Thomas Onslow, 2nd Earl of Onslow (15 March 1754 – 22 February 1827) was an English nobleman and courtier who succeeded to his title in 1814. Originally the Honourable Tom Onslow, he was styled Viscount Cranley from 1801 to 1814. He died in 1827 at his seat,

Clandon Park Clandon Park House is an early 18th-century grade I listed Palladian mansion in West Clandon, near Guildford in Surrey. It stands in the south east corner of Clandon Park, a agricultural parkland estate which has been the seat of the Earls ...

in Surrey.

Family

Onslow was born at Imber Court,

Thames Ditton Thames Ditton is a suburban village on the River Thames, in the Elmbridge borough of Surrey, England. Apart from a large inhabited island in the river, it lies on the southern bank, centred south-west of Charing Cross in central London. Thame ...

, Surrey, the eldest son of the then

George Onslow George Onslow may refer to: *George Onslow (British Army officer) (1731–1792), British politician and army officer *George Onslow, 1st Earl of Onslow (1731–1814), British peer and politician *George Onslow (composer) (1784–1853), French compo ...

, later the 1st Earl. and Henrietta Shelley, daughter of

Sir John Shelley, 4th Baronet Sir John Shelley 4th Baronet (5 March 1692 – 6 September 1771) of Mitchelgrove, Sussex, was a British Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1727 and 1747. Shelley was the eldest son of Sir John Shelley, 3rd Baronet and his ...

and his second wife Margaret Pelham.''Burke's'': 'Onslow'. On 30 December 1776, he married Arabella Mainwaring-Ellerker (d. 11 April 1782), by whom he had four children: * Arthur George Onslow, 3rd Earl of Onslow (1777–1870) * Thomas Cranley Onslow (1778–1861) * Capt. & Lt-Col. Mainwaring Edward Onslow,

Scots Fusilier Guards Scots may refer to: People and cultures * Scots language * Scottish people * Scoti, a Latin name for the Gaels Other uses * SCOTS, abbreviation for Royal Regiment of Scotland * Scottish Corpus of Texts and Speech (SCOTS), a linguistic resource * ...

(2 October 1779 – 1861) * Lady Elizabeth Harriet Onslow (d. 18 July 1824) He subsequently married, on 13 February 1783, Charlotte Duncombe (d. 25 April 1819), née Hale, widow of Thomas Duncombe (d. 1779). They had one daughter: * Lady Georgiana Charlotte Onslow (d. 15 May 1829)

Career

Parliament

Onslow entered the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 memb ...

for

Rye Rye (''Secale cereale'') is a grass grown extensively as a grain, a cover crop and a forage crop. It is grown principally in an area from Eastern and Northern Europe into Russia. It is much more tolerant of cold weather and poor soil than o ...

in 1775. In 1784, he left Rye and replaced his father's first cousin, Colonel Onslow, as MP for

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, England, around south-west of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The nam ...

upon the retirement of the latter. He continued to represent that constituency until 1806, when he was replaced by his second son, Thomas Cranley. A supporter of the

Foxite Foxite was a late 18th-century British political label for Whig followers of Charles James Fox. Fox was the generally acknowledged leader of a faction of the Whigs from 1784 to his death in 1806. The group had developed from successive earlier ...

Whigs, Onslow was, however, rarely active in the House of Commons, presenting a petition in 1781 on behalf of a "body of the innholders of England", complaining of the quartering of soldiers upon them. As an associate of the Prince Regent, he was sent to Mrs Fitzherbert to tell her that the Prince had attempted suicide and only she could save his life, and he guarded the door of Fitzherbert's house when she secretly married the prince. However, he later fell out with the Prince, for reasons unknown, voting in favour of Pitt's regency proposal of 1789 and against the abolition of the slave trade in 1796.

Militia

He was appointed

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

of the 1st Surrey Supplementary Militia (later 2nd Royal Surrey Militia) on 2 January 1797 on the recommendation of his father, who was

Lord Lieutenant of Surrey This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Surrey. Since 1737, all Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Surrey. Lord Lieutenants of Surrey * William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton 1551–1553? * William Howa ...

. His son Arthur George Onslow was a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

in the regiment. He resigned from the command in 1812 and handed it over to his second son, Thomas Cranley.Davis, pp. 121–9; Appendix A.'The Onslows' at Queen's Royal Surreys.
/ref>

Sport

Cricket

Onslow was an amateur

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

er mainly associated with

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

and he made 3 known appearances in first-class matches from 1801 to 1808.Haygarth.

Carriage driving

Onslow was an intimate of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

, and was known for his mania for driving four-in-hand. His phaeton, painted black and drawn by "four of the finest black horses in England", was thought by Gronow to have the appearance of an

undertaker A funeral director, also known as an undertaker or mortician (American English), is a professional who has licenses in funeral arranging and embalming (or preparation of the deceased) involved in the business of funeral rites. These tasks o ...

's carriage. He was the subject of numerous satirical verses on the subject, such as "What cam Tommy Onslow do/ he can drive a coach and two?/Can Tommy Onslow do more/Yes drive a coach and four".

Notes

References

* * ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage,'' 100th Edn, London, 1953.
Capt John Davis, ''Historical Records of the Second Royal Surrey or Eleventh Regiment of Militia'', London: Marcus Ward, 1877.
* ''Gentleman's Magazine'' v.XCVII (Jan.–Jun. 1827) p. 269 *

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'', Volume 1 (1744–1826), Lillywhite, 1862.

External sources

* *
Queen's Royal Surreys
{{DEFAULTSORT:Onslow, Thomas Onslow, 2nd Earl Of 1754 births 1827 deaths English cricketers English cricketers of 1787 to 1825 Surrey cricketers 2 Onslow, Tom Cranley, Thomas Onslow, Viscount People from Thames Ditton Cranley, Thomas Onslow, Viscount Cranley, Thomas Onslow, Viscount UK MPs who inherited peerages Onslow, Thomas 2nd Earl of Onslow Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers British MPs 1774–1780 British MPs 1780–1784 British MPs 1784–1790 British MPs 1790–1796 British MPs 1796–1800 Surrey Militia officers