Sir Robert Peel, 3rd Baronet , PC (4 May 1822 – 9 May 1895), was a British
Peelite
The Peelites were a breakaway political faction of the British Conservative Party from 1846 to 1859. Initially led by Robert Peel, the former Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader in 1846, the Peelites supported free trade whilst the bulk ...
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 ...
Robert Peel
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850), was a British Conservative statesman who twice was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835, 1841–1846), and simultaneously was Chancellor of the Exchequer (1834–183 ...
Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...
, and entered the
Diplomatic Service
Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtain diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to o ...
in 1844. He served as co-member for Tamworth, his father's constituency, from 1850 until 1880, for
Huntingdon
Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver C ...
from 1884 and for
Blackburn
Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...
from 1885 to 1886.
He was appointed Irish secretary in 1861 in Palmerston's ministry, but in 1865, under Russell he was replaced by Chichester Fortescue. He was appointed a GCB in 1866.
His variety of parties and tendency not to toe the party line saw republication of a charge of moral want, volatility and "lack of dignity" from biographies written after his death, pre- Liberal landslide. One such, the ''
Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
'' (DNB) mentions signs of general profligacy and his rift from his wife.
Harrow School
Harrow School () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English boarding school for boys) in Harrow on the Hill, Greater London, England. The school was founded in 1572 by John Lyon (school founder), John Lyon, a local landowner an ...
in February 1835. He matriculated from
Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...
on 26 May 1841, but did not take a degree.
Diplomatic career
Entering the diplomatic service, Peel became an attaché to the British legation at Madrid on 18 June 1844. He was promoted to be secretary of legation in Switzerland on 2 May 1846, and was
chargé d'affaires
A (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador. The term is Frenc ...
there in November 1846. On his father's death, on 2 July 1850, and his own succession to the baronetcy, he resigned his office at
Bern
Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...
.
Political career
Peel was elected member for his father's former constituency, Tamworth as a "liberal-conservative" (i.e. as one of the Peelites). He entered the House of Commons on 19 July 1850. The DNB (1895) summarises his political career thus: He remained the member for Tamworth until the 1880 election, in which he unsuccessfully stood as a Conservative for another constituency. Peel was returned as member in other constituencies in 1884 and 1885. He made a final unsuccessful parliamentary bid as a Liberal candidate in 1889.
Early appointments
In March 1855
Lord Palmerston
Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston (20 October 1784 – 18 October 1865), known as Lord Palmerston, was a British statesman and politician who served as prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1855 to 1858 and from 1859 to 1865. A m ...
, who had been
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs may refer to:
* Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Spain)
*Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (UK)
The secretary of state for foreign, commonwealth and development affairs, also known as the fore ...
while Peel was in the diplomatic service, appointed him a junior Civil Lord of the Admiralty. Henceforth he was regarded as a Liberal, and his persistent advocacy of the liberation of Italy fully justified this view of his political opinions.
In July 1856 he acted as secretary to Lord Granville's special mission to Russia at the coronation of Alexander II. On 5 January 1857, during a lecture delivered at the opening of the new library at Adderley Park, near
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
, he spoke discourteously of the Russian court and the court officials. The lecture, severely commented on by the Russian and French press, was the subject of a parliamentary debate, and caused great annoyance to the English court.
Secretary for Ireland
Nevertheless, on Palmerston's return to power, he, on 26 July 1861, made Peel
Chief Secretary for Ireland
The Chief Secretary for Ireland was a key political office in the British Dublin Castle administration, administration in Ireland. Nominally subordinate to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord Lieutenant, and officially the "Chief Secretar ...
and a privy councillor. In this position his careless good humour pleased the Irish and the prime minister, and he almost thought he had solved the Irish question when he made excursions incognito through the country on a jaunting-car and interviewed the peasants. His speeches were very optimistic; but, before his connection with the castle ended, Fenianism came to a head. Irish debates became more embittered, and his replies and speeches in parliament lacked discretion and were not calculated to promote peace. In February 1862 he received a challenge from the O'Donoghue, but the matter was brought before the commons on 25 February and was adjusted. Although he took a warm interest in some Irish questions, especially higher education, which he had aided by a handsome contribution to the Queen's Colleges founded by his father, his career in Ireland was a failure. When the Liberal government was reconstituted, after the death of Lord Palmerston, by
Lord John Russell
John Russell, 1st Earl Russell (18 August 1792 – 28 May 1878), known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was a British Whig and Liberal statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1852 and again from 1865 to 186 ...
, to whom Peel's failings were peculiarly obnoxious his post was filled by Chichester Fortescue and he did not again hold office. On 5 January 1866 he was created Knight Grand Cross of the
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...
().
Parliamentarian without post
Peel continued to sit for Tamworth as a Liberal, but was often a severe critic of Mr. Gladstone's policy. In 1871 he gave a remarkable proof of his eloquence by describing to the House the rout, which he had himself witnessed, of the French army of General Bourbaki, and its flight over the Swiss frontier in the depth of winter during the
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...
