Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh
Encyclopedia
Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, KG
, GCH
, PC, PC (Ire)
(18 June 1769 – 12 August 1822), usually known as Lord CastlereaghThe name Castlereagh derives from the baronies of Castlereagh (or Castellrioughe) and Ards, in which the manors of Newtownards and Comber were located. The estates included the demesne land of Mount Pleasant, later Mount Stewart
, which became the family seat of the Londonderrys. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, p. 15.) (icon -sul-), was an Irish
and British
statesman. As British Foreign Secretary
, from 1812 he was central to the management of the coalition
that defeated Napoléon and was the principal British diplomat at the Congress of Vienna
. Castlereagh was also leader of the British House of Commons
in the Liverpool
government from 1812 until his death by suicide in August 1822. Early in his career, as Chief Secretary for Ireland
, he was involved in putting down the Irish Rebellion of 1798
and was instrumental in securing the passage of the controversial Irish Act of Union of 1800
.
His foreign policy from 1814 was to work with the leaders represented at the Congress of Vienna
to provide a peace in Europe consistent with the conservative mood of the day. More more than prime minister Lord Liverpool, he was responsible for the repressive domestic measures. Historian Charles Webster
concludes:
Viscount Castlereagh in 1796 when his father was created Earl of Londonderry in the Irish peerage
. Upon his father's death in 1821, he succeeded as 2nd Marquess of Londonderry
, a title to which his father had been raised in 1816. His younger half-brother, the soldier, politician and diplomat Charles Stewart (later Vane) succeeded him as 3rd Marquess of Londonderry.
(1739–1821) of Newtownards
and Comber
in County Down
, with properties in Counties Donegal
and Londonderry
. The family seat was Mount Stewart
, County Down.
The elder Stewart was an Irish politician and prominent Ulster
landownera nephew of Robert Cowan
, a wealthy and successful Governor of Bombay for the British East India Company
, whose heir was the elder Stewart's mother, Cowan's sister Mary. Much of the Stewart family wealth was based on the estates which came into the family through the Cowan inheritance, which put the family squarely in the landed gentry
class of Ulster Presbyterians whose ancestors first arrived in Ireland during the Plantation of Ulster
. (See ) He was created Baron Londonderry in 1789, Viscount Castlereagh in 1795, and Earl of Londonderry in 1796 by King George III
. In 1771 he was elected in the Whig interest to the Irish House of Commons
, where he was a supporter of Lord Charlemont
and his allies
who called for greater independence from Britain. From the Act of Union of 1800
, however, he sat in the British House of Lords
as an Irish representative peer. In 1816 he was created Marquess of Londonderry
by the Prince Regent
.
Stewart's mother, who died in childbirth when he was a year old, was Lady Sarah Frances Seymour, daughter of Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford
(a former British Ambassador to France (1764–65) and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
(1765–66)) and Isabella Fitzroy, daughter of Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton
. His father remarried five years later to Frances Pratt, daughter of Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden
(1714–94), a leading English jurist and prominent political supporter of both the 1st Earl of Chatham
and his son, William Pitt the Younger
. Through the elder Stewart's marriages, he linked his family with the upper ranks of English nobility and political elites. The Camden connection was to be especially important for the political careers of both him and his elder son. By Frances Pratt, Stewart's father had three children who survived to adulthood, including Stewart's half-brother, Charles William Stewart (later Vane), Baron Stewart of Stewart's Court and Ballylawn in County Donegal (1814) and 3rd Marquess of Londonderry (1822).
In 1794, Stewart married Amelia (Emily) Hobart a daughter of John Hobart, 2nd Earl of Buckinghamshire
, a former British Ambassador to Russia (1762–65) and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
(1776–80). Her mother, Caroline Conolly, was the granddaughter of William Conolly
, Speaker
of the Irish House of Commons
in the early 18th century and one of the wealthiest landowners in Ireland. Caroline's brother, Thomas Conolly, was married to Louisa Lennox
, sister of Emily FitzGerald, Duchess of Leinster
, whose son and Emily's cousin-by-marriage, the aristocratic rebel Lord Edward FitzGerald
, was a leader of the United Irishmen and one of their martyrs in the early stages of the Irish Rebellion of 1798
.
Emily Stewart was well-known as a hostess for her husband in both Ireland and London and during some of his most important diplomatic missions. In later years she was a leader of Regency London high society
as one of the Lady Patronesses of Almack's
. She is noted in contemporary accounts for her attractiveness, volubility and eccentricities
. By all accounts, the two remained devoted to each other to the end, but they had no children.In a profile of Castlereagh published within months of his death, he was reported to have had, prior to his marriage, a son by a maidservant who lived near the Mount Stewart estate, and whom it was rumored he supported. (Dr. Felton Reede, Private Life of the Marquess of Londonderry, (1822), cited in Leigh, Castlereagh, pp 34 and 144.) The couple did, however, care for the young Frederick Stewart
, while his father, Stewart's half-brother, Charles, was serving in the army
.
rather than to England for his secondary education. At the encouragement of Earl Camden, who took a great interest in him and treated him as a grandson by blood, he later attended St. John's College, Cambridge (1786–87), where he applied himself with greater diligence than expected from an aristocrat and obtained first class in his last examinations. He left Cambridge due to an extended illness, and after returning to Ireland did not pursue further formal education.
In 1790, Stewart was elected as a Member of the Irish Parliament for Down
in one of the most expensive elections in Irish history.The Down election of 1790 was fought against the elder Stewart's rival for influence in Ulster, Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire
, who controlled both Down seats. The elder Stewart, who had been raised to the Irish peerage the previous year and was thereby ineligible, persed his son to stand for the seat, though his son would not himself be eligible until he turned twenty-one after the election but before the opening of the next session. His son was backed, as he had been, by Whigs and Dissenters
. The election expenses to the Stewarts reached the extraordinary sum of £60,000, financed by a mortgage of Mount Stewart, which Castlereagh's father spent much of the next decades paying off. (See Leigh, Castlereagh.) Though for a time he was associated with the Northern Whig Club, he entered the Irish House of Commons
as an Independent. He ran on a platform supporting Whig principles of electoral reform and opposing the Irish policies of the British Government. But even from the outset of his career, he was a personal supporter of the Prime Minister
, William Pitt. Stewart was a life-long advocate of Catholic concessions, though his position on the specific issue of Catholic emancipation
varied depending on his assessment of the potential repercussions on other policy priorities.
When war with France forced Government attention on defense of Ireland, the Irish Volunteers
, a potential source of disaffection, were disbanded by Dublin Castle
, and a reorganised Militia
was created in 1793. Stewart enrolled as an officer, a matter of course for a young Protestant aristocrat, and served as Lieutenant Colonel under the command of his wife's uncle, Thomas Conolly. Between Stewart's attendance to his militia duties, his pursuit of cultural, family and political interests in London, two trips to the Continent (in 1791, when he visited revolutionary Paris, and 1792), and the courtship of his wife whom he married in 1794, his life during this period was not centered on the activities of the Irish House of Commons, where he was listened to with respect but where he was not yet an important player. He was also beginning to disappoint some of his more radical original supporters in his constituency. As the French Revolution grew more bloody and Ireland more rebellious, Stewart increasingly worried about Ireland's future if the threats from France succeeded in breaking Ireland's links to Britain. He became further inclined to support not only Pitt personally but the British Government, even when he did not approve of a specific line taken in Irish policy.
In 1794, partly as a result of the promotion of Stewart's interests by his Camden connections, he was offered the Government-controlled seat of Tregony
in Cornwall
, where he was elected to the British House of Commons
on a similar platform of reform principles and support for Pitt, on whose side he sat in Westminster. In 1796, he transferred to a seat for the Suffolk
constituency of Orford
, which was in the interest of his mother's family, the Seymour-Conways (Marquess of Hertford
).
, with Stewart's uncle, the 2nd Earl Camden
. Camden's arrival in Dublin was greeted with riots, and that year Stewart crossed the floor to join the supporters of the British Government.The war with France absorbed much of the attention of Government and Parliament, and what attention was paid to an increasingly radicalised Ireland was confused and inconsistent. Pitt's dismissal of the popular Lord Fitzwilliam
in 1795, over Fitzwilliam's aggressive support of Whig patronage and Catholic emancipation, produced outrage and rioting in Dublin. Castlereagh had watched the unravelling of Irish policy with deep concern and knew what sort of reaction to expect to Fitzwilliam's dismissal. But he was in no position to steer Irish policy nor could he object to the inevitable departure of Fitzwilliam, especially as the person appointed to replace Fitzwilliam was the brother of Stewart's step-mother, John Jeffreys Pratt
, who had recently succeed as 2nd Earl Camden. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, Ch. 3.) Stewart became an essential adviser to the inexperienced and unpopular Lord Lieutenant, who was Stewart's senior by only ten years.
In 1796, when the French invasion of Ireland failed at Bantry Bay
due to bad weather and not to Ireland's military preparations or the British Navy, Castlereagh as a leader of the Militia saw first hand how ripe Ireland was for breaking from Britain and becoming another French satellite. Despairing of obtaining timely military support from Britain if Ireland were again threatened with invasion, for the next several years, he was increasingly involved in measures against those promoting rebellion, but his initial principles of reform and emancipation continued to hold a place in his political thought.
