Charles William Stewart, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry, was born 18 May 1778 in Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland, United Kingdom to Robert Stewart (1739-1821) and Frances Pratt (1751-1833) and died 16 March 1854 Londonderry House, London, England, United Kingdom of unspecified causes. He married Catherine Bligh (1774-1812) 8 August 1804 in Mount Stewart, Ireland. He married Frances Anne Emily Vane-Tempest (1800-1865) 3 April 1819 in St George's Hanover Square Church, Hanover Square, London, England, United Kingdom.
Charles William Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry, KG, GCB,, PC (born Charles William Stewart; 1778–1854), was an Irish soldier in the British army, a politician, and a nobleman. As a soldier he fought in the French Revolutionary Wars, in the suppression of the Irish Rebellion of 1798, and in the Napoleonic wars. He excelled as a cavalry commander on the Iberian Peninsula under John Moore and Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington).
Having been dismissed by Wellington, his half-brother Lord Castlereagh helped him to launch a diplomatic career. He was posted to Berlin in 1813, and then as Ambassador to Austria, where his half-brother was the British plenipotentiary at the Congress of Vienna.
He married Lady Catherine Bligh in 1804 and then, in 1819, Lady Frances Anne Vane, a rich heiress, changing his surname to hers, thus being called Charles Vane instead of Charles Stewart from there on. He succeeded his half-brother as 3rd Marquess of Londonderry in 1822. He developed coal mines on his wife's land in County Durham.
Birth and origins
Charles was born on 18 May 1778 in Dublin[1] as the second of the 11 children of Robert Stewart and his second wife Frances Pratt. His father's family was Ulster-Scots and Presbyterian. His father was a rich man, a member of the Irish landed gentry and a member of the Irish House of Commons for Down but not yet a nobleman. Charles's mother was English, a daughter of Charles Pratt, 1st Earl Camden, a leading English jurist. His parents married on 7 June 1775.[2] Charles was brought up as an Anglican, a member of the Church of Ireland.[3]
First marriage and son
On 8 August 1804 at the church of St George's, Hanover Square, London, Charles Stewart married Lady Catherine Bligh.[4][5] She was the 4th and youngest daughter of the 3rd Earl of Darnley. She was three years older than he. On 7 July 1805 the couple had a son, named Frederick, who was to become the 4th Marquess of Londonderry.[6] She died during the night of 10–11 February 1812, of fever following a minor operation, while her husband was on his way home from Spain.[7]
Second marriage
Before the end of his diplomatic career Lord Stewart had, on 3 April 1819, married his second wife, Lady Frances Anne Vane-Tempest, daughter and heiress of Sir Henry Vane-Tempest,[8] at her mother's house in Bruton Street, Mayfair, and took her surname of Vane, by Royal licence, as had been stipulated in her father's will.[9] He was henceforth known as Charles William Vane, whereas his son out of his first marriage remained Frederick Stewart.
Castlereagh's suicide
On 12 August 1822, his half-brother committed suicide[10] He succeeded his half-brother as 3rd Marquess of Londonderry in 1822. The following year Lord Londonderry was also created Earl Vane and Viscount Seaham, of Seaham in the County Palatine of Durham, with remainder to the heirs male of the body of his second wife.[11]
His half-brother's death also meant the end of his diplomatic career. He quit the diplomatic service in 1823. Queen Victoria had a low esteem of Londonderry's abilities as a civil servant. She said that he should, in her opinion, not be given any post of importance.[12]
Wynyard Park, c.1880
Residences
Lord Londonderry used his new bride's immense wealth to acquire the Seaham Hall estate in County Durham to developing the coalfields there. He also built the harbour at Seaham, to rival nearby Sunderland. He commissioned Benjamin Wyatt to build a mansion at Wynyard Park. It was completed by Philip Wyatt in 1841 and cost £130,000 (equivalent to £10,772,000 in 2016) to build and furnish. Unfortunately, just as the mansion was being completed, a fire broke out and gutted the house; it was later restored and remodelled by Ignatius Bonomi.
The family also used their newfound wealth to redecorate their country seat in Ireland, Mount Stewart, and bought Holdernesse House on London's Park Lane, which they renamed Londonderry House.
Children
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Frederick William Robert Stewart, 4th Marquess of Londonderry (1805-1872) | 7 July 1805 South St, Grosvenor Square, Mayfair, Greater London, England, United Kingdom | 25 November 1872 White Rock Pavilion, Hastings, Sussex, England, United Kingdom | Giulia Grisi (1811-1869) Elizabeth Frances Charlotte Jocelyn (1813-1884) |
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| George Henry Robert Charles William Vane, 5th Marquess of Londonderry (1821-1884) | 26 April 1821 Vienna, Austria | 6 November 1884 Machynlleth, Montgomeryshire, Wales, United Kingdom | Mary Cornelia Edwards (-1906) |
| Frances Anne Emily Vane (1822-1899) | 15 April 1822 Duke of St. Alban's House, Westminster, London, England, United Kingdom | 16 April 1899 Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom | John Winston Spencer-Churchill (1822-1883) |
| Alexandrina Octavia Maria Vane (1823-1874) | |||
| Adolphus Frederick Charles William Vane-Tempest (1825-1864) | 2 July 1825 Westminster, Greater London, England, United Kingdom | 11 June 1864 London, Greater London, England, United Kingdom | Susan Charlotte Catherine Pelham-Clinton (1839-1875) |
| Adelaide Emelina Caroline Vane (1830-1882) | |||
| Ernest McDonnell Vane-Tempest (1836-1885) | |||
Siblings
Residences
Notes
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- ^ Cokayne 1893, p. 132, line 10: "He (the Hon. Charles Stewart) was b. 18 May 1778 in Mary street, Dublin;"
- ^ Debrett 1838, p. 518, right column, line 8: "The marquess m. 2ndly, 7 June 1775, Frances, eldest da. of Charles Pratt, 1st earl Camden, and sister to the present marquess Camden, and by her (who d. 18 Jan. 1833, æt. 82) had issue ..."