. In 1874 he for a second time christened himself a liberal-conservative; and when the eastern question, during Lord Beaconsfield's administration, came to the front, he wholly separated himself from the followers of Gladstone.
Other constituencies
Peel did not stand for Tamworth at the general election in 1880 but unsuccessfully contested
Gravesend
Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, situated 21 miles (35 km) east-southeast of Charing Cross (central London) on the Bank (geography), south bank of the River Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. Located in the diocese of Roche ...
in the conservative interest; and his voice was often heard on Conservative platforms, denouncing the action of the Liberal administration in Egypt and Ireland. In ''The Times'' of 8 May 1880 he published a letter, in which he recounted the offers from various governments of honours and offices which he had refused.
On 21 March 1884 he was returned as a Conservative member for
Huntingdon
Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver C ...
. When that borough was disfranchised, he was, in November 1885, returned for
Blackburn
Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...
. On the critical division on the second reading of the Home Rule Bill, on 7 June 1886, he abstained from voting.
At the general election in the following July, Peel contested the Inverness Burghs for the Liberal party against a Liberal Unionist who had broken with his party on the issue of Home Rule. Peel was not successful. Subsequently, with characteristic impetuosity, he threw himself into the home rule agitation as a supporter of the Irish demands, and at a by-election in 1889 was the Liberal candidate for
Brighton
Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...
, duly advocating (Irish) home rule. Neither of the incumbents returned had been Liberals since the election of 1880 but the by-election was expected to be a closer affair, and polling 39.3% of the vote, he decided not to stand again to be an MP.
Other activities
On 24 April 1854 Peel was shipwrecked off the coast of
Genoa
Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
in the , and only saved his life by swimming ashore on some portion of the wreck. From 29 March 1854 to 1859 he served as a captain in the Staffordshire Yeomanry. From about 1856 Peel was extensively engaged in horse racing under the name of Mr. F. Robinson; and later had an establishment at Bonehill, near Tamworth, where he bred horses.
George Hay, 8th Marquess of Tweeddale
Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal George Hay, 8th Marquess of Tweeddale, (1 February 1787 – 10 October 1876), Hereditary Chamberlain of Dunfermline, was a British people, British soldier and administrator. He served as a staff off ...
, on 13 January 1856. They had a son and four daughters:
* Twin daughters were born in 1860
** Gwendolin Cecilia. (In 1896, she married a captain of the Prussian Army, Victor von Muller); and
** Agnes Helen (1860–1964). Agnes wrote a book ''Arctic Gleans'' about her travel. She married twice: Daniel von der Heydt (1866–1911) on 22 November 1894 by whom she had a daughter; and on 25 June 1919, Arthur Gilstrap Soames (1854–1934; d.s.p.). Soames was the uncle of Olave Baden-Powell (), the World Chief Guide.
* Another daughter followed, Victoria Alexandrina Julia (1865–1935; married Daniel F. P. Barton in 1887); then a son,
* Robert (1867–1925), who succeeded to the baronetcy in 1895; and lastly, another daughter,
* Evelyn Emily (1869–1960; in 1901, married James William Ronald Macleay, first secretary of the diplomatic service at Brussels).
Later life and death
His father's fine collection of 77 pictures and 18 drawings, including ''Chapeau de Poil'' by
Rubens
Sir Peter Paul Rubens ( ; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat. He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradition. Rubens' highly charged compositions reference erudite aspects of clas ...
, he sold to the National Gallery in March 1871 for . According to ''The Great Landowners of Great Britain and Ireland'' of 1883, he owned across
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, ...
,
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...
, and
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
yielding an annual rent of £24,532. However, in later life his private circumstances, a reckless extravagance and rift from his wife, meant he ceased to live at Drayton Manor, Staffordshire. These circumstances made him a stranger there in his final years.
His last public appearance was the week before his death, attending St James's Hall to protest atrocities in
Armenia
Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...
. ''The Times'' wrote his obituary to include a statement that his death "left no gap in English public life... his career has closed in disappointment and futility." It added "he had much of his great father's impressive dignity, though without any of his stiffness, for which, indeed, he substituted a Bohemian easiness of manner."
On 9 May 1895, aged 73, Peel died from a brain hæmorrhage. He was found dead in his bedroom at 12 Stratton Street, London. His valet had to enter his room via a window and summoned his doctor from
Harley Street
Harley Street is a street in Marylebone, Central London, named after Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer. He was buried at
Drayton Bassett
Drayton Bassett is a village and civil parish since 1974 in Lichfield (district), Lichfield District in Staffordshire, England.
The village is on the Heart of England Way, a footpath. Much of the housing is nucleated village, clustered together ...
's Anglican church on 16 May. His probate was sworn that year at . Calendar of Probates and Administrations Search probate records Government of the United Kingdom. His son Robert succeeded in the baronetcy. Lady Peel died in April 1924 in
Florence
Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025.
Florence ...
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 ...