In 1797, Castlereagh was at last appointed to office, as Keeper of the King's Signet for Ireland.Castlereagh had been re-elected without opposition from Down in 1797 and continued to hold this seat while in office in Ireland. He could not continue to hold both Irish office and the seat in Westminster for Orford, which he therefore resigned. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, Ch 4.) In the Irish election of 1798, he stood for Newtown Limavady
as well as for Down. He was successful for both constituencies and chose to sit for the latter. As martial law was declared in the face of growing turmoil, he was made both a Lord of the Treasury and a Member of the Privy Council of Ireland
(1797–1800).In Council, though he was active in pursuing plots against the Government, he countered the influence of the more extreme members of the Protestant Ascendancy
who, against especially the policies of the new Commander-in-Chief for Ireland, Sir Ralph Abercromby
, called for indiscriminate violence to suppress all threat of rebellion. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, Ch 4). At the urging of Camden, Castlereagh assumed many of the onerous duties of the often-absent Chief Secretary for Ireland
who was responsible for day-to-day administration and asserting the influence of Dublin Castle in the House of Commons. The Chief Secretary for Ireland from 1795–98 was Thomas Pelham
, but he was continually absent from his duties due to illness. Camden pressed London to replace Pelham, recommending in his stead Castlereagh, whose performance in office was admired by those in London concerned with Irish policy. But as an example of the perverse prejudices of the era, Castlereagh was especially competent in this delicate and demanding office because he was an Irishman, yet he was also ineligible to represent the Crown in Ireland because he was an Irishman, even though this Irishman was grandson of an English Marquess, great-grandson of an English Duke and son-in-law of an English Earl. After pressure by Pitt on George III
who shared the prejudice against appointments of Irish as representatives of the Crown in Ireland, Castlereagh was appointed Acting Chief Secretary in March 1798. But it was only in November 1798, after the Rebellion had been put down that, in response to imperious demands from the next influential Lord Lieutenant, Marquess Cornwallis
, Castlereagh was given the permanent office, and for the first time the Chief Secretary for Ireland was an Irishman. The next month, Castlereagh was admitted to the King's Privy Council. (See Leigh, Castlereagh Ch 4, and 18 Dec 1798, p. 1 (1 page pdf).) In this capacity, and after March 1798 as Acting Chief Secretary, Castlereagh played a key role in quashing the Irish Rebellion of 1798
, offering clemency to commoners who had supported the rebellion, and focusing instead on pursuing rebel leaders.
In 1799, in furtherance of both his own political vision and Pitt's policies, Castlereagh began lobbying in the Irish and British Parliaments for an official union between the two, convinced that it was the best way to soothe the long-standing divides in Ireland, insulate Ireland from further radical disaffection, and protect Britain from French military threats via Ireland. His first attempt, at the opening of the Irish session of 1799, met with failure during long, heated debates. A year of further intense preparation followed, with an impressive display of Machiavellian tactics that included the common Irish practice of bribery through peerages, honours and money, but bribery on a truly uncommon scale. In the summer of 1800, Castlereagh together with the Lord Lieutenant, Marquess Cornwallis
, finally succeeded in steering the Irish Act of Union
through both Parliaments.
During the campaign for the Act of Union, both Castlereagh and Cornwallis had, in good faith, forwarded informal assurances they had received from Pitt's Cabinet to the Irish Catholics that they would be allowed to sit in Parliament. Both Castlereagh and Cornwallis knew Catholic emancipation would be critical if their objectives for Union were to be realised. Emancipation was, however, opposed by much of the British establishment, including George III, who was convinced that it would violate his royal oath as protector of the Protestant faith. Pitt tried to follow through on his commitment, but when it came to light that the King had approached Henry Addington, an opponent of Catholic emancipation, about becoming Prime Minister to replace the pro-emancipation Pitt, both Castlereagh and Pitt resigned in protest. Still, Castlereagh would long be held personally responsible by many Catholics in Ireland for the apparent breach of promise and Government's betrayal of their interests.
In Dublin, he was a member of the Kildare Street Club
.
). At a shift in the composition of Addington's Government, Castlereagh accepted the offer to enter the Cabinet as President of the Board of Control
, where he mediated bitter disputes between the Governor-General of India
, Richard Wellsley
, and the Directors of the East India Company
, smoothing quarrels while generally supporting Lord Wellesley's policies.
After the renewal of the war
against Napoleon, at the urging of Castlereagh and other long-time supporters, in 1804 Pitt returned as Prime Minister, and Castlereagh was promoted to Secretary of State for War and the Colonies
. As the only other member of Pitt's Government
in the House of Commons, Castlereagh became Pitt's political deputy, taking on ever more burdens as Pitt's health continued to decline. After Pitt's death in 1806, Castlereagh resigned amid the chaos of the Ministry of All the Talents
. When that Government collapsed, Castlereagh again became Secretary of State for War and the Colonies in 1807, this time in the ministry of the Duke of Portland
.
over the Walcheren Expedition and its failure. Canning saw it as a diversion of troops from the Peninsular War
based on a hopeless plan. However, Castlereagh had the support of Lord Wellesley's younger brother General Arthur Wellesley
(future Duke of Wellington), and evidence later surfaced that Canning himself had interfered with the plan, selecting the Earl of Chatham
to command the expedition. The Portland government became increasingly paralysed by disputes between the two men. Portland was in deteriorating health and gave no lead, until Canning threatened resignation unless Castlereagh was removed and replaced by Lord Wellesley. Wellesley himself was neither complicit with nor even aware of the arrangement, but Portland secretly agreed to make this change when it became possible.
Castlereagh discovered the deal in September 1809 and demanded redress. He challenged Canning to a duel
, which Canning accepted. Canning had never before fired a pistol. The duel was fought on 21 September 1809 on Putney Heath. Canning missed but Castlereagh wounded his opponent in the thigh. There was much outrage that two cabinet ministers had resorted to such a method, and they both felt compelled to resign from the government. Six months later, Canning published a full account of his actions in the affair, and many who had initially rallied to him became convinced Castlereagh had been betrayed by his cabinet colleague.
's assassination in 1812. In his role of Foreign Secretary he was instrumental in negotiating what has become known as the quadruple alliance
between the United Kingdom, Austria
, Russia, and Prussia
at Chaumont
in March 1814, in the negotiation of the Treaty of Paris
that brought peace with France, and at the Congress of Vienna
.
At the Congress of Vienna, Castlereagh designed and proposed a form of collective and collaborative security for Europe, then called a Congress system. In the Congress system, the main signatory powers met periodically (every two years or so) and collectively managed European affairs. This system was successfully used to resolve the Polish-Saxon crisis at Vienna and the question of Greek independence at Laibach. The following ten years saw five European Congresses where disputes were resolved with a diminishing degree of effectiveness. Finally, by 1822, the whole system had collapsed because of the irreconcilable differences of opinion between the United Kingdom, Austria, and Russia, and because of the lack of support for the Congress system in British public opinion. The Holy Alliance
, which Castlereagh opposed, lingered for some time, however, and even had effects on the international stage as late as the Crimean war
. The order
created by the Congress of Vienna was also more successful than Congresses themselves, preventing major European land wars until the First World War a century later. Scholars and historians have seen the Congress system as a forerunner of the modern, arguably more effective collective security
, international unity, and cooperative agreements of NATO, the EU
, the League of Nations
, and the United Nations
.
In the years 1812 to 1822, Castlereagh continued to competently manage Britain's foreign policy, generally pursuing a policy of continental engagement uncharacteristic of British foreign policy in the nineteenth century. Castlereagh was not known to be an effective public speaker and his diplomatic presentation style was at times abstruse. He nonetheless developed a reputation for integrity, consistency, and goodwill, which was perhaps unmatched by any diplomat of that era. His views on foreign policy were, unfortunately for him, ahead of his time.
, Lord Sidmouth
(the former Prime Minister Addington). As Leader of the House of Commons
for the Liverpool Government, he was often called upon to defend government policy
in the House. He had to support the widely reviled measures taken by Sidmouth and the others, including the infamous Six Acts
, in order to remain in cabinet and continue his diplomatic work. For these reasons, Castlereagh appears with other members of Lord Liverpool's Cabinet in Shelley's
poem The Masque of Anarchy
, which was inspired by, and heavily critical of, the Peterloo massacre
:
After the death of his father in 1821, Castlereagh became Lord Londonderry. In 1822, he began to suffer from a form of paranoia
or a nervous breakdown
, possibly as a result of an attack of gout
combined with the stress of public criticism. He was also severely overworked with both his responsibilities in leading the government in the House and the never-ending diplomacy required to manage conflicts among the other major powers. At the time, he said "My mind, is, as it were, gone." Londonderry returned to his country seat at Loring Hall
in Water Lane, North Cray
, Kent
on the advice of his doctor. On 9 August 1822 he had an audience with King George IV
in which he appeared distracted and mentally disturbed. Among other surprising remarks he revealed to the King that he thought he was being blackmailed for homosexuality
.In addition to the events surrounding the suicide itself, towards the end of his life there are increasing reports, both contemporaneous and in later memoirs, of exceptionally powerful rages and sudden bouts of uncharacteristic forgetfulness. At the 9 August meeting with the King, Castlereagh is reported to have been distracted, to have told the King he was being mysteriously watched by a servant, and to have said, "I am accused of the same crime as the Bishop of Clogher." Percy Jocelyn
, who had been the Bishop of Clogher
until the previous month, was prosecuted for homosexuality. (See H. Montgomery Hyde, Trials of Oscar Wilde, Courier Dover Publications, ISBN 0-486-20216-X.) The King surmised that Castlereagh believed he was being blackmailed for the same reason. It remains unclear whether there was some sort of extortion attempt, and if so, whether such attempt represented a real threat of exposure, or whether the purported blackmail was a symptom of paranoia he otherwise appeared to be displaying at the time. The King is said to have advised Castlereagh to consult a physician and, disturbed by the condition of his Foreign Secretary, shared his concerns with Castlereagh's friend, the Duke of Wellington. Wellington not only advised Castlereagh that he was suffering from delusions but sent a note to Castlereagh's doctor urging him to see his patient at the first opportunity. Wellington's note was submitted as evidence at the inquest. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, which draws extensively from memoirs of people who claimed to have observed Castlereagh's uncharacteristic behaviour, such as Dorothea, Countess de Lieven
. The appendices include contemporary letters from observers and excerpts from the journal of Harriet Arbuthnot
, who was a close friend of both Castlereagh and Wellington.)
