William Villiers, 3rd Earl of Jersey, (died 28 August 1769) was a British magistrate from the

Villiers family Villiers ( ) is an Nobility, aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. Over time, various members of the Villiers family were made knights, baronets, and peers. Peerages held by the Villiers family include the dukedoms of Duke of Buckingham, Bucki ...

Early life

He was the son of

William Villiers, 2nd Earl of Jersey William Villers, 2nd Earl of Jersey (c. 1682 – 13 July 1721), known as Viscount Villiers from 1697 to 1711, was an English peer and Tory politician from the Villiers family. Biography Jersey was the son of Edward Villiers, 1st Earl of Jersey ...

and the former Judith Herne (a daughter of Frederick Herne). Among his siblings were Lady Barbara Villiers (who married

Sir William Blackett, 2nd Baronet Sir William Blackett, 2nd Baronet of Newcastle-upon-Tyne (11 February 1690 – 25 September 1728), of Pilgrim Street, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Wallington Hall, Northumberland, was a British landowner and Tory politician who sat in the British House ...

, and, after his death, Bussy Mansell, 4th Baron Mansell), and

Thomas Villiers, 1st Earl of Clarendon Thomas Villiers, 1st Earl of Clarendon, Privy Council of the United Kingdom, PC (1709 – 11 December 1786) was a Kingdom of Great Britain, British politician and diplomat from the Villiers family. Clarendon was the second son of William Villie ...

.Mosley, Charles, editor. ''Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes.''

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003. Page 2096. His paternal grandparents were

Edward Villiers, 1st Earl of Jersey Edward Villiers, 1st Earl of Jersey (165625 August 1711) was an Peerage of England, English peer, diplomat, courtier, and statesman of the Villiers family. He was created Baron Villiers and Earl of Jersey, Viscount Villiers in 1691 and Earl of J ...

and the former Barbara Chiffinch (a daughter of

William Chiffinch William Chiffinch (died November 1691) was an English royal page and politician. He was described by Joseph Woodfall Ebsworth as "a time-server and libertine, wasteful, unscrupulous, open to bribery and flattery". Biography Chiffinch followed hi ...

Career

Among other achievements, Villiers was a founding

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of the

Foundling Hospital The Foundling Hospital (formally the Hospital for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Young Children) was a children's home in London, England, founded in 1739 by the philanthropy, philanthropic Captain (nautical), sea captain ...

, a charity which received its

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

on 17 October 1739 to operate an

orphanage An orphanage is a residential institution, total institution or group home, devoted to the care of orphans and children who, for various reasons, cannot be cared by their biological families. The parents may be deceased, absent, or abusi ...

for abandoned children in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. He commissioned the building of the previous Middleton Park, in Middleton Stoney, Oxfordshire.

Personal life

He was an infatuated admirer of Ann Thicknesse (aka Anne Ford) and he offered her £800 a year to be his mistress. When she refused, Lord Jersey tried to sabotage her initial public concert, but she earned £15 from it nonetheless. In 1761, she published a pamphlet, ''A Letter from Miss F—d to a Person of Distinction,'' defending her position. This in turn provoked a pamphlet from the Earl, ''A Letter to Miss F–d.''

Marriage

On 23 June 1733, he married Anne Russell, Dowager Duchess of Bedford (c. 1704/1709 – 1762). She was the daughter of

Scroop Egerton, 1st Duke of Bridgewater Scroop Egerton, 1st Duke of Bridgewater (11 August 1681 – 11 January 1744), styled as Viscount Brackley from 1687 to 1701 and as the Earl of Bridgewater from 1701 to 1720, was an English peer, courtier and landowner. Born into the Egerton ...

, and widow of Wriothesley Russell, 3rd Duke of Bedford. They had two sons, but only one survived them: * Frederick William Villiers, Viscount Villiers (1734–1742), who died in childhood. * George Bussy Villiers, 4th Earl of Jersey (1735–1805), who married Frances Twysden and had children. Through George, they are ancestors of

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...

, and of her sons, Princes William, the Prince of Wales, and Harry, Duke of Sussex. Lady Jersey died on 16 June 1762. Lord Jersey, died seven years later on 28 August 1769.

References

thepeerage.com
Retrieved 5 September 2009: William Villiers, 3rd Earl of the Island of Jersey 18th-century births 1769 deaths 18th-century English nobility 3 Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain William Villiers, 03rd Earl of Jersey Earls in the Jacobite peerage Viscounts Grandison Year of birth missing {{England-earl-stub