Thomas Osborne, 4th Duke of Leeds, KG, PC, DL, FRS (6 November 1713 – 23 March 1789), styled Earl of Danby from birth until 1729 and subsequently Marquess of Carmarthen until 1731, was a British peer, politician and judge.

Background

He was the older and only surviving son of Peregrine Osborne, 3rd Duke of Leeds and his first wife Elizabeth, youngest daughter of

Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer, KG PC FRS (5 December 1661 – 21 May 1724) was a British statesman of the late Stuart and early Georgian periods. He began his career as a Whig, before defecting to a new Tory ministr ...

. Osborne was educated at

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

and then

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 ...

, where he matriculated in 1731. In the same year, he succeeded his father as duke. Osborne received a Doctorate of Civil Law in 1738 and became a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

a year later.

Career

Osborne became a

Lord of the Bedchamber Gentleman of the Bedchamber was a title in the Royal Household of the Kingdom of England from the 11th century, later used also in the Kingdom of Great Britain. A Lord of the Bedchamber was a courtier in the Royal Household, the term being fir ...

in 1748 and was appointed Justice in Eyre south of Trent in November of the same year. In June 1749, he was made a Knight of the

Order of the Garter The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. The most senior order of knighthood in the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British honours system, it is outranked in ...

and in 1756, resigning from his post as justice, was nominated

Cofferer of the Household The cofferer of the Household was formerly an office in the English and British Royal Household. Next in rank to the Comptroller, the holder paid the wages of some of the servants above and below stairs, was a member of the Board of Green Cloth, ...

. He was sworn of the

Privy Council of Great Britain The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are current or former m ...

a year later and became Justice in Eyre north of Trent in 1761, an office he held until 1774. Osborne was a Deputy Lieutenant of the West Riding of the County of Yorkshire.

Family

On 26 June 1740, he married Lady Mary Godolphin, second daughter of

Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin, (3 September 1678 – 17 January 1766), styled Viscount Rialton from 1706 to 1712, was an English courtier and politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons between 1695 and 1712, wh ...

and his wife Henrietta Godolphin ( Churchill), 2nd Duchess of Marlborough, and had by her three sons and a daughter. Osborne died 23 March 1789, aged 73, at

St James's Square St James's Square is the only square in the St James's district of the City of Westminster and is a garden square. It has predominantly Georgian architecture, Georgian and Neo-Georgian architecture. For its first two hundred or so years it was ...

and was buried in the Osborne family chapel at All Hallows Church, Harthill, South Yorkshire. He was succeeded in his titles by his third and only surviving son Francis. Among his children were: * Harriot Osborne (13 November 1744 – 14/15 November 1744); *Thomas Osborne, Marquess of Carmarthen (b. 5 October 1747); * Francis Godolphin Osborne, 5th Duke of Leeds (29 January 1751 – 31 January 1799);''The Register of Births & Baptisms in the Parish of St James within the Liberty of Westminster Vol. IV. 1741-1760''. 29 January 1750.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leeds, Thomas Osborne, 4th Duke Of 1713 births 1789 deaths Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Deputy lieutenants of the West Riding of Yorkshire Fellows of the Royal Society Knights of the Garter Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain People educated at Westminster School, London

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

104 Burials at Osborne family chapel, All Hallows' Church (Harthill)