On 12 August, although his wife had succeeded in removing razors from his possession and even though his doctor was in attendance, Castlereagh managed to find a pen knife with which he committed suicide
by cutting his own throat
.In a retrospective, and therefore necessarily speculative diagnosis, a thoughtful recent study has linked various instances of (at the time) little explained illness to syphilis
, possibly contracted at Cambridge
: here Stewart’s undergraduate studies were interrupted by a mysterious illness first apparent during the closing months of 1787, and which kept him away from Cambridge through the summer of 1788. Later, there were unexplained illnesses in 1801 and 1807, the first described by a contemporary as "brain fever" which would be consistent with syphilitic meningitis
. (See Giles Hunt, The Duel: Castlereagh, Canning and Deadly Cabinet Rivalry (2008).)
An inquest concluded that the act had been committed while insane, avoiding the harsh strictures of a felo de se
verdict.Suicide was illegal in England until 1961
. Prior to the Right to Burial Act of 1823, a suicide was denied a Christian burial and, until the Abolition of Forfeiture Act of 1870, his property was forfeited to the Crown. These cruel penalties were less and less frequently applied over the course of the 18th century, especially in the case of wealthier victims. Inquests were likely to view suicide as itself evidence of the disturbed state of the victim's mind. (See e.g., Clifton D. Bryant, Handbook of Death and Dying, Sage Publications (2003) pp. 316–17.) The verdict allowed Lady Londonderry to see her husband buried
with honour in Westminster Abbey
near his mentor, William Pitt. Some radicals, notably William Cobbett
, claimed a "cover-up" within the government and viewed the verdict and Castlereagh's public funeral as a damning indictment of the elitism and privilege of the unreformed electoral system. His funeral on 20 August was greeted with jeering and insults along the processional route, although not to the level of unanimity projected in the radical press. A funeral monument was not erected until 1850 by his half-brother and successor, Charles Stewart Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry.
Sometime after Castlereagh's death, Lord Byron
wrote a savage quip about his grave:
And yet, some of Castlereagh's political opponents were gracious in their epigrams. Henry Brougham, a Whig politician and later the Lord Chancellor
, who had battled frequently with Castlereagh, once almost to the point of calling him out, and had denigrated his skills as Leader, wrote in the week following Castlereagh's death:
A blue plaque
is displayed at the entrance to the listed building Loring Hall
, now a care facility for those with learning disabilities, in commemoration of Castlereagh, who occupied the property from 1811 until his death.
Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
, GCH
Royal Guelphic Order
The Royal Guelphic Order, sometimes also referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent . It has not been conferred by the British Crown since the death of King William IV in 1837, when the personal union of the...
, PC, PC (Ire)
Privy Council of Ireland
The Privy Council of Ireland was an institution of the Kingdom of Ireland until 31 December 1800 and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801-1922...
(18 June 1769 – 12 August 1822), usually known as Lord CastlereaghThe name Castlereagh derives from the baronies of Castlereagh (or Castellrioughe) and Ards, in which the manors of Newtownards and Comber were located. The estates included the demesne land of Mount Pleasant, later Mount Stewart
Mount Stewart
Mount Stewart is an 18th-century house and garden in County Down, Northern Ireland, owned by the National Trust. Situated on the east shore of Strangford Lough, a few miles outside the town of Newtownards and near Greyabbey, it was the home of the Vane-Tempest-Stewart family, Marquesses of...
, which became the family seat of the Londonderrys. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, p. 15.) (icon -sul-), was an Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
and British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
statesman. As British Foreign Secretary
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly referred to as the Foreign Secretary, is a senior member of Her Majesty's Government heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and regarded as one of the Great Offices of State...
, from 1812 he was central to the management of the coalition
War of the Sixth Coalition
In the War of the Sixth Coalition , a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, Spain and a number of German States finally defeated France and drove Napoleon Bonaparte into exile on Elba. After Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia, the continental powers...
that defeated Napoléon and was the principal British diplomat at the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
. Castlereagh was also leader of the British House of Commons
Leader of the House of Commons
The Leader of the House of Commons is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom who is responsible for arranging government business in the House of Commons...
in the Liverpool
Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool
Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool KG PC was a British politician and the longest-serving Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since the Union with Ireland in 1801. He was 42 years old when he became premier in 1812 which made him younger than all of his successors to date...
government from 1812 until his death by suicide in August 1822. Early in his career, as Chief Secretary for Ireland
Chief Secretary for Ireland
The Chief Secretary for Ireland was a key political office in the British administration in Ireland. Nominally subordinate to the Lord Lieutenant, from the late 18th century until the end of British rule he was effectively the government minister with responsibility for governing Ireland; usually...
, he was involved in putting down the Irish Rebellion of 1798
Irish Rebellion of 1798
The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , also known as the United Irishmen Rebellion , was an uprising in 1798, lasting several months, against British rule in Ireland...
and was instrumental in securing the passage of the controversial Irish Act of Union of 1800
Act of Union 1800
The Acts of Union 1800 describe two complementary Acts, namely:* the Union with Ireland Act 1800 , an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, and...
.
His foreign policy from 1814 was to work with the leaders represented at the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
to provide a peace in Europe consistent with the conservative mood of the day. More more than prime minister Lord Liverpool, he was responsible for the repressive domestic measures. Historian Charles Webster
Charles Webster
Sir Charles Kingsley Webster KCMG was a British historian and diplomat.He was educated at the Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby and King's College, Cambridge.-Career:* Professor of Modern History, Liverpool University, 1914–1922...
concludes:
- "There probably never was a statesman whose ideas were so right and whose attitude to public opinion was so wrong. Such disparity between the grasp of ends and the understanding of means amounts to a failure in statesmanship."
Title
Robert Stewart acquired the courtesy titleCourtesy title
A courtesy title is a form of address in systems of nobility used for children, former wives and other close relatives of a peer. These styles are used 'by courtesy' in the sense that the relatives do not themselves hold substantive titles...
Viscount Castlereagh in 1796 when his father was created Earl of Londonderry in the Irish peerage
Peerage of Ireland
The Peerage of Ireland is the term used for those titles of nobility created by the English and later British monarchs of Ireland in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland. The creation of such titles came to an end in the 19th century. The ranks of the Irish peerage are Duke, Marquess, Earl,...
. Upon his father's death in 1821, he succeeded as 2nd Marquess of Londonderry
Marquess of Londonderry
Marquess of Londonderry is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1816 for Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Londonderry. He had earlier represented County Down in the Irish House of Commons. Stewart had already been created Baron Londonderry in 1789, Viscount Castlereagh in 1795 and Earl...
, a title to which his father had been raised in 1816. His younger half-brother, the soldier, politician and diplomat Charles Stewart (later Vane) succeeded him as 3rd Marquess of Londonderry.
Family
Robert Stewart was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1769 the son of Robert StewartRobert Stewart, 1st Marquess of Londonderry
Robert Stewart, 1st Marquess of Londonderry PC , was an Irish politician and landowner, the father of politician Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh.-Early life in Dublin:...
(1739–1821) of Newtownards
Newtownards
Newtownards is a large town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies at the most northern tip of Strangford Lough, 10 miles east of Belfast, on the Ards Peninsula. Newtownards is the largest town in the Borough of Ards. According to the 2001 Census, it has a population of 27,821 people in...
and Comber
Comber
Comber is a small town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies 5 miles south of Newtownards, at the northern end of Strangford Lough. It had a population of 8,933 people in the 2001 Census. Comber is part of the Borough of Ards...
in County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, with properties in Counties Donegal
County Donegal
County Donegal is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Ulster. It is named after the town of Donegal. Donegal County Council is the local authority for the county...
and Londonderry
County Londonderry
The place name Derry is an anglicisation of the old Irish Daire meaning oak-grove or oak-wood. As with the city, its name is subject to the Derry/Londonderry name dispute, with the form Derry preferred by nationalists and Londonderry preferred by unionists...
. The family seat was Mount Stewart
Mount Stewart
Mount Stewart is an 18th-century house and garden in County Down, Northern Ireland, owned by the National Trust. Situated on the east shore of Strangford Lough, a few miles outside the town of Newtownards and near Greyabbey, it was the home of the Vane-Tempest-Stewart family, Marquesses of...
, County Down.
