William Nevill, 16th Baron Bergavenny (also Abergavenny; – 21 September 1744), was an English peer and courtier who held positions in the
Royal Household and built a country mansion in
Sussex
Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...
.
Origins
Born about 1698, he was the only son of Edward Nevill (1664 – 1701), a Captain in the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
, who died aboard HMS Lincoln off the coast of
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
, and his wife Hannah Thorpe (1668 – 1764), daughter of Gervase Thorpe (died 1716),
[ who lived at Brockhurst, near ]East Grinstead
East Grinstead () is a town in West Sussex, England, near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders, south of London, northeast of Brighton, and northeast of the county town of Chichester. Situated in the northeast corner of the county, bord ...
.
Life
On the death without children of his first cousin Edward Nevill, 15th Baron Bergavenny, he succeeded to the barony, taking his seat in the House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...
on 12 November 1724. Deciding to leave the ancient family house at Birling in 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 ...
, he sold inherited lands and applied the proceeds to buy a block of farmland in Forest Row
Forest Row is a village and a large civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex, England. The village is located three miles (5 km) south-east of East Grinstead. In January 2023, it ranked as Britain’s 3rd poshest village.
His ...
, where he created a park and built in it the mansion of Kidbrooke Park,[ since altered into Michael Hall School. In 1737 he obtained the post of ]Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard
The Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard is a Government of the United Kingdom, UK Government post usually held by the Government Whip (politics), Deputy Chief Whip in the House of Lords. The present Captain is Margaret Whe ...
and in 1739 was appointed Master of the Jewel Office
The Master of the Jewel Office was a position in the Royal Households of England, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the United Kingdom. The office holder was responsible for running the Jewel House, which houses the Crown Jewels
Crown jewels a ...
. He died in Bath on 21 September 1744 and was buried at East Grinstead, being succeeded in the barony by his eldest son.[
]
Family
On 20 May 1725 he married Catherine Tatton, widow of the previous baron. She was the elder daughter of Lieutenant-General William Tatton
William Tatton (1659–1736) was a career soldier in the British Army who rose to the rank of Lieutenant-General.
Career
As a trusted associate of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough throughout the War of the Spanish Succession, in April ...
and his first wife Elizabeth Bull, sister of Sir John Bull
John Bull is a national personification of England, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged, country-dwelling, jolly and matter-of-fact man. He originated in satirical works of ...
. After having two children, George Nevill to whom King George II was godfather, and Catherine Nevill, she died giving birth to a third child Edward Nevill, on 4 December 1729. Shortly after her death, he was awarded 10,000 pounds in damages, worth over 1.6 million pounds in 2022, in a law case brought against his former friend Richard Lydell for criminal conversation
At common law, criminal conversation, often abbreviated as ''crim. con.'', is a tort arising from adultery. "Conversation" is an old euphemism for sexual intercourse that is obsolete except as part of this term.
It is similar to breach of pr ...
with her.[
On 20 May 1732 he married Lady Rebecca Herbert (died 20 October 1758), daughter of ]Thomas Herbert, 8th Earl of Pembroke
Thomas Herbert, 8th Earl of Pembroke ( 165622 January 1733), styled The Honourable Thomas Herbert until 1683, was a British statesman who served as Lord Privy Seal from 1692 to 1699.
Background
Herbert was the third son of Philip Herbert, 5 ...
and his wife Margaret Sawyer,[ with whom he had four children: William Nevill, Harriet Nevill, Mary Nevill, and Sophia Nevill.
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bergavenny, William Nevill, 16th Baron
1744 deaths
William
William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...
18th-century English landowners
Masters of the Jewel Office
Barons Bergavenny (Peerage of England)
People from Birling, Kent
People from Forest Row