John Sheffield, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Normanby
Encyclopedia
John Sheffield, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Normanby, KG, PC
(8 September 1647 – 24 February 1721), was a poet and notable Tory
politician of the late Stuart period, who served as Lord Privy Seal
and Lord President of the Council
.
, and succeeded his father as 3rd Earl
and 5th Baron Sheffield
in 1658.
At the age of eighteen he joined the fleet, to serve in the Second Anglo-Dutch War
; on the renewal of hostilities in 1672 he was present at the Battle of Sole Bay, and in the next year received the command of a ship. He was also made a colonel of infantry, and served for some time under Turenne
. He was made a Knight of the Garter in 1674. In 1680 he was put in charge of an expedition sent to relieve the town of Tangier
. It was said that he was provided with a rotten ship in the hope that he would not return, but the reason of this abortive plot, if plot there was, is not exactly ascertained. At court he took the side of the Duke of York
, and helped to bring about Monmouth's
disgrace.
In 1682 he was dismissed from the court, apparently for putting himself forward as a suitor for the Princess Anne
, but on the accession of King James II
, he received a seat in the Privy Council
, and was made Lord Chamberlain
. (He later married Catherine, the daughter of the king's mistress, Catherine Sedley
). He supported James in his most unpopular measures, and stayed with him in London during the time of his flight. He also protected the Spanish ambassador from the dangerous anger of the mob. He acquiesced, however, in the "Glorious Revolution
", and in 1694 was made Marquess of Normanby
. In 1696 he refused in company with other Tory
peers to sign an agreement to support William
as their "rightful and lawful king" against Jacobite
attempts, and was consequently dismissed from the privy council. On the accession of Queen Anne, of whom he was a personal favourite, he was appointed Lord Privy Seal
and Lord Lieutenant of the North Riding of Yorkshire
, and in 1703 was created Duke of Buckingham and Normanby
.
During the predominance of the Whigs
between 1705 and 1710, Buckingham was deprived of his office as Lord Privy Seal, but in 1710 he was made Lord Steward
, and in 1711 Lord President of the Council
. After Queen Anne's death he was not reappointed. He died on 24 February 1721 at his house in St. James's Park
, on the site of the present Buckingham Palace
. Buckingham was succeeded by his son, Edmund (1716–1735), on whose death the titles became extinct.
, was the author of An Account of the Revolution and some other essays, and of numerous poems, among them the Essay on Poetry and the Essay on Satire. It is probable that the Essay on Satire, which attacked many notable persons, "sauntering Charles" amongst others, was circulated in MS. It was often attributed at the time to Dryden
, who accordingly suffered a thrashing at the hands of Rochester's bravoes for the reflections it contained upon the earl. Mulgrave was a patron of Dryden, who may possibly have revised it, but was certainly not responsible, although it is commonly printed with his works. Mulgrave adapted Shakespeare's
Julius Caesar
, breaking it up into two plays, Julius Caesar and Marcus Brutus. He introduced choruses between the acts, two of these being written by Pope
, and an incongruous love scene between Brutus and Portia
. He was a constant friend and patron of Pope, who expressed a flattering opinion of his Essay on Poetry. This, although smoothly enough written, deals chiefly with commonplaces.
In 1721 Edmund Curl published a pirated edition of his works, and was brought before the bar of the House of Lords for breach of privilege accordingly. An authorized edition under the superintendence of Pope appeared in 1723, but the authorities cut out the Account of the Revolution and The Feast of the Gods on account of their alleged Jacobite tendencies. These were printed at the Hague
in 1727. Pope disingenuously repudiated any knowledge of the contents. Other editions reappeared in 1723, 1726, 1729, 1740 and 1753. His Poems were included in Johnson's
and other editions of the British poets.
Privy Council of England
The Privy Council of England, also known as His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, was a body of advisers to the sovereign of the Kingdom of England...
(8 September 1647 – 24 February 1721), was a poet and notable Tory
Tory
Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...
politician of the late Stuart period, who served as Lord Privy Seal
Lord Privy Seal
The Lord Privy Seal is the fifth of the Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and above the Lord Great Chamberlain. The office is one of the traditional sinecure offices of state...
and Lord President of the Council
Lord President of the Council
The Lord President of the Council is the fourth of the Great Officers of State of the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord High Treasurer and above the Lord Privy Seal. The Lord President usually attends each meeting of the Privy Council, presenting business for the monarch's approval...
.
Career
John Sheffield was the only son of Edmund Sheffield, 2nd Earl of MulgraveEdmund Sheffield, 2nd Earl of Mulgrave
Edmund Sheffield, 2nd Earl of Mulgrave was an English peer who supported the Parliamentary cause during the English Civil War period....
, and succeeded his father as 3rd Earl
Earl of Mulgrave
The title Earl of Mulgrave has been created twice. The first time as a title in the Peerage of England and the second time as a Peerage of the United Kingdom....
and 5th Baron Sheffield
Baron Sheffield
Baron Sheffield is a title that has been created four times: once in the Peerage of England, twice in the Peerage of Ireland, and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom....
in 1658.