The elder Stewart was an Irish politician and prominent Ulster
Ulster
Ulster is one of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the north of the island. In ancient Ireland, it was one of the fifths ruled by a "king of over-kings" . Following the Norman invasion of Ireland, the ancient kingdoms were shired into a number of counties for administrative and judicial...
landownera nephew of Robert Cowan
Robert Cowan
Robert Cowan was an Irish colonial administrator and the East India Company's Governor of Bombay from 1729 to 1734. He was a collateral ancestor of the Marquesses of Londonderry through the marriage of his sister, Mary Cowan, to Alexander Stewart, father of Robert Stewart, 1st Marquess of...
, a wealthy and successful Governor of Bombay for the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
, whose heir was the elder Stewart's mother, Cowan's sister Mary. Much of the Stewart family wealth was based on the estates which came into the family through the Cowan inheritance, which put the family squarely in the landed gentry
Landed gentry
Landed gentry is a traditional British social class, consisting of land owners who could live entirely off rental income. Often they worked only in an administrative capacity looking after the management of their own lands....
class of Ulster Presbyterians whose ancestors first arrived in Ireland during the Plantation of Ulster
Plantation of Ulster
The Plantation of Ulster was the organised colonisation of Ulster—a province of Ireland—by people from Great Britain. Private plantation by wealthy landowners began in 1606, while official plantation controlled by King James I of England and VI of Scotland began in 1609...
. (See ) He was created Baron Londonderry in 1789, Viscount Castlereagh in 1795, and Earl of Londonderry in 1796 by King George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
. In 1771 he was elected in the Whig interest to the Irish House of Commons
Irish House of Commons
The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland, that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords...
, where he was a supporter of Lord Charlemont
James Caulfeild, 1st Earl of Charlemont
James Caulfeild, 1st Earl of Charlemont KP PC was an Irish statesman.The son of the 3rd Viscount Charlemont, he was born in Dublin, and succeeded his father as 4th Viscount in 1734...
and his allies
Irish Patriot Party
The Irish Patriot Party was the name of a number of different political groupings in Ireland throughout the 18th century. They were primarily supportive of Whig concepts of personal liberty combined with an Irish identity that rejected full independence, but advocated strong self-government within...
who called for greater independence from Britain. From the Act of Union of 1800
Act of Union 1800
The Acts of Union 1800 describe two complementary Acts, namely:* the Union with Ireland Act 1800 , an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, and...
, however, he sat in the British House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
as an Irish representative peer. In 1816 he was created Marquess of Londonderry
Marquess of Londonderry
Marquess of Londonderry is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created in 1816 for Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Londonderry. He had earlier represented County Down in the Irish House of Commons. Stewart had already been created Baron Londonderry in 1789, Viscount Castlereagh in 1795 and Earl...
by the Prince Regent
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
.
Stewart's mother, who died in childbirth when he was a year old, was Lady Sarah Frances Seymour, daughter of Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford
Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford
Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Marquess of Hertford KG, PC, PC was a British courtier and politician.He was born in Chelsea, London the son of Francis Seymour-Conway, 1st Lord Conway and Charlotte Shorter and died in Surrey, England...
(a former British Ambassador to France (1764–65) and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland was the British King's representative and head of the Irish executive during the Lordship of Ireland , the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
(1765–66)) and Isabella Fitzroy, daughter of Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton
Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton
Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton KG PC was an Irish and English politician.He was born the only child of Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke of Grafton and Isabella Bennet, 2nd Countess of Arlington...
. His father remarried five years later to Frances Pratt, daughter of Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden
Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden
Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden was an English lawyer, judge and Whig politician who was first to hold the title of Earl of Camden...
(1714–94), a leading English jurist and prominent political supporter of both the 1st Earl of Chatham
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham
William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham PC was a British Whig statesman who led Britain during the Seven Years' War...
and his son, William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger was a British politician of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He became the youngest Prime Minister in 1783 at the age of 24 . He left office in 1801, but was Prime Minister again from 1804 until his death in 1806...
. Through the elder Stewart's marriages, he linked his family with the upper ranks of English nobility and political elites. The Camden connection was to be especially important for the political careers of both him and his elder son. By Frances Pratt, Stewart's father had three children who survived to adulthood, including Stewart's half-brother, Charles William Stewart (later Vane), Baron Stewart of Stewart's Court and Ballylawn in County Donegal (1814) and 3rd Marquess of Londonderry (1822).
In 1794, Stewart married Amelia (Emily) Hobart a daughter of John Hobart, 2nd Earl of Buckinghamshire
John Hobart, 2nd Earl of Buckinghamshire
John Hobart, 2nd Earl of Buckinghamshire was an English nobleman and politician.The son of John Hobart, 1st Earl of Buckinghamshire by his first marriage, he was educated at Westminster School and Christ's College, Cambridge. He was Member of Parliament for Norwich from 1747–56, having also been...
, a former British Ambassador to Russia (1762–65) and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland was the British King's representative and head of the Irish executive during the Lordship of Ireland , the Kingdom of Ireland and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
(1776–80). Her mother, Caroline Conolly, was the granddaughter of William Conolly
William Conolly
William Conolly , also known as Speaker Conolly, was an Irish politician, Commissioner of Revenue, lawyer and landowner.-Career:...
, Speaker
Speaker (politics)
The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...
of the Irish House of Commons
Irish House of Commons
The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland, that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords...
in the early 18th century and one of the wealthiest landowners in Ireland. Caroline's brother, Thomas Conolly, was married to Louisa Lennox
Lady Louisa Conolly
Lady Louisa Conolly , known from 1743 to 1758 as Lady Louisa Lennox, was the third of the four Lennox Sisters immortalised in Stella Tillyard's book Aristocrats: Caroline, Emily, Louisa, and Sarah Lennox and the BBC television series based on it.The Lennox sisters were daughters of Charles Lennox,...
, sister of Emily FitzGerald, Duchess of Leinster
Emily FitzGerald, Duchess of Leinster
Emily FitzGerald, Duchess of Leinster , known before 1747 as Lady Emily Lennox, from 1747 to 1761 as The Countess of Kildare and from 1761 to 1766 as The Marchioness of Kildare, was the second of the famous Lennox sisters, daughters of Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond, and illegitimately...
, whose son and Emily's cousin-by-marriage, the aristocratic rebel Lord Edward FitzGerald
Lord Edward FitzGerald
Lord Edward FitzGerald was an Irish aristocrat and revolutionary. He was the fifth son of the 1st Duke of Leinster and the Duchess of Leinster , he was born at Carton House, near Dublin, and died of wounds received in resisting arrest on charge of treason.-Early years:FitzGerald spent most of his...
, was a leader of the United Irishmen and one of their martyrs in the early stages of the Irish Rebellion of 1798
Irish Rebellion of 1798
The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , also known as the United Irishmen Rebellion , was an uprising in 1798, lasting several months, against British rule in Ireland...
.
Emily Stewart was well-known as a hostess for her husband in both Ireland and London and during some of his most important diplomatic missions. In later years she was a leader of Regency London high society
Ton (le bon ton)
The ton is a term commonly used to refer to Britain’s high society during the Georgian era, especially the Regency and reign of George IV. It comes from the French word meaning "taste" or "everything that is fashionable" and is pronounced the same way as tone...
as one of the Lady Patronesses of Almack's
Almack's
Almack's Assembly Rooms was a social club in London from 1765 to 1871 and one of the first to admit both men and women. It was one of a limited number of upper class mixed-sex public social venues in the British capital in an era when the most important venues for the hectic social season were the...
. She is noted in contemporary accounts for her attractiveness, volubility and eccentricities
Eccentricity (behavior)
In popular usage, eccentricity refers to unusual or odd behavior on the part of an individual. This behavior would typically be perceived as unusual or unnecessary, without being demonstrably maladaptive...
. By all accounts, the two remained devoted to each other to the end, but they had no children.In a profile of Castlereagh published within months of his death, he was reported to have had, prior to his marriage, a son by a maidservant who lived near the Mount Stewart estate, and whom it was rumored he supported. (Dr. Felton Reede, Private Life of the Marquess of Londonderry, (1822), cited in Leigh, Castlereagh, pp 34 and 144.) The couple did, however, care for the young Frederick Stewart
Frederick Stewart, 4th Marquess of Londonderry
Frederick William Robert Stewart, 4th Marquess of Londonderry KP, PC , styled Viscount Castlereagh between 1822 and 1854, was an Anglo-Irish nobleman and Tory politician...
, while his father, Stewart's half-brother, Charles, was serving in the army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
.
Early life and career
Stewart had recurring health problems throughout his childhood, and his family elected to send him to The Royal School, ArmaghThe Royal School, Armagh
The Royal School, Armagh is a co-educational voluntary grammar school in the city of Armagh, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. It was one of a number of free schools created by King James I of England in 1608 to provide an education to the sons of local merchants and farmers during the plantation...
rather than to England for his secondary education. At the encouragement of Earl Camden, who took a great interest in him and treated him as a grandson by blood, he later attended St. John's College, Cambridge (1786–87), where he applied himself with greater diligence than expected from an aristocrat and obtained first class in his last examinations. He left Cambridge due to an extended illness, and after returning to Ireland did not pursue further formal education.
In 1790, Stewart was elected as a Member of the Irish Parliament for Down
Down (Parliament of Ireland constituency)
Down was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons until 1800.-History:In the Patriot Parliament of 1689 summoned by King James II, Down was represented with two members.-1689–1801:...
in one of the most expensive elections in Irish history.The Down election of 1790 was fought against the elder Stewart's rival for influence in Ulster, Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire
Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire
Wills Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire PC , known as the Viscount Hillsborough from 1742 to 1751 and as the Earl of Hillsborough from 1751 to 1789, was a British politician of the Georgian era...
