Barbara Rawdon-Hastings, Marchioness of Hastings
Encyclopedia
Barbara Rawdon Hastings, born Barbara Yelverton (20 May 1810 – 18 November 1858), in her own right 20th Baroness Grey de Ruthyn
, by marriage Marchioness of Hastings
, was a fossil collector and geological author.
, Barbara Yelverton was the only child of Henry Yelverton, 19th Baron Grey de Ruthyn
(1780–1810), and of his wife Anna Maria Kelham (1792–1875). At seven months, her father's death made her Baroness Grey of Ruthyn. Little is known of her early life or education.
(1808–1844), and they had six children together. Soon after her first husband's death, on 9 April 1845 she married secondly Captain
Hastings Reginald Henry
RN
(1808–1878), who in 1849 took the name of Yelverton by royal licence. They settled at Efford House near Lymington
and had one daughter, Barbara Yelverton (12 January 1849 – 1 October 1924), who married John Yarde-Buller, 2nd Baron Churston
During her first marriage, Lady Hastings was nicknamed 'the jolly fast marchioness', as she was fond of foreign travel and gambling.
wrote of the thousands of fossils in her private museum at Efford House, among them "some of the finest in the world". Her knowledge of local geology, especially of the Eocene
, and her meticulous work on fossil remains, gave her an expertise which was respected by scholars. The geologist Edward Forbes
said she was "a 'fossilist' and knows her work".
Owen named a crocodile recovered from the Barton Beds
at Hordle
Cliff in Hampshire
Crocodilus hastingsae to honour "the accomplished lady by whom the singularly perfect example of the species had been recovered and restored".
In 1847, Lady Hastings spoke to the Oxford meeting of the British Association, exhibiting two crocodile
skulls and the shell of a turtle
from Hordle Cliff. Richard Owen told the meeting that some remains from Hordle suggested "a new genus of Pachyderm
", which he named Paloplotherium, falling between Palaeotherium
and Anoplotherium
. She argued that crocodile remains found on the Hampshire coast and also on the Isle of Wight
showed that the area of the Solent had been a freshwater river or lake.
In 1852 and 1853 she published papers on the stratigraphy
of Hordle Cliff (which she called the Hordwell cliff), the first such accurate accounts of it.
Baron Grey de Ruthyn
The title of Baron Grey de Ruthyn was created in the Peerage of England by writ of summons in 1324 for Roger Grey, a son of John Grey, 2nd Baron Grey of Wilton. It has been abeyant since 1963...
, by marriage Marchioness of Hastings
Marquess of Hastings
Marquess of Hastings was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 6 December 1816 for Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 2nd Earl of Moira. The Rawdon family descended from Francis Rawdon , of Rawdon, Yorkshire. His son George Rawdon settled in the village of Moira in Downshire, and...
, was a fossil collector and geological author.
Early life
Born at Brandon House, WarwickshireWarwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
, Barbara Yelverton was the only child of Henry Yelverton, 19th Baron Grey de Ruthyn
Henry Yelverton, 19th Baron Grey de Ruthyn
Henry Edward Yelverton, 19th Baron Grey de Ruthyn was a British peer. He was a tenant and sometime friend of Lord Byron.-Life:...
(1780–1810), and of his wife Anna Maria Kelham (1792–1875). At seven months, her father's death made her Baroness Grey of Ruthyn. Little is known of her early life or education.
Marriages and children
On 1 August 1831, Lady Grey married George Rawdon-Hastings, 2nd Marquess of HastingsGeorge Rawdon-Hastings, 2nd Marquess of Hastings
George Augustus Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 2nd Marquess of Hastings , styled Lord Rawdon from birth until 1817 and Earl of Rawdon from 1817 to 1826, was a British peer and courtier.-Background:...
(1808–1844), and they had six children together. Soon after her first husband's death, on 9 April 1845 she married secondly Captain
Captain (Royal Navy)
Captain is a senior officer rank of the Royal Navy. It ranks above Commander and below Commodore and has a NATO ranking code of OF-5. The rank is equivalent to a Colonel in the British Army or Royal Marines and to a Group Captain in the Royal Air Force. The rank of Group Captain is based on the...
