Vere Fane, 4th Earl of Westmorland (13 February 1645 – 29 December 1693), styled The Honourable Vere Fane from 1644 to 1661 and Sir Vere Fane from 1661 to 1691, was a British peer and Member of Parliament for

Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...

and twice for

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

Family

Vere Fane was born on 13 February 1645 in

Lamport Hall Lamport Hall in Lamport, Northamptonshire is a fine example of a Grade I listed building. It was developed from a Tudor manor but is now notable for its classical frontage. The Hall contains an outstanding collection of books, paintings and fur ...

, Lamport,

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

as the second son of

Mildmay Fane, 2nd Earl of Westmorland Mildmay Fane, 2nd Earl of Westmorland (24 January 1602 – 12 February 1666), styled Lord le Despenser between 1624 and 1628, was an English nobleman, politician and writer. Life One of seven sons of Francis Fane by his wife Mary Mildmay, ...

and his wife Mary Vere; he was the younger half-brother of Charles Fane. As Charles died without issue in 1691, Vere inherited the Earldom of Westmorland. On 13 July 1671, Fane married Rachel Bence, daughter of John Bence and Judith Andrews, at Allhallows', London. The couple had eleven children: *Lady Rachel Fane *Lady Catherine Fane (whose great-grandson would become the 12th Lord le Despencer). She married (marriage licence dated 21 February 1696) William Paul (1673–1711), of Bray, Berkshire. One of their co-heiress daughters married Sir William Stapleton, 4th Baronet. *Lady Elizabeth Fane *Lady Susan Fane *Lady Rachel Fane *Lady Mary Dashwood, mother to Francis Dashwood, who inherited the Le Despencer barony upon the death of John Fane *John Fane (died in infancy) * Vere Fane, 5th Earl of Westmorland (1678-1698) * Thomas Fane, 6th Earl of Westmorland (1681–1736) *

John Fane, 7th Earl of Westmorland John Fane, 7th Earl of Westmorland (24 March 1685 – 26 August 1762), styled The Honourable John Fane from 1691 to 1733 and Lord Catherlough from 1733 to 1736, of Mereworth Castle in Kent, was a British Army officer and politician who sat in ...

(1686–1762) *The Honourable Mildmay Fane (1689–1715) Fane died on 29 December 1693, probably from complications that arose from

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

. His oldest surviving son Vere inherited his father's earldom and further titles, but died without issue before reaching the age of 20.

Career

As was common in his family (his grandfather Francis, his father Mildmay and his older brother Charles had been Members of Parliament before they became earl; his sons John and Mildmay would do so as wellVCH Northants. Fams. 101; The Ancestor, xi. 148–9; PCC 22 Box.), Vere Fane served as a Member of Parliament. From 1671 to 1671, he was Member of Parliament for

; the year his Kent office ended, he became Member of Parliament for

, an office which he held until 1681. From 1689 to 1691, he was again Member of Parliament for Kent. He was classed as a Whig, but it seems that he was not particularly active. At the coronation of King Charles II on 23 April 1661, he was invested as a

Knight 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 ...

. After the death of his brother

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...

, who had no issue, on 18 September 1691, Vere Fane inherited the Earldom of Westmorland as well as his brother's further titles

Baron Burghersh The title of Baron Burghersh has been created three times in the Peerage of England. It was first created by writ for Robert de Burghersh on 12 November 1303. Robert had three sons, the eldest of which, named Stephen, became the second Baron. ...

and Lord le Despencer.

References

Literature

* * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Westmorland, Vere Fane, 4th Earl of 1645 births 1693 deaths 17th-century English nobility Deputy lieutenants of Kent Knights of the Bath Lord-lieutenants of Kent Vere English MPs 1661–1679 English MPs 1679 English MPs 1680–1681 English MPs 1681 English MPs 1689–1690 English MPs 1690–1695 Earls of Westmorland Diabetes-related deaths Barons le Despencer Barons Burghersh