, who controlled both Down seats. The elder Stewart, who had been raised to the Irish peerage the previous year and was thereby ineligible, persed his son to stand for the seat, though his son would not himself be eligible until he turned twenty-one after the election but before the opening of the next session. His son was backed, as he had been, by Whigs and Dissenters
English Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
. The election expenses to the Stewarts reached the extraordinary sum of £60,000, financed by a mortgage of Mount Stewart, which Castlereagh's father spent much of the next decades paying off. (See Leigh, Castlereagh.) Though for a time he was associated with the Northern Whig Club, he entered the Irish House of Commons
Irish House of Commons
The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland, that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords...
as an Independent. He ran on a platform supporting Whig principles of electoral reform and opposing the Irish policies of the British Government. But even from the outset of his career, he was a personal supporter of the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
, William Pitt. Stewart was a life-long advocate of Catholic concessions, though his position on the specific issue of Catholic emancipation
Catholic Emancipation
Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in Great Britain and Ireland in the late 18th century and early 19th century which involved reducing and removing many of the restrictions on Roman Catholics which had been introduced by the Act of Uniformity, the Test Acts and the penal laws...
varied depending on his assessment of the potential repercussions on other policy priorities.
When war with France forced Government attention on defense of Ireland, the Irish Volunteers
Irish Volunteers (18th century)
The Irish Volunteers were a militia in late 18th century Ireland. The Volunteers were founded in Belfast in 1778 to defend Ireland from the threat of foreign invasion when regular British soldiers were withdrawn from Ireland to fight across the globe during the American War of Independence...
, a potential source of disaffection, were disbanded by Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle administration in Ireland
The Dublin Castle administration in Ireland was the government of Ireland under English and later British rule, from the twelfth century until 1922, based at Dublin Castle.-Head:...
, and a reorganised Militia
Militia (Great Britain)
The Militia of Great Britain were the principal military reserve forces of the Kingdom of Great Britain during the 18th century.For the period following the creation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801, see Militia ....
was created in 1793. Stewart enrolled as an officer, a matter of course for a young Protestant aristocrat, and served as Lieutenant Colonel under the command of his wife's uncle, Thomas Conolly. Between Stewart's attendance to his militia duties, his pursuit of cultural, family and political interests in London, two trips to the Continent (in 1791, when he visited revolutionary Paris, and 1792), and the courtship of his wife whom he married in 1794, his life during this period was not centered on the activities of the Irish House of Commons, where he was listened to with respect but where he was not yet an important player. He was also beginning to disappoint some of his more radical original supporters in his constituency. As the French Revolution grew more bloody and Ireland more rebellious, Stewart increasingly worried about Ireland's future if the threats from France succeeded in breaking Ireland's links to Britain. He became further inclined to support not only Pitt personally but the British Government, even when he did not approve of a specific line taken in Irish policy.
In 1794, partly as a result of the promotion of Stewart's interests by his Camden connections, he was offered the Government-controlled seat of Tregony
Tregony
Tregony is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It lies on the River Fal. In the village there is a post office, shop, and two churches. Tregony has bus links to the nearest town, which is Truro. The village is made up from two parishes namely, Tregony and Cuby...
in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, where he was elected to the British House of Commons
Unreformed House of Commons
The unreformed House of Commons is the name generally given to the British House of Commons as it existed before the Reform Act 1832.Until the Act of Union of 1707 joining the Kingdoms of Scotland and England , Scotland had its own Parliament, and the term refers to the House of Commons of England...
on a similar platform of reform principles and support for Pitt, on whose side he sat in Westminster. In 1796, he transferred to a seat for the Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
constituency of Orford
Orford (UK Parliament constituency)
Orford was a constituency of the House of Commons. Consisting of the town of Orford in Suffolk, it elected two Members of Parliament by the bloc vote version of the first past the post system of election until it was disenfranchised in 1832.-History:...
, which was in the interest of his mother's family, the Seymour-Conways (Marquess of Hertford
Marquess of Hertford
The titles of Earl of Hertford and Marquess of Hertford have been created several times in the peerages of England and Great Britain.The third Earldom of Hertford was created in 1559 for Edward Seymour, who was simultaneously created Baron Beauchamp of Hache...
).
Chief Secretary for Ireland
In 1795, Pitt replaced the popular Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Lord FitzwilliamWilliam FitzWilliam, 4th Earl FitzWilliam
William Wentworth-Fitzwilliam, 4th Earl Fitzwilliam PC , styled Viscount Milton until 1756, was a British Whig statesman of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1782 he inherited his uncle Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham's estates, making him one of the richest people in...
, with Stewart's uncle, the 2nd Earl Camden
John Pratt, 1st Marquess Camden
John Jeffreys Pratt, 1st Marquess Camden KG, PC , styled Viscount Bayham from 1786 to 1794 and known as The Earl Camden from 1794 to 1812, was a British politician...
. Camden's arrival in Dublin was greeted with riots, and that year Stewart crossed the floor to join the supporters of the British Government.The war with France absorbed much of the attention of Government and Parliament, and what attention was paid to an increasingly radicalised Ireland was confused and inconsistent. Pitt's dismissal of the popular Lord Fitzwilliam
William FitzWilliam, 4th Earl FitzWilliam
William Wentworth-Fitzwilliam, 4th Earl Fitzwilliam PC , styled Viscount Milton until 1756, was a British Whig statesman of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1782 he inherited his uncle Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham's estates, making him one of the richest people in...
in 1795, over Fitzwilliam's aggressive support of Whig patronage and Catholic emancipation, produced outrage and rioting in Dublin. Castlereagh had watched the unravelling of Irish policy with deep concern and knew what sort of reaction to expect to Fitzwilliam's dismissal. But he was in no position to steer Irish policy nor could he object to the inevitable departure of Fitzwilliam, especially as the person appointed to replace Fitzwilliam was the brother of Stewart's step-mother, John Jeffreys Pratt
John Pratt, 1st Marquess Camden
John Jeffreys Pratt, 1st Marquess Camden KG, PC , styled Viscount Bayham from 1786 to 1794 and known as The Earl Camden from 1794 to 1812, was a British politician...
, who had recently succeed as 2nd Earl Camden. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, Ch. 3.) Stewart became an essential adviser to the inexperienced and unpopular Lord Lieutenant, who was Stewart's senior by only ten years.
In 1796, when the French invasion of Ireland failed at Bantry Bay
Bantry Bay
Bantry Bay is a bay located in County Cork, southwest Ireland. The bay runs approximately from northeast to southwest into the Atlantic Ocean. It is approximately 3-to-4 km wide at the head and wide at the entrance....
due to bad weather and not to Ireland's military preparations or the British Navy, Castlereagh as a leader of the Militia saw first hand how ripe Ireland was for breaking from Britain and becoming another French satellite. Despairing of obtaining timely military support from Britain if Ireland were again threatened with invasion, for the next several years, he was increasingly involved in measures against those promoting rebellion, but his initial principles of reform and emancipation continued to hold a place in his political thought.
In 1797, Castlereagh was at last appointed to office, as Keeper of the King's Signet for Ireland.Castlereagh had been re-elected without opposition from Down in 1797 and continued to hold this seat while in office in Ireland. He could not continue to hold both Irish office and the seat in Westminster for Orford, which he therefore resigned. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, Ch 4.) In the Irish election of 1798, he stood for Newtown Limavady
Newtown Limavady (Parliament of Ireland constituency)
Newtown Limavady was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons until 1800.-1692–1801:...
as well as for Down. He was successful for both constituencies and chose to sit for the latter. As martial law was declared in the face of growing turmoil, he was made both a Lord of the Treasury and a Member of the Privy Council of Ireland
Privy Council of Ireland
The Privy Council of Ireland was an institution of the Kingdom of Ireland until 31 December 1800 and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801-1922...
(1797–1800).In Council, though he was active in pursuing plots against the Government, he countered the influence of the more extreme members of the Protestant Ascendancy
Protestant Ascendancy
The Protestant Ascendancy, usually known in Ireland simply as the Ascendancy, is a phrase used when referring to the political, economic, and social domination of Ireland by a minority of great landowners, Protestant clergy, and professionals, all members of the Established Church during the 17th...
who, against especially the policies of the new Commander-in-Chief for Ireland, Sir Ralph Abercromby
Ralph Abercromby
Sir Ralph Abercromby was a Scottish soldier and politician. He rose to the rank of lieutenant-general in the British Army, was noted for his services during the Napoleonic Wars, and served as Commander-in-Chief, Ireland.He twice served as MP for Clackmannanshire and Kinross-shire, and was...
, called for indiscriminate violence to suppress all threat of rebellion. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, Ch 4). At the urging of Camden, Castlereagh assumed many of the onerous duties of the often-absent Chief Secretary for Ireland
Chief Secretary for Ireland
The Chief Secretary for Ireland was a key political office in the British administration in Ireland. Nominally subordinate to the Lord Lieutenant, from the late 18th century until the end of British rule he was effectively the government minister with responsibility for governing Ireland; usually...
who was responsible for day-to-day administration and asserting the influence of Dublin Castle in the House of Commons. The Chief Secretary for Ireland from 1795–98 was Thomas Pelham
Thomas Pelham, 2nd Earl of Chichester
Thomas Pelham, 2nd Earl of Chichester PC, PC , FRS , styled The Honourable Thomas Pelham from 1768 until 1783, The Right Honourable Thomas Pelham from 1783 to 1801, and then known as Lord Pelham until 1805, was a British Whig politician...