At the age of eighteen he joined the fleet, to serve in the Second Anglo-Dutch War
Second Anglo-Dutch War
The Second Anglo–Dutch War was part of a series of four Anglo–Dutch Wars fought between the English and the Dutch in the 17th and 18th centuries for control over the seas and trade routes....
; on the renewal of hostilities in 1672 he was present at the Battle of Sole Bay, and in the next year received the command of a ship. He was also made a colonel of infantry, and served for some time under Turenne
Henri de la Tour d'Auvergne, Vicomte de Turenne
Henri de la Tour d'Auvergne, Vicomte de Turenne,often called simply Turenne was the most illustrious member of the La Tour d'Auvergne family. He achieved military fame and became a Marshal of France...
. He was made a Knight of the Garter in 1674. In 1680 he was put in charge of an expedition sent to relieve the town of Tangier
Tangier
Tangier, also Tangiers is a city in northern Morocco with a population of about 700,000 . It lies on the North African coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel...
. It was said that he was provided with a rotten ship in the hope that he would not return, but the reason of this abortive plot, if plot there was, is not exactly ascertained. At court he took the side of the Duke of York
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
, and helped to bring about Monmouth's
James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth
James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, 1st Duke of Buccleuch, KG, PC , was an English nobleman. Originally called James Crofts or James Fitzroy, he was born in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, the eldest illegitimate son of Charles II and his mistress, Lucy Walter...
disgrace.
In 1682 he was dismissed from the court, apparently for putting himself forward as a suitor for the Princess Anne
Anne of Great Britain
Anne ascended the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Act of Union, two of her realms, England and Scotland, were united as a single sovereign state, the Kingdom of Great Britain.Anne's Catholic father, James II and VII, was deposed during the...
, but on the accession of King James II
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
, he received a seat in the Privy Council
Privy Council of England
The Privy Council of England, also known as His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, was a body of advisers to the sovereign of the Kingdom of England...
, and was made Lord Chamberlain
Lord Chamberlain
The Lord Chamberlain or Lord Chamberlain of the Household is one of the chief officers of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom and is to be distinguished from the Lord Great Chamberlain, one of the Great Officers of State....
. (He later married Catherine, the daughter of the king's mistress, Catherine Sedley
Catherine Sedley
Catherine Sedley, Countess of Dorchester, Countess of Portmore , daughter of Sir Charles Sedley, 5th Baronet, was the mistress of King James VII and II both before and after he came to the thrones. After his accession James yielded to pressure from his confessor Fr...
). He supported James in his most unpopular measures, and stayed with him in London during the time of his flight. He also protected the Spanish ambassador from the dangerous anger of the mob. He acquiesced, however, in the "Glorious Revolution
Glorious Revolution
The Glorious Revolution, also called the Revolution of 1688, is the overthrow of King James II of England by a union of English Parliamentarians with the Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau...
", and in 1694 was made Marquess of Normanby
Marquess of Normanby
Marquess of Normanby is a title that has been created twice, once in the Peerage of England and once in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.The first creation came in 1694 in the Peerage of England in favour of John Sheffield, 3rd Earl of Mulgrave KG...
. In 1696 he refused in company with other Tory
Tory
Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...
peers to sign an agreement to support William
William III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
as their "rightful and lawful king" against Jacobite
Jacobitism
Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
attempts, and was consequently dismissed from the privy council. On the accession of Queen Anne, of whom he was a personal favourite, he was appointed Lord Privy Seal
Lord Privy Seal
The Lord Privy Seal is the fifth of the Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and above the Lord Great Chamberlain. The office is one of the traditional sinecure offices of state...
and Lord Lieutenant of the North Riding of Yorkshire
Lord Lieutenant of the North Riding of Yorkshire
The post of Lord Lieutenant of the North Riding of Yorkshire was created in 1660, at the Restoration, and was abolished on 31 March 1974. From 1782 until 1974, all Lords Lieutenant were also Custos Rotulorum of the North Riding of Yorkshire....
, and in 1703 was created Duke of Buckingham and Normanby
Duke of Buckingham and Normanby
Duke of Buckingham and Normanby was a title in the Peerage of England. The full title was Duke of the County of Buckingham and of Normanby but in practice only Duke of Buckingham and Normanby was used....
.
During the predominance of the Whigs
British Whig Party
The Whigs were a party in the Parliament of England, Parliament of Great Britain, and Parliament of the United Kingdom, who contested power with the rival Tories from the 1680s to the 1850s. The Whigs' origin lay in constitutional monarchism and opposition to absolute rule...
between 1705 and 1710, Buckingham was deprived of his office as Lord Privy Seal, but in 1710 he was made Lord Steward
Lord Steward
The Lord Steward or Lord Steward of the Household, in England, is an important official of the Royal Household. He is always a peer. Until 1924, he was always a member of the Government...
