George Edgcumbe, 1st Earl of Mount Edgcumbe
Encyclopedia
Admiral George Edgcumbe, 1st Earl of Mount Edgcumbe, PC (3 March 1720 – 4 February 1795) was a British
peer
, naval officer and politician.
Edgcumbe was the second surviving son of Richard Edgcumbe, 1st Baron Edgcumbe
and his wife Matilda, the only child of Sir Henry Furnese. He is thought to have been educated at Eton.
He was commissioned a lieutenant
in the Royal Navy
in 1739 and in 1742 was promoted to be commander of the Terrible bomb. In the course of 1743 he was appointed acting captain of the Kennington of 20 guns, and was officially confirmed on 19 August 1744. He commanded her in the Mediterranean till 1745, when he was advanced to the Salisbury
of 50 guns. This ship, as part of the Western Fleet under Hawke
and Boscawen
, initially patrolled the Bay of Biscay during the War of Austrian Succession. Its ship's surgeon was James Lind
, who conducted his experiments on scurvy
during such a patrol in 1747. The war ended in 1748. About this time Edgcumbe was painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds and the Salisbury appears in the background.
In 1746, Edgcumbe was returned as Member of Parliament
for Fowey
at a by-election
, on his father's interest. He was considered a government Whig, but rarely attended Parliament as he was at sea. In 1747, he was appointed Clerk of the Council of the Duchy of Lancaster
in 1747, an office he retained until 1762.
In 1751 he went to the Mediterranean as senior officer in the Monmouth, and the following year in the Deptford of 50 guns. He was still in her and with his small squadron at Minorca
, when the French invaded the island on 19 April 1756. He hastily landed the marines and as many of the seamen as could be spared, and sailed the next day for Gibraltar, before the French had taken any measures to block the harbour. At Gibraltar he was joined by Admiral John Byng
, by whom he was ordered to move into the Lancaster of 66 guns. In The Battle of Minorca
, on 20 May the Lancaster was one of the ships in the van, under Rear-admiral West, which did get into action, and being unsupported suffered severely. In 1758, still in the Lancaster, he was in the fleet under Boscawen
at the reduction of Louisbourg. On his return to England, with the despatches announcing this success, he was appointed to the Hero of 74 guns, in which he took part in the blockade of Brest during the long summer of 1759, and in the crowning battle of Quiberon Bay
on 20 Nov.
He continued in the Hero attached to the grand fleet under Hawke or Boscawen, till on the death of his brother Richard
on 10 May 1761, when he inherited his brother's barony, and succeeded him as Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall
in June. He was promoted rear admiral
on October 21, 1762.
He was appointed Treasurer of the Household
in 1765, serving until 1766, and made a Privy Councillor on 26 July. He became Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth
the same year, retaining the command until 1771. In 1770, he was promoted vice-admiral and was appointed joint Vice-Treasurer of Ireland. He remained Vice-Treasurer until 1772, when he was appointed Captain of the Gentlemen Pensioners. Promoted admiral
in 1778, he was created Viscount Mount Edgcumbe and Valletort in 1781, and remained Captain of the Honourable Band of Gentlemen Pensioners until resigning in 1782, when he was appointed Vice-Admiral of Cornwall
. In 1784, he was again appointed joint Vice-Treasurer of Ireland, holding office until 1793. In 1789, he was granted the further title of Earl of Mount Edgcumbe
, and died in 1795. In 1784 he was also elected a fellow of the Royal Society
On 16 August 1761, he had married Emma Gilbert (the only daughter of John Gilbert
, Archbishop of York
) and they had one child, Richard
who succeeded to his titles. In English folklore
, Emma has been identified as the subject of the story of the "Lady with the Ring
".
A manuscript journal, kept by Edgcumbe and Captain William Marsh, from 30 April 1742 to 1 June 1744, is in the Bodleian Library
. A letter from Edgcumbe to Garrick is printed in the latter's ‘Private Correspondence,’.
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
peer
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
, naval officer and politician.
Edgcumbe was the second surviving son of Richard Edgcumbe, 1st Baron Edgcumbe
Richard Edgcumbe, 1st Baron Edgcumbe
Richard Edgcumbe, 1st Baron Edgcumbe, PC was an English politician.He was the son of Sir Richard Edgcumbe and Lady Anne Montagu, daughter of the Earl of Sandwich...
and his wife Matilda, the only child of Sir Henry Furnese. He is thought to have been educated at Eton.