, but he was continually absent from his duties due to illness. Camden pressed London to replace Pelham, recommending in his stead Castlereagh, whose performance in office was admired by those in London concerned with Irish policy. But as an example of the perverse prejudices of the era, Castlereagh was especially competent in this delicate and demanding office because he was an Irishman, yet he was also ineligible to represent the Crown in Ireland because he was an Irishman, even though this Irishman was grandson of an English Marquess, great-grandson of an English Duke and son-in-law of an English Earl. After pressure by Pitt on George III
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
who shared the prejudice against appointments of Irish as representatives of the Crown in Ireland, Castlereagh was appointed Acting Chief Secretary in March 1798. But it was only in November 1798, after the Rebellion had been put down that, in response to imperious demands from the next influential Lord Lieutenant, Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator...
, Castlereagh was given the permanent office, and for the first time the Chief Secretary for Ireland was an Irishman. The next month, Castlereagh was admitted to the King's Privy Council. (See Leigh, Castlereagh Ch 4, and 18 Dec 1798, p. 1 (1 page pdf).) In this capacity, and after March 1798 as Acting Chief Secretary, Castlereagh played a key role in quashing the Irish Rebellion of 1798
Irish Rebellion of 1798
The Irish Rebellion of 1798 , also known as the United Irishmen Rebellion , was an uprising in 1798, lasting several months, against British rule in Ireland...
, offering clemency to commoners who had supported the rebellion, and focusing instead on pursuing rebel leaders.
In 1799, in furtherance of both his own political vision and Pitt's policies, Castlereagh began lobbying in the Irish and British Parliaments for an official union between the two, convinced that it was the best way to soothe the long-standing divides in Ireland, insulate Ireland from further radical disaffection, and protect Britain from French military threats via Ireland. His first attempt, at the opening of the Irish session of 1799, met with failure during long, heated debates. A year of further intense preparation followed, with an impressive display of Machiavellian tactics that included the common Irish practice of bribery through peerages, honours and money, but bribery on a truly uncommon scale. In the summer of 1800, Castlereagh together with the Lord Lieutenant, Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis KG , styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as The Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army officer and colonial administrator...
, finally succeeded in steering the Irish Act of Union
Act of Union 1800
The Acts of Union 1800 describe two complementary Acts, namely:* the Union with Ireland Act 1800 , an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain, and...
through both Parliaments.
During the campaign for the Act of Union, both Castlereagh and Cornwallis had, in good faith, forwarded informal assurances they had received from Pitt's Cabinet to the Irish Catholics that they would be allowed to sit in Parliament. Both Castlereagh and Cornwallis knew Catholic emancipation would be critical if their objectives for Union were to be realised. Emancipation was, however, opposed by much of the British establishment, including George III, who was convinced that it would violate his royal oath as protector of the Protestant faith. Pitt tried to follow through on his commitment, but when it came to light that the King had approached Henry Addington, an opponent of Catholic emancipation, about becoming Prime Minister to replace the pro-emancipation Pitt, both Castlereagh and Pitt resigned in protest. Still, Castlereagh would long be held personally responsible by many Catholics in Ireland for the apparent breach of promise and Government's betrayal of their interests.
In Dublin, he was a member of the Kildare Street Club
Kildare Street Club
The Kildare Street Club was a gentlemen's club in Dublin, Ireland, at the heart of the Anglo-Irish Protestant Ascendancy.The Club remained in Kildare Street between 1782 and 1977, when it merged with the Dublin University Club...
.
At Westminster and in Government
When the newly united Parliament of the United Kingdom met in 1801, Castlereagh took his seat in the House of Commons from his Down constituency. By 1802, tensions between Tories supporting emancipation and those opposing had relaxed, and Addington had obtained his desired cessation of hostilities with France (the Peace of AmiensTreaty of Amiens
The Treaty of Amiens temporarily ended hostilities between the French Republic and the United Kingdom during the French Revolutionary Wars. It was signed in the city of Amiens on 25 March 1802 , by Joseph Bonaparte and the Marquess Cornwallis as a "Definitive Treaty of Peace"...
). At a shift in the composition of Addington's Government, Castlereagh accepted the offer to enter the Cabinet as President of the Board of Control
President of the Board of Control
The President of the Board of Control was a British government official in the late 18th and early 19th century responsible for overseeing the British East India Company and generally serving as the chief official in London responsible for Indian affairs. The position was frequently a cabinet...
, where he mediated bitter disputes between the Governor-General of India
Governor-General of India
The Governor-General of India was the head of the British administration in India, and later, after Indian independence, the representative of the monarch and de facto head of state. The office was created in 1773, with the title of Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William...
, Richard Wellsley
Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley
Richard Colley Wesley, later Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley, KG, PC, PC , styled Viscount Wellesley from birth until 1781, was an Anglo-Irish politician and colonial administrator....
, and the Directors of the East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
, smoothing quarrels while generally supporting Lord Wellesley's policies.
After the renewal of the war
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
against Napoleon, at the urging of Castlereagh and other long-time supporters, in 1804 Pitt returned as Prime Minister, and Castlereagh was promoted to Secretary of State for War and the Colonies
Secretary of State for War and the Colonies
The Secretary of State for War and the Colonies was a British cabinet level position responsible for the army and the British colonies . The Department was created in 1801...
. As the only other member of Pitt's Government
Second Pitt the Younger Ministry
-The Initial Ministry:Changes*January, 1805 - Lord Mulgrave succeeds Lord Harrowby as Foreign Secretary. Lord Buckinghamshire succeeds Mulgrave at the Duchy of Lancaster. Lord Sidmouth succeeds the Duke of Portland as Lord President...
in the House of Commons, Castlereagh became Pitt's political deputy, taking on ever more burdens as Pitt's health continued to decline. After Pitt's death in 1806, Castlereagh resigned amid the chaos of the Ministry of All the Talents
Ministry of All the Talents
The Ministry of All the Talents was a national unity government formed by William Wyndham Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville on his appointment as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on 11 February 1806 after the death of William Pitt the Younger...
. When that Government collapsed, Castlereagh again became Secretary of State for War and the Colonies in 1807, this time in the ministry of the Duke of Portland
William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland
William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland, KG, PC was a British Whig and Tory statesman, Chancellor of the University of Oxford and Prime Minister. He was known before 1762 by the courtesy title Marquess of Titchfield. He held a title of every degree of British nobility—Duke,...
.
The duel with Canning
As minister for War, he became involved in disputes with Foreign Secretary George CanningGeorge Canning
George Canning PC, FRS was a British statesman and politician who served as Foreign Secretary and briefly Prime Minister.-Early life: 1770–1793:...
over the Walcheren Expedition and its failure. Canning saw it as a diversion of troops from the Peninsular War
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
based on a hopeless plan. However, Castlereagh had the support of Lord Wellesley's younger brother General Arthur Wellesley
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
(future Duke of Wellington), and evidence later surfaced that Canning himself had interfered with the plan, selecting the Earl of Chatham
John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham
General John Pitt, 2nd Earl of Chatham, KG, PC was a British peer and soldier.-Career:He was the eldest son of William Pitt the Elder and an elder brother of William Pitt the Younger...
to command the expedition. The Portland government became increasingly paralysed by disputes between the two men. Portland was in deteriorating health and gave no lead, until Canning threatened resignation unless Castlereagh was removed and replaced by Lord Wellesley. Wellesley himself was neither complicit with nor even aware of the arrangement, but Portland secretly agreed to make this change when it became possible.
Castlereagh discovered the deal in September 1809 and demanded redress. He challenged Canning to a duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
, which Canning accepted. Canning had never before fired a pistol. The duel was fought on 21 September 1809 on Putney Heath. Canning missed but Castlereagh wounded his opponent in the thigh. There was much outrage that two cabinet ministers had resorted to such a method, and they both felt compelled to resign from the government. Six months later, Canning published a full account of his actions in the affair, and many who had initially rallied to him became convinced Castlereagh had been betrayed by his cabinet colleague.
Diplomatic career
Three years later, in 1812, Castlereagh returned to the government, this time as Foreign Secretary, a role in which he served for the next ten years. He also became leader of the House of Commons in the wake of Spencer PercevalSpencer Perceval
Spencer Perceval, KC was a British statesman and First Lord of the Treasury, making him de facto Prime Minister. He is the only British Prime Minister to have been assassinated...
's assassination in 1812. In his role of Foreign Secretary he was instrumental in negotiating what has become known as the quadruple alliance
Quadruple Alliance (1815)
The Quadruple Alliance was a treaty signed in Paris on 20 November, 1815 by the United Kingdom, Austria, Prussia, and Russia. It renewed the alliance first agreed to in 1813 and it modified the aims of the alliance from defeating Napoleon Bonaparte to upholding the settlement following the...
between the United Kingdom, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Russia, and Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
at Chaumont
Treaty of Chaumont
The Treaty of Chaumont was a rejected cease-fire offered by the Allies of the Sixth Coalition to Napoleon Bonaparte in 1814.Following discussions in late February 1814, representatives of Austria, Prussia, Russia, and Great Britain reconvened a meeting at Chaumont, Haute-Marne on 1 March 1814...
in March 1814, in the negotiation of the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1814)
The Treaty of Paris, signed on 30 May 1814, ended the war between France and the Sixth Coalition, part of the Napoleonic Wars, following an armistice signed on 23 May between Charles, Count of Artois, and the allies...
that brought peace with France, and at the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
.
