose Hall, both of Jamaica. They had four children: *Lady Anna Caroline Stanhope (16 July 18329 April 1913), married Edward Sacheverell Chandos-Pole and had issue *Algernon Russell Gayleard Stanhope (1838–1847) *Lady Geraldine Evelyn Stanhope (26 January 18415 January 1914), married

Edward Leeson, 6th Earl of Milltown Edward Nugent Leeson, 6th Earl of Milltown, (9 October 1835 – 30 May 1890), was an Irish people, Irish Peer of the realm, peer. He was the second son of Joseph Leeson, 4th Earl of Milltown and his wife Baron Castle Coote, Barbara, dowager ...

, without issue * Sydney Stanhope, 6th Earl of Harrington (1845–1866) In 1851, he inherited 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 ...

from his brother,

Charles Stanhope, 4th Earl of Harrington Major-General Charles Stanhope, 4th Earl of Harrington (8 April 17803 March 1851), styled Viscount Petersham until 1829, was an English peer and man of fashion. Petersham, the 3rd Earl of Harrington's eldest son, was a Regency era buck. He was ...

. In 1852 Stanhope acquired a plot of land formerly belonging to the kitchen garden of

Kensington Palace Kensington Palace is a royal residence situated within Kensington Gardens in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. It has served as a residence for the British royal family since the 17th century and is currently the ...

: he constructed Harrington House (or ''No. 13 Kensington Palace Gardens''), which was built in his favourite gothic style, at the cost of £15,000. Harrington House was owned by the family until the First World War; Since 1930 Harrington House has been home to the Russian Embassy. The exterior of the house was designed by

Decimus Burton Decimus Burton (30 September 1800 – 14 December 1881) was one of the foremost English architects and landscapers of the 19th century. He was the foremost Victorian architect in the Roman revival, Greek revival, Georgian neoclassical and Reg ...

, following plans sketched by the Earl. Works were carried under the supervision of Charles James Richardson, who was the surveyor to the Earl's extensive South Kensington estate. Details and the final plans are thought to have been left to Richardson; he did, however, acknowledge the "great measure" the Earl was involved in the design. The house's unorthodox architecture was widely criticised, including by Richardson; Lord Harrington, however, thought it to be "a house without a fault". Stanhope died 7 September 1862, aged 78, at Harrington House.
He was succeeded by his son: Sydney Seymour Hyde Stanhope, 6th Earl of Harrington

References

External links

*

Portrait of the 5th Earl, by

Sir Joshua Reynolds Sir Joshua Reynolds (16 July 1723 – 23 February 1792) was an English painter who specialised in portraits. The art critic John Russell (art critic), John Russell called him one of the major European painters of the 18th century, while Lucy P ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Harrington, Leicester Stanhope, 5th Earl Of 1784 births 1862 deaths 10th Royal Hussars officers 17th Lancers officers 47th Regiment of Foot officers British Life Guards officers Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards) officers Companions of the Order of the Bath 5 Royal Norfolk Regiment officers British military personnel of the Third Anglo-Maratha War

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

Younger sons of earls