William Pitt Amherst, 2nd Earl Amherst (3 September 1805–26 March 1886), styled Viscount Holmesdale between 1826 and 1857, was a British peer.

Amherst was born at Lower Grosvenor Street, London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, the son of William Amherst, 1st Earl Amherst

William Amherst, 1st Earl Amherst

William Pitt Amherst, 1st Earl Amherst, GCH, PC was a British diplomat and colonial administrator. He was Governor-General of India between 1823 and 1828.-Background and education:...

, by his first wife the Honourable Sarah, daughter of Andrew Archer, 2nd Baron Archer

Andrew Archer, 2nd Baron Archer

Andrew Archer, 2nd Baron Archer , styled The Honourable Andrew Archer between 1747 and 1768, was a British peer and Whig politician....

. He was educated at Westminster

Westminster School

The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...

 and Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church, Oxford

Christ Church or house of Christ, and thus sometimes known as The House), is one of the largest constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England...

. He became known by the courtesy title Viscount Holmesdale when his father was elevated to an earldom in 1826. In 1826 he was returned to parliament as one of two representatives for East Grinstead

East Grinstead (UK Parliament constituency)

East Grinstead was a parliamentary constituency in the Kingdom of England, the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. It first existed as a Parliamentary borough from 1307, returning two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons elected by the bloc vote system...

, a seat he held until 1832, when the constituency was abolished through the Great Reform Act

Reform Act 1832

The Representation of the People Act 1832 was an Act of Parliament that introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system of England and Wales...

. He never returned to the House of Commons

British House of Commons

The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...

. In 1857 he succeeded his father in the earldom and took his seat in the 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....

.

Lord Amherst married Gertrude, daughter of the Right Reverend Hugh Percy

Hugh Percy (bishop)

Hugh Percy was a British churchman, bishop of Rochester and bishop of Carlisle.-Life:He was the third son of Algernon Percy, 1st Earl of Beverley, by Isabella Susannah, second daughter of Peter Burrell and sister of Peter Burrell, 1st Baron Gwydyr, and was born in London...

, in 1834. They had six sons and five daughters. He died at Montreal, Sevenoaks

Sevenoaks

Sevenoaks is a commuter town situated on the London fringe of west Kent, England, some 20 miles south-east of Charing Cross, on one of the principal commuter rail lines from the capital...

, 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...

, in March 1886, aged 80, and was succeeded by his eldest son, William. The Countess Amherst died at Rutland Gate, London, in April 1890, aged 75.

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