At the Congress of Vienna, Castlereagh designed and proposed a form of collective and collaborative security for Europe, then called a Congress system. In the Congress system, the main signatory powers met periodically (every two years or so) and collectively managed European affairs. This system was successfully used to resolve the Polish-Saxon crisis at Vienna and the question of Greek independence at Laibach. The following ten years saw five European Congresses where disputes were resolved with a diminishing degree of effectiveness. Finally, by 1822, the whole system had collapsed because of the irreconcilable differences of opinion between the United Kingdom, Austria, and Russia, and because of the lack of support for the Congress system in British public opinion. The Holy Alliance
Holy Alliance
The Holy Alliance was a coalition of Russia, Austria and Prussia created in 1815 at the behest of Czar Alexander I of Russia, signed by the three powers in Paris on September 26, 1815, in the Congress of Vienna after the defeat of Napoleon.Ostensibly it was to instill the Christian values of...
, which Castlereagh opposed, lingered for some time, however, and even had effects on the international stage as late as the Crimean war
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
. The order
Conservative Order
The Conservative Order is a term applied to European political history after the defeat of Napoleon in 1815. From 1815 to 1830 a conscious program by conservative statesmen, including Metternich and Castlereagh, was put in place to contain revolution and revolutionary forces by restoring old...
created by the Congress of Vienna was also more successful than Congresses themselves, preventing major European land wars until the First World War a century later. Scholars and historians have seen the Congress system as a forerunner of the modern, arguably more effective collective security
Collective security
Collective security can be understood as a security arrangement, regional or global, in which each state in the system accepts that the security of one is the concern of all, and agrees to join in a collective response to threats to, and breaches of, the peace...
, international unity, and cooperative agreements of NATO, the EU
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
, and the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
.
In the years 1812 to 1822, Castlereagh continued to competently manage Britain's foreign policy, generally pursuing a policy of continental engagement uncharacteristic of British foreign policy in the nineteenth century. Castlereagh was not known to be an effective public speaker and his diplomatic presentation style was at times abstruse. He nonetheless developed a reputation for integrity, consistency, and goodwill, which was perhaps unmatched by any diplomat of that era. His views on foreign policy were, unfortunately for him, ahead of his time.
Decline and death
Despite his contributions to the defeat of Napoleon and restoration of peace, Castlereagh became extremely unpopular at home. He was attacked for his construction of a peace that gave a free hand to reactionary governments on the Continent to suppress dissent. He was also condemned for his association with repressive measures of the Home SecretaryHome Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
, Lord Sidmouth
Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth
Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth, PC was a British statesman, and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1804....
(the former Prime Minister Addington). As Leader of the House of Commons
Leader of the House of Commons
The Leader of the House of Commons is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom who is responsible for arranging government business in the House of Commons...
for the Liverpool Government, he was often called upon to defend government policy
Cabinet collective responsibility
Cabinet collective responsibility is constitutional convention in governments using the Westminster System that members of the Cabinet must publicly support all governmental decisions made in Cabinet, even if they do not privately agree with them. This support includes voting for the government in...
in the House. He had to support the widely reviled measures taken by Sidmouth and the others, including the infamous Six Acts
Six Acts
In the United Kingdom, following the Peterloo Massacre of August 16, 1819, the British government acted to prevent any future disturbances by the introduction of new legislation, the so-called Six Acts which labelled any meeting for radical reform as "an overt act of treasonable conspiracy"...
, in order to remain in cabinet and continue his diplomatic work. For these reasons, Castlereagh appears with other members of Lord Liverpool's Cabinet in Shelley's
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley was one of the major English Romantic poets and is critically regarded as among the finest lyric poets in the English language. Shelley was famous for his association with John Keats and Lord Byron...
poem The Masque of Anarchy
The Masque of Anarchy
The Mask of Anarchy is a political poem written in 1819 by Percy Bysshe Shelley following the Peterloo Massacre of that year...
, which was inspired by, and heavily critical of, the Peterloo massacre
Peterloo Massacre
The Peterloo Massacre occurred at St Peter's Field, Manchester, England, on 16 August 1819, when cavalry charged into a crowd of 60,000–80,000 that had gathered to demand the reform of parliamentary representation....
:
- I met Murder on the way –
- He had a face like Castlereagh –
- Very smooth he looked, yet grim;
- Seven bloodhounds followed him
- All were fat; and well they might
- Be in admirable plight,
- For one by one, and two by two,
- He tossed them human hearts to chew
- Which from his wide cloak he drew.
After the death of his father in 1821, Castlereagh became Lord Londonderry. In 1822, he began to suffer from a form of paranoia
Paranoia
Paranoia [] is a thought process believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of irrationality and delusion. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself...
or a nervous breakdown
Nervous breakdown
Mental breakdown is a non-medical term used to describe an acute, time-limited phase of a specific disorder that presents primarily with features of depression or anxiety.-Definition:...
, possibly as a result of an attack of gout
Gout
Gout is a medical condition usually characterized by recurrent attacks of acute inflammatory arthritis—a red, tender, hot, swollen joint. The metatarsal-phalangeal joint at the base of the big toe is the most commonly affected . However, it may also present as tophi, kidney stones, or urate...
combined with the stress of public criticism. He was also severely overworked with both his responsibilities in leading the government in the House and the never-ending diplomacy required to manage conflicts among the other major powers. At the time, he said "My mind, is, as it were, gone." Londonderry returned to his country seat at Loring Hall
Loring Hall
Loring Hall is a Grade II listed building and private mental health care facility in North Cray, Kent.-History:The building, originally called Wollet Hall, was first constructed in 1760, and was between 1811 and 1822 the country residence of British Foreign Secretary Viscount Castlereagh...
in Water Lane, North Cray
North Cray
North Cray is a place in the London Borough of Bexley, southeast London, England, east southeast of Charing Cross. It lies on the River Cray and is in the Cray Meadows electoral ward which also includes Foots Cray...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
on the advice of his doctor. On 9 August 1822 he had an audience with King George IV
George IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
in which he appeared distracted and mentally disturbed. Among other surprising remarks he revealed to the King that he thought he was being blackmailed for homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
.In addition to the events surrounding the suicide itself, towards the end of his life there are increasing reports, both contemporaneous and in later memoirs, of exceptionally powerful rages and sudden bouts of uncharacteristic forgetfulness. At the 9 August meeting with the King, Castlereagh is reported to have been distracted, to have told the King he was being mysteriously watched by a servant, and to have said, "I am accused of the same crime as the Bishop of Clogher." Percy Jocelyn
Percy Jocelyn
Percy Jocelyn was Anglican Bishop of Clogher in the Church of Ireland from 1820 to 1822. He was forced from his position due to claims of homosexual practices.-Early life:...
, who had been the Bishop of Clogher
Bishop of Clogher
The Bishop of Clogher is an episcopal title which takes its name after the village of Clogher in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Following the Reformation, there are now parallel apostolic successions: one of the Church of Ireland and the other of the Roman Catholic Church.-History:Clogher is one...
until the previous month, was prosecuted for homosexuality. (See H. Montgomery Hyde, Trials of Oscar Wilde, Courier Dover Publications, ISBN 0-486-20216-X.) The King surmised that Castlereagh believed he was being blackmailed for the same reason. It remains unclear whether there was some sort of extortion attempt, and if so, whether such attempt represented a real threat of exposure, or whether the purported blackmail was a symptom of paranoia he otherwise appeared to be displaying at the time. The King is said to have advised Castlereagh to consult a physician and, disturbed by the condition of his Foreign Secretary, shared his concerns with Castlereagh's friend, the Duke of Wellington. Wellington not only advised Castlereagh that he was suffering from delusions but sent a note to Castlereagh's doctor urging him to see his patient at the first opportunity. Wellington's note was submitted as evidence at the inquest. (See Leigh, Castlereagh, which draws extensively from memoirs of people who claimed to have observed Castlereagh's uncharacteristic behaviour, such as Dorothea, Countess de Lieven
Dorothea Lieven
HSH Princess Dorothea von Lieven , née Benckendorff , a Baltic German noblewoman and wife of Prince Khristofor Andreyevich Lieven, Russian ambassador to London, 1812 to 1834, was a political force in her own right....
. The appendices include contemporary letters from observers and excerpts from the journal of Harriet Arbuthnot
Harriet Arbuthnot
Harriet Arbuthnot was an early 19th century English diarist, social observer and political hostess on behalf of the Tory party. During the 1820s she was the "closest woman friend" of the hero of Waterloo and British Prime Minister, the 1st Duke of Wellington...
, who was a close friend of both Castlereagh and Wellington.)
On 12 August, although his wife had succeeded in removing razors from his possession and even though his doctor was in attendance, Castlereagh managed to find a pen knife with which he committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
by cutting his own throat
External carotid artery
In human anatomy, the external carotid artery is a major artery of the head and neck. It arises from the common carotid artery when it bifurcates into the external and internal carotid artery.-Course:...