, and in 1711 Lord President of the Council
Lord President of the Council
The Lord President of the Council is the fourth of the Great Officers of State of the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord High Treasurer and above the Lord Privy Seal. The Lord President usually attends each meeting of the Privy Council, presenting business for the monarch's approval...
. After Queen Anne's death he was not reappointed. He died on 24 February 1721 at his house in St. James's Park
St. James's Park
St. James's Park is a 23 hectare park in the City of Westminster, central London - the oldest of the Royal Parks of London. The park lies at the southernmost tip of the St. James's area, which was named after a leper hospital dedicated to St. James the Less.- Geographical location :St. James's...
, on the site of the present Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
. Buckingham was succeeded by his son, Edmund (1716–1735), on whose death the titles became extinct.
Poetry
Buckingham, who is better known by his inherited titles as Lord MulgraveEarl of Mulgrave
The title Earl of Mulgrave has been created twice. The first time as a title in the Peerage of England and the second time as a Peerage of the United Kingdom....
, was the author of An Account of the Revolution and some other essays, and of numerous poems, among them the Essay on Poetry and the Essay on Satire. It is probable that the Essay on Satire, which attacked many notable persons, "sauntering Charles" amongst others, was circulated in MS. It was often attributed at the time to Dryden
John Dryden
John Dryden was an influential English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who dominated the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known in literary circles as the Age of Dryden.Walter Scott called him "Glorious John." He was made Poet...
, who accordingly suffered a thrashing at the hands of Rochester's bravoes for the reflections it contained upon the earl. Mulgrave was a patron of Dryden, who may possibly have revised it, but was certainly not responsible, although it is commonly printed with his works. Mulgrave adapted Shakespeare's
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar (play)
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, also known simply as Julius Caesar, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1599. It portrays the 44 BC conspiracy against...
, breaking it up into two plays, Julius Caesar and Marcus Brutus. He introduced choruses between the acts, two of these being written by Pope
Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope was an 18th-century English poet, best known for his satirical verse and for his translation of Homer. He is the third-most frequently quoted writer in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, after Shakespeare and Tennyson...
, and an incongruous love scene between Brutus and Portia
Porcia Catonis
Porcia Catonis, also known simply as Porcia was a Roman woman who lived in the 1st century BC. She was the daughter of Marcus Porcius Cato Uticencis and his first wife Atilia...
. He was a constant friend and patron of Pope, who expressed a flattering opinion of his Essay on Poetry. This, although smoothly enough written, deals chiefly with commonplaces.
In 1721 Edmund Curl published a pirated edition of his works, and was brought before the bar of the House of Lords for breach of privilege accordingly. An authorized edition under the superintendence of Pope appeared in 1723, but the authorities cut out the Account of the Revolution and The Feast of the Gods on account of their alleged Jacobite tendencies. These were printed at the Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
in 1727. Pope disingenuously repudiated any knowledge of the contents. Other editions reappeared in 1723, 1726, 1729, 1740 and 1753. His Poems were included in Johnson's
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
and other editions of the British poets.
Marriage and children
- He married, firstly, Ursula Stawell (d. 13 August 1697), daughter of George Stawell and Ursula Austen, on 18 March 1685 in Littlecote Chapel, RamsburyRamsburyRamsbury is a village in Ramsbury and Axford civil parish in the English county of Wiltshire. The village is in the Kennet Valley near the Berkshire boundary. The nearest towns are Hungerford about east and Marlborough about west. The much larger town of Swindon is about to the north.The civil...
, Wiltshire, England.
- He had an illegitimate daughter:
- Mary Sheffield (bef. 1692 – 26 October 1729), married as his second wife Arthur Annesley, 4th Baron Altham
- He married, secondly, Catherine Greville (d. 7 February 1703), daughter of Fulke Greville, 5th Baron Brooke and Sarah Dashwood, on 12 March 1698 in St. Clement Danes, WestminsterWestminsterWestminster is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
, London, England.
- He had two illegitimate children with his mistress Frances Stewart, wife of Oliver Lambart:
- Sir Charles Herbert Sheffield, 1st Baronet (1704–1774)
- Katharine Sophia Sheffield (1705–13 January 1780)
- He married, thirdly, Lady Catherine Darnley (1680-13 March 1743), an illegitimate daughter of James II of Great Britain and Catherine Sedley, Countess of Dorchester, on 16 March 1705 in St. Martin-in-the-Fields Church, Covent GardenCovent GardenCovent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...
, London, England. They had three sons:
- John Sheffield, Marquess of Normanby (26 September 1710 – 16 December 1710)
- Robert Sheffield, Marquess of Normanby (11 December 1711 – 1 February 1714)
- Edmund Sheffield, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and NormanbyEdmund Sheffield, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and NormanbyEdmund Sheffield, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Normanby was an English nobleman, styled Marquess of Normanby from 1716 to 1721....
(11 January 1716 – 30 October 1735)