William Cavendish, 1st Earl of Devonshire (27 December 1552 – 3 March 1626) was an English nobleman, politician, and courtier.

Early life

William Cavendish was the second son of Sir William Cavendish and Bess of Hardwick. Following his father's death and his mother's remarriage to Sir William St Loe he and his elder brother Henry were sent to Eton. He then entered

Clare College, Cambridge Clare College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the Unive ...

in 1567, around the time of his mother's marriage to George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury, and was admitted to Gray's Inn in 1572 to complete his education. Shrewsbury had promised considerable sums to Cavendish and his younger 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 ''* ...

, when they reached 21. In lieu of this Shrewsbury agreed in 1572 that William and Charles should inherit the lands that Bess had brought to the marriage.

Career

By 1584 his mother had purchased land for him worth £15,900 and his standing as a justice of the peace in Derbyshire meant that he was named of the

quorum A quorum is the minimum number of members of a group necessary to constitute the group at a meeting. In a deliberative assembly (a body that uses parliamentary procedure, such as a legislature), a quorum is necessary to conduct the business of ...

. His mother's marriage had broken down by this time and Cavendish was drawn into an armed conflict with Shrewsbury over his inheritance. He was M.P. for

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

in 1586 and Newport (Cornwall) in 1588. His lack of prior links to either place suggests he was nominated by patrons who supported his cause against his stepfather. He was appointed High Sheriff of Derbyshire for 1595. He was created Baron Cavendish of Hardwick in 1605, thanks to the representations of his niece, Arbella Stuart. He inherited the bulk of his mother's land in 1608 and purchased Chatsworth from his elder brother Henry the following year. He acquired further property, when Henry died childless in 1616. He participated in the colonisation of the Bermudas, and Devonshire Parish was called after him; he also was a supporter of colonising Virginia. He also invested in the Russia Company, Somers Island Company, and North-West Passage Company, and very heavily but successfully in the East India Company. He was created Earl of Devonshire on 7 August 1618, while the court was staying at the Bishop of Salisbury's palace; he was reported to have paid £10,000 for the title.

Death and legacy

He died on 3 March 1626, and was buried at St Peter's Church, Edensor. The 1st Earl of Devonshire and his brother Henry (died 1616) are commemorated through the Cavendish Memorial inside the church, a magnificent early-17th-century

church monument Funerary art is any work of art forming, or placed in, a repository for the remains of the death, dead. The term encompasses a wide variety of forms, including cenotaphs ("empty tombs"), tomb-like monuments which do not contain human remains, a ...

Family

His first wife was Anne Kighley or Keighley, daughter of Henry Kighley of

Keighley Keighley ( ) is a market town and a civil parishes in England, civil parish in the City of Bradford Borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the borough, after Bradford. Keighley is north-west of Bradford, n ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

, circa 21 March 1580. They had three sons and three daughters, including: * William Cavendish, 2nd Earl of Devonshire (c. 1590–1628) * Frances Cavendish (c. 1593–1613), married William Maynard, 1st Baron Maynard * Gilbert, who has been credited with the authorship of ''Horae Subsecivae'' (see Grey Brydges, 5th Baron Chandos), died young * James, died in infancy Cavendish's second wife was Elizabeth, daughter of Edward Boughton of Couston,

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 ...

, widow of Sir Richard Wortley of Wortley,

, by whom he had a son, John, who was made a knight of the Bath when Prince Charles was created Prince of Wales in 1618. He died without issue 18 January 1619.

References

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Devonshire, William Cavendish, 1st Earl Of 1552 births 1626 deaths 17th-century English nobility Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for Liverpool Earls of Devonshire (1618 creation) Lord-lieutenants of Derbyshire William Cavendish, 01st Earl of Devonshire Cavendish, William Cavendish, William Cavendish, William Cavendish, William People from Derbyshire 16th-century English nobility