.In a retrospective, and therefore necessarily speculative diagnosis, a thoughtful recent study has linked various instances of (at the time) little explained illness to syphilis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
, possibly contracted at Cambridge
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
: here Stewart’s undergraduate studies were interrupted by a mysterious illness first apparent during the closing months of 1787, and which kept him away from Cambridge through the summer of 1788. Later, there were unexplained illnesses in 1801 and 1807, the first described by a contemporary as "brain fever" which would be consistent with syphilitic meningitis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
. (See Giles Hunt, The Duel: Castlereagh, Canning and Deadly Cabinet Rivalry (2008).)
An inquest concluded that the act had been committed while insane, avoiding the harsh strictures of a felo de se
Felo de se
Felo de se, Latin for "felon of himself", is an archaic legal term meaning suicide. In early English common law, an adult who committed suicide was literally a felon, and the crime was punishable by forfeiture of property to the king and what was considered a shameful burial – typically with...
verdict.Suicide was illegal in England until 1961
Suicide Act 1961
The Suicide Act 1961 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It decriminalised the act of suicide so that those who failed in the attempt would no longer be prosecuted....
. Prior to the Right to Burial Act of 1823, a suicide was denied a Christian burial and, until the Abolition of Forfeiture Act of 1870, his property was forfeited to the Crown. These cruel penalties were less and less frequently applied over the course of the 18th century, especially in the case of wealthier victims. Inquests were likely to view suicide as itself evidence of the disturbed state of the victim's mind. (See e.g., Clifton D. Bryant, Handbook of Death and Dying, Sage Publications (2003) pp. 316–17.) The verdict allowed Lady Londonderry to see her husband buried
Westminster Abbey Burials and Memorials
Honouring individuals with Burials and Memorials in Westminster Abbey has a long tradition. Henry III rebuilt Westminster Abbey in honour of the Royal Saint Edward the Confessor whose relics were placed in a shrine in the sanctuary and now lie in a burial vault beneath the 1268 Cosmati mosaic...
with honour in Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey
The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...
near his mentor, William Pitt. Some radicals, notably William Cobbett
William Cobbett
William Cobbett was an English pamphleteer, farmer and journalist, who was born in Farnham, Surrey. He believed that reforming Parliament and abolishing the rotten boroughs would help to end the poverty of farm labourers, and he attacked the borough-mongers, sinecurists and "tax-eaters" relentlessly...
, claimed a "cover-up" within the government and viewed the verdict and Castlereagh's public funeral as a damning indictment of the elitism and privilege of the unreformed electoral system. His funeral on 20 August was greeted with jeering and insults along the processional route, although not to the level of unanimity projected in the radical press. A funeral monument was not erected until 1850 by his half-brother and successor, Charles Stewart Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry.
Sometime after Castlereagh's death, Lord Byron
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron, later George Gordon Noel, 6th Baron Byron, FRS , commonly known simply as Lord Byron, was a British poet and a leading figure in the Romantic movement...
wrote a savage quip about his grave:
- Posterity will ne'er survey
- A nobler grave than this:
- Here lie the bones of Castlereagh:
- Stop, traveller, and piss.
And yet, some of Castlereagh's political opponents were gracious in their epigrams. Henry Brougham, a Whig politician and later the Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
, who had battled frequently with Castlereagh, once almost to the point of calling him out, and had denigrated his skills as Leader, wrote in the week following Castlereagh's death:
- Put all their other men together in one scale, and poor Castlereagh in the other – single he plainly weighed them down... One can't help feeling a little for him, after being pitted against him for several years, pretty regularly. It is like losing a connection suddenly. Also he was a gentleman, and the only one amongst them.
A blue plaque
Blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
is displayed at the entrance to the listed building Loring Hall
Loring Hall
Loring Hall is a Grade II listed building and private mental health care facility in North Cray, Kent.-History:The building, originally called Wollet Hall, was first constructed in 1760, and was between 1811 and 1822 the country residence of British Foreign Secretary Viscount Castlereagh...
, now a care facility for those with learning disabilities, in commemoration of Castlereagh, who occupied the property from 1811 until his death.
Styles
Robert Stewart was styled as follows::- Robert Stewart, EsquireEsquireEsquire is a term of West European origin . Depending on the country, the term has different meanings...
(1769–1789) - The HonourableThe HonourableThe prefix The Honourable or The Honorable is a style used before the names of certain classes of persons. It is considered an honorific styling.-International diplomacy:...
Robert Stewart (1789–1796) - Viscount Castlereagh (1796–1797)
- The Right HonourableThe Right HonourableThe Right Honourable is an honorific prefix that is traditionally applied to certain people in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Anglophone Caribbean and other Commonwealth Realms, and occasionally elsewhere...
Viscount Castlereagh (1797–1814) - The Right Honourable Viscount Castlereagh, KG (1814–1821)
- The Most HonourableThe Most HonourableThe prefix The Most Honourable is a title of quality attached to the names of marquesses in the United Kingdom. Dukes are The Most Noble or His Grace and peers under the rank of marquess are The Right Honourable. Scottish Feudal Barons and Lairds are The Much Honoured.Certain corporate entities...
The Marquess of Londonderry, KG, GCHRoyal Guelphic OrderThe Royal Guelphic Order, sometimes also referred to as the Hanoverian Guelphic Order, is a Hanoverian order of chivalry instituted on 28 April 1815 by the Prince Regent . It has not been conferred by the British Crown since the death of King William IV in 1837, when the personal union of the...
, PC, PC (Ire)Privy Council of IrelandThe Privy Council of Ireland was an institution of the Kingdom of Ireland until 31 December 1800 and of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland 1801-1922...
(1821–1822)
Further reading
- Memoirs and Correspondence of Viscount Castlereagh, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, edited by his brother, Charles William (Stewart) Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry, London: John Murray (1848–53) in 12 volumes
- Henry Lord BroughamHenry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and VauxHenry Peter Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux was a British statesman who became Lord Chancellor of Great Britain.As a young lawyer in Scotland Brougham helped to found the Edinburgh Review in 1802 and contributed many articles to it. He went to London, and was called to the English bar in...
, "Lord Castlereagh," Historical Sketches of Statesmen in the Time of George III, London: Charles Knight & Co. (1845), Second Series, Vol I, pp. 149–61 - Sir A. Alison.Sir Archibald Alison, 1st BaronetSir Archibald Alison, 1st Baronet FRSE was a Scottish advocate and historian. He held several prominent legal appointments. He was the younger son of the Episcopalian cleric and author Archibald Alison...
, Lives of Lord Castlereagh and Sir Charles Stewart, 3 vols., London: Blackwood (1861) - Charles Webster, The Foreign Policy of Castlereagh, in 2 volumes, 1812–1815 (1931) and 1815–1822 (1925; 2nd ed 1934)
- Ione Leigh, Castlereagh, London: Collins (1951) — especially for early years, access to family papers
- Bradford Perkins, Castlereagh and Adams: England and the United States, 1812–1823, Berkeley: University of California Press (1964)
- Christopher John Bartlett, Castlereagh, London: Macmillan (1966) — especially for diplomatic history
- John W. Derry, Castlereagh, London: A. Lane (1976)
- Wendy Hinde, Castlereagh, London: Collins (1981)
- Giles Hunt, The Duel: Castlereagh, Canning and deadly cabinet rivalry, B Tauris & Co Ltd, UK/Palgrave Macmillan (2008) ISBN 1-84511-593-7
- Rory Muir, Britain and the defeat of Napoleon, 1807–1815, New Haven: Yale University Press (1966) ISBN 978-0-300-06443-8
- Harold NicolsonHarold NicolsonSir Harold George Nicolson KCVO CMG was an English diplomat, author, diarist and politician. He was the husband of writer Vita Sackville-West, their unusual relationship being described in their son's book, Portrait of a Marriage.-Early life:Nicolson was born in Tehran, Persia, the younger son of...
, The Congress of Vienna, Constable & Co Ltd, UK/Harcourt Brace and Company (1946) - Henry KissingerHenry KissingerHeinz Alfred "Henry" Kissinger is a German-born American academic, political scientist, diplomat, and businessman. He is a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He served as National Security Advisor and later concurrently as Secretary of State in the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and...
, A World Restored: Metternich, Castlereagh, and the Problems of Peace, 1812–22, Houghton Mifflin (1973) ISBN 978-0-395-17229-2 (1st pub.1957) - Adam ZamoyskiAdam ZamoyskiCount Adam Stefan Zamoyski is a historian and a member of the ancient Zamoyski family of Polish nobility.-Life:Zamoyski was born in New York City, but was raised in England and was educated at Downside School and The Queen's College, Oxford...
, Rites of Peace; the Fall of Napoleon and the Congress of Vienna, HarperCollins Publishers (2007) ISBN 978-0-06-077518-6 - David King, Vienna 1814; How the Conquerors of Napoleon Made Love, War, and Peace at the Congress of Vienna, Random House, Inc. (2008) ISBN 978-0-307-33716-0
- Goodlad, Graham. "From Castlereagh to Canning: Continuity and Change in British Foreign Policy," History Review (2008) Issue: 62. pp10+ online
- John BewJohn BewJohn Bew was a bookseller and publisher at 28-29 Paternoster Row in London. He was the publisher of The Political Magazine from 1780 to March 1785, when it was taken over by John Murray. The Magazine was a journal written for an audience of informed gentlemen and often included supplementary maps...
, Castlereagh: Enlightenment, War and Tyranny, London: Quercus (2011) ISBN 978-0-85738-186-6
External links
- A Letter to Lord Viscount Castlereagh, John C. Hobhouse, London: Robert Stodart (1819), on the Peterloo massacre