He was commissioned a lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
in the Royal Navy
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...
in 1739 and in 1742 was promoted to be commander of the Terrible bomb. In the course of 1743 he was appointed acting captain of the Kennington of 20 guns, and was officially confirmed on 19 August 1744. He commanded her in the Mediterranean till 1745, when he was advanced to the Salisbury
HMS Salisbury (1746)
HMS Salisbury was a 50-gun fourth rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She was built during the War of the Austrian Succession and went on to see action in the Seven Years' War, serving in the East Indies....
of 50 guns. This ship, as part of the Western Fleet under Hawke
Edward Hawke, 1st Baron Hawke
Admiral of the Fleet Edward Hawke, 1st Baron Hawke KB, PC was an officer of the Royal Navy. He is best remembered for his service during the Seven Years' War, particularly his victory over a French fleet at the Battle of Quiberon Bay in 1759, preventing a French invasion of Britain...
and Boscawen
Edward Boscawen
Admiral Edward Boscawen, PC was an Admiral in the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament for the borough of Truro, Cornwall. He is known principally for his various naval commands throughout the 18th Century and the engagements that he won, including the Siege of Louisburg in 1758 and Battle of Lagos...
, initially patrolled the Bay of Biscay during the War of Austrian Succession. Its ship's surgeon was James Lind
James Lind
James Lind FRSE FRCPE was a Scottish physician. He was a pioneer of naval hygiene in the Royal Navy. By conducting the first ever clinical trial, he developed the theory that citrus fruits cured scurvy...
, who conducted his experiments on scurvy
Scurvy
Scurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen in humans. The chemical name for vitamin C, ascorbic acid, is derived from the Latin name of scurvy, scorbutus, which also provides the adjective scorbutic...
during such a patrol in 1747. The war ended in 1748. About this time Edgcumbe was painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds and the Salisbury appears in the background.
In 1746, Edgcumbe was returned as Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Fowey
Fowey (UK Parliament constituency)
Fowey was a rotten borough in Cornwall which returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons in the English and later British Parliament from 1571 to 1832, when it was abolished by the Great Reform Act.-History:...
at a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
, on his father's interest. He was considered a government Whig, but rarely attended Parliament as he was at sea. In 1747, he was appointed Clerk of the Council of the Duchy of Lancaster
Duchy of Lancaster
The Duchy of Lancaster is one of the two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Cornwall. It is held in trust for the Sovereign, and is used to provide income for the use of the British monarch...
in 1747, an office he retained until 1762.
In 1751 he went to the Mediterranean as senior officer in the Monmouth, and the following year in the Deptford of 50 guns. He was still in her and with his small squadron at Minorca
Minorca
Min Orca or Menorca is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. It takes its name from being smaller than the nearby island of Majorca....
, when the French invaded the island on 19 April 1756. He hastily landed the marines and as many of the seamen as could be spared, and sailed the next day for Gibraltar, before the French had taken any measures to block the harbour. At Gibraltar he was joined by Admiral John Byng
John Byng
Admiral John Byng was a Royal Navy officer. After joining the navy at the age of thirteen he participated at the Battle of Cape Passaro in 1718. Over the next thirty years he built up a reputation as a solid naval officer and received promotion to Vice-Admiral in 1747...
, by whom he was ordered to move into the Lancaster of 66 guns. In The Battle of Minorca
Battle of Minorca
The Battle of Minorca was a naval battle between French and British fleets. It was the opening sea battle of the Seven Years' War in the European theatre. Shortly after Great Britain declared war on the House of Bourbon, their squadrons met off the Mediterranean island of Minorca. The fight...
, on 20 May the Lancaster was one of the ships in the van, under Rear-admiral West, which did get into action, and being unsupported suffered severely. In 1758, still in the Lancaster, he was in the fleet under Boscawen
Edward Boscawen
Admiral Edward Boscawen, PC was an Admiral in the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament for the borough of Truro, Cornwall. He is known principally for his various naval commands throughout the 18th Century and the engagements that he won, including the Siege of Louisburg in 1758 and Battle of Lagos...
at the reduction of Louisbourg. On his return to England, with the despatches announcing this success, he was appointed to the Hero of 74 guns, in which he took part in the blockade of Brest during the long summer of 1759, and in the crowning battle of Quiberon Bay
Quiberon Bay
The Baie de Quiberon is an area of sheltered water on the south coast of Brittany. The bay is in the Morbihan département.-Geography:The bay is roughly triangular in shape, open to the south with the Gulf of Morbihan to the north-east and the narrow peninsular of Presqu'île de Quiberon providing...
on 20 Nov.