Hastings Reginald Henry
Hastings Yelverton
Admiral Sir Hastings Reginald Yelverton, GCB, born Hastings Reginald Henry , was a British naval officer of the 19th century...
RN
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
(1808–1878), who in 1849 took the name of Yelverton by royal licence. They settled at Efford House near Lymington
Lymington
Lymington is a port on the west bank of the Lymington River on the Solent, in the New Forest district of Hampshire, England. It is to the east of the South East Dorset conurbation, and faces Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight which is connected to it by a car ferry, operated by Wightlink. The town...
and had one daughter, Barbara Yelverton (12 January 1849 – 1 October 1924), who married John Yarde-Buller, 2nd Baron Churston
John Yarde-Buller, 2nd Baron Churston
John Yarde-Buller, 2nd Baron Churston was a British peer and soldier.The elder son of the Hon. John Yarde-Buller and of Charlotte, a daughter of Edward S. C...
During her first marriage, Lady Hastings was nicknamed 'the jolly fast marchioness', as she was fond of foreign travel and gambling.
Fossil collector and geologist
Lady Hastings was an avid collector of fossils, specializing in vertebrates; during her second marriage, she set up her own palaeontological museum. The palaeontologist Richard OwenRichard Owen
Sir Richard Owen, FRS KCB was an English biologist, comparative anatomist and palaeontologist.Owen is probably best remembered today for coining the word Dinosauria and for his outspoken opposition to Charles Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection...
wrote of the thousands of fossils in her private museum at Efford House, among them "some of the finest in the world". Her knowledge of local geology, especially of the Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
, and her meticulous work on fossil remains, gave her an expertise which was respected by scholars. The geologist Edward Forbes
Edward Forbes
Professor Edward Forbes FRS, FGS was a Manx naturalist.-Early years:Forbes was born at Douglas, in the Isle of Man. While still a child, when not engaged in reading, or in the writing of verses and drawing of caricatures, he occupied himself with the collecting of insects, shells, minerals,...
said she was "a 'fossilist' and knows her work".
Owen named a crocodile recovered from the Barton Beds
Barton Beds
Barton Beds is the name given to a series of grey and brown clays, with layers of sand, of Upper Eocene age , which are found in the Hampshire Basin of southern England. They are particularly well exposed in the cliffs at Barton-on-Sea, which is the world type locality for the Barton Beds, and...
at Hordle
Hordle
Hordle is a village and civil parish in the county of Hampshire, England. It is situated between the Solent coast and the New Forest, and is bordered by the towns of Lymington and New Milton. Like many New Forest parishes Hordle has no village centre...
Cliff in Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
Crocodilus hastingsae to honour "the accomplished lady by whom the singularly perfect example of the species had been recovered and restored".
In 1847, Lady Hastings spoke to the Oxford meeting of the British Association, exhibiting two crocodile
Crocodile
A crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
skulls and the shell of a turtle
Turtle
Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...
from Hordle Cliff. Richard Owen told the meeting that some remains from Hordle suggested "a new genus of Pachyderm
Pachydermata
Pachydermata is an obsolete order of mammals described by Gottlieb Storr, Georges Cuvier and others, at one time recognized by many systematists...
", which he named Paloplotherium, falling between Palaeotherium
Palaeotherium
Palaeotherium is an extinct genus of primitive perissodactyl ungulate. George Cuvier originally described them as being a kind of tapir, and as such, Palaeotherium is popularly reconstructed as a tapir-like animal...
and Anoplotherium
Anoplotherium
Anoplotherium is an extinct genus of ungulates which lived from the Late Eocene to the earliest Oligocene. It was first found in the gypsum quarries near Paris....
. She argued that crocodile remains found on the Hampshire coast and also on the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
showed that the area of the Solent had been a freshwater river or lake.
In 1852 and 1853 she published papers on the stratigraphy
Stratigraphy
Stratigraphy, a branch of geology, studies rock layers and layering . It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks....
of Hordle Cliff (which she called the Hordwell cliff), the first such accurate accounts of it.