He continued in the Hero attached to the grand fleet under Hawke or Boscawen, till on the death of his brother Richard
Richard Edgcumbe, 2nd Baron Edgcumbe
Richard Edgcumbe, 2nd Baron Edgcumbe PC was a British nobleman and politician.The eldest surviving son of Richard Edgcumbe, 1st Baron Edgcumbe and his wife Matilda Furnese, he was educated at Eton from 1725 to 1732...
on 10 May 1761, when he inherited his brother's barony, and succeeded him as Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall
Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall
This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall. Since 1742, all the Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Cornwall.*John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford 1552–1554*John Bourchier, 2nd Earl of Bath 1556–?...
in June. He was promoted rear admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
on October 21, 1762.
He was appointed Treasurer of the Household
Treasurer of the Household
The position of Treasurer of the Household is theoretically held by a household official of the British monarch, under control of the Lord Steward's Department, but is, in fact, a political office held by one of the government's Deputy Chief Whips in the House of Commons...
in 1765, serving until 1766, and made a Privy Councillor on 26 July. He became Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth
Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth
The Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. Plymouth Command was a name given to the units, establishments, and staff operating under the admiral's command. In the nineteenth century the holder of the office was known as Commander-in-Chief,...
the same year, retaining the command until 1771. In 1770, he was promoted vice-admiral and was appointed joint Vice-Treasurer of Ireland. He remained Vice-Treasurer until 1772, when he was appointed Captain of the Gentlemen Pensioners. Promoted admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
in 1778, he was created Viscount Mount Edgcumbe and Valletort in 1781, and remained Captain of the Honourable Band of Gentlemen Pensioners until resigning in 1782, when he was appointed Vice-Admiral of Cornwall
Vice-Admiral of Cornwall
This is a list of people who have served as Vice-Admiral of Cornwall. This vice-admiralty jurisdiction was divided into North and South Cornwall between 1601 and 1715, with a separate vice-admiral for each; in addition, two members of the Godolphin family were vice-admirals of the Isles of Scilly...
. In 1784, he was again appointed joint Vice-Treasurer of Ireland, holding office until 1793. In 1789, he was granted the further title of Earl of Mount Edgcumbe
Earl of Mount Edgcumbe
Earl of Mount Edgcumbe is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1789 for George Edgcumbe, 3rd Baron Edgcumbe. The Edgcumbe family descends from Sir Piers Edgcumbe of Cotehele in Cornwall, who acquired the Mount Edgcumbe estate near Plymouth through marriage in the early 16th...
, and died in 1795. In 1784 he was also elected a fellow of the Royal Society
On 16 August 1761, he had married Emma Gilbert (the only daughter of John Gilbert
John VII Gilbert
John Gilbert was Archbishop of York from 1757 to 1761.-Origins and education:Gilbert was the son of John Gilbert, fellow of Wadham College, Oxford, vicar of St. Andrew's, Plymouth, and prebendary of Exeter, who died in 1722. He was educated at Trinity College, Oxford, where he graduated B.A. on 5...
, Archbishop of York
Archbishop of York
The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...
) and they had one child, Richard
Richard Edgcumbe, 2nd Earl of Mount Edgcumbe
Richard Edgcumbe, 2nd Earl of Mount Edgcumbe PC , styled Viscount Valletort between 1789 and 1795, was a British politician and writer on music.-Background:...
who succeeded to his titles. In English folklore
English folklore
English folklore is the folk tradition which has developed in England over a number of centuries. Some stories can be traced back to their roots, while the origin of others is uncertain or disputed...
, Emma has been identified as the subject of the story of the "Lady with the Ring
Lady with the Ring
The "Lady with the Ring" is a story about premature burial from European folklore. Versions of the story were popular throughout Europe in the 14th through the 19th centuries.- Central features :...
".
A manuscript journal, kept by Edgcumbe and Captain William Marsh, from 30 April 1742 to 1 June 1744, is in the Bodleian Library
Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library , the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library...
. A letter from Edgcumbe to Garrick is printed in the latter's ‘Private Correspondence,’.