- ^ Lloyd & Heesom 2004, p. 95, line 13: "Charles was raised as an Anglican, in contrast to the family's Presbyterian tradition."
- ^ Cokayne 1893, p. 132, line 38b: "He m. firstly, 8 Aug. 1804 at St. Geo Han sq., Catherine 4th da. of John (BLIGH) 3rd EARL OF DARNLEY [I.] ...
- ^ "LADY CATHERINE BLIGH, LADY CHARLES STEWART". National Trust. http://www.ntprints.com/image/420729/lady-catherine-bligh-lady-charles-stewart-portrait-miniature-by-anne-mee-and-james-heath-millington-c-1804.
- ^ Cokayne 1893, p. 133, line 8: "FREDERICK WILLIAM ROBERT (STEWART), MARQUESS OF LONDONDERRY &c. [I.] also BARON STEWART OF STEWART'S COURT AND BALLYLAWN, s. and h., being only s. by first wife; b. 7 July 1805, in South street, Grosvenor sq.;"
- ^ Lloyd 1898, p. 280, left column, top: "She died on 8 Feb. 1812, while he was on his way back from Spain, ..."
- ^ Cokayne 1893, p. 132, line 40: "He m. secondly, 3 April 1819 on which occasion he took by Royal lic. 5 May 1829, the name of Vane in lieu of that of Stewart, Frances Anne Emily, da of Sir Henry VANE_TEMPEST, 2d Bart. of Long Newton,co. Durham ...K.G. 19 June 1852."
- ^ , 25 May 1819.
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- ^ Burke 1869, p. 704, left column, line 82: "The [2nd] marquess d. at his seat at North Cray, 12 Aug. 1822 ..."
- ^ , 29 March 1823.
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- ^ Urquhart 2007, p. 68: "Queen Victoria's mandate 'that Lord Londonderry should not be employed in any post of importance, as this would, in her opinion, be detrimental to the interests of the country'"
Appendices
Works
The 3rd Marquess was a prolific writer and editor. He wrote and published books about his own military and diplomatic career and published many of his half-brother's papers.
War memoirs
The following two books describe the Napoleonic War as he saw them happen. The first describes his experience of the Peninsular War. The second the War of the Sixth Coalition, which forced Napoleon to abdicate:
- Narrative of the Peninsular War (London: Henry Colburn, 1828) online at Internet Archive
- Narrative of the War in Germany and France: In 1813 and 1814 (London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, 1830) online at Internet Archive
Castlereagh papers
The 3rd Marquess also compiled, edited, and published many of the papers left by his half-brother and published them in the following twelve volumes, divided in three series.
The first series, consisting of four volumes, numbered 1 – 4, appeared in 1848 and 1849 under the title Memoirs and Correspondence. The volumes are not marked "first series on the title pages. They are:
- Memoirs and Correspondence of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Volume 1 (London: Henry Colburn, 1848) online at Internet Archive - The Irish Rebellion
- Memoirs and Correspondence of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Volume 2 (London: Henry Colburn, 1848) online at Internet Archive - Arrangements for a Union
- Memoirs and Correspondence of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Volume 3 (London: Henry Colburn, 1849) online at Internet Archive - Completion of the Legislative Union
- Memoirs and Correspondence of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Volume 4 (London, Henry Colburn, 1849) online at Internet Archive - Concessions to Catholics and Dessenters: Emmett's Insurrection
The second series, consisting of four volumes, appeared in 1851 under the title Correspondence, Despatches and Other Papers. The volume numbers continue, despite being marked "2nd series" and are therefore 4 to 8. They are:
- Correspondence Despatches and Other Papers of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Series 2, Volume 5 (London: William Shoberl, 1851) online at Internet Archive - Military and Miscellaneous
- Correspondence Despatches and Other Papers of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Series 2, Volume 6 (London: William Shoberl, 1851) online at Internet Archive - Military and Miscellaneous
- Correspondence Despatches and Other Papers of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Series 2, Volume 7 (London: William Shoberl, 1851) online at Internet Archive - Military and Miscellaneous
- Correspondence Despatches and Other Papers of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Series 2, Volume 8 (London: William Shoberl, 1851) online at Internet Archive - Military and Miscellaneous
The third series appeared in 1853. The four volumes have the same title as the second series. The volume numbering is irregular. They are:
- Correspondence Despatches and Other Papers of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Volume 9 (London: John Murray, 1853) online at Internet Archive - Military and Diplomatic
- Correspondence Despatches and Other Papers of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Volume 11 (London: John Murray, 1853) online at Hathi Trust
- Correspondence Despatches and Other Papers of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Series 3, Volume 3 (London: John Murray, 1853) online at Internet Archive - Military and Diplomatic
- Correspondence Despatches and Other Papers of Viscount Castlereagh, Second Marquess of Londonderry, Volume 12 (London: John Murray, 1853) online at Internet Archive
| Parliament of Ireland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by George Dunbar James Kearney |
Member of Parliament for Thomastown March–May 1800 With: James Kearney March–April 1800 William Gardiner April–May 1800 |
Succeeded by William Gardiner John Francis Cradock |
| Preceded by Thomas Conolly The Earl of Tyrone |
Member of Parliament for Londonderry County 1800–1801 With: The Earl of Tyrone |
Succeeded by Parliament of the United Kingdom |
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
| New constituency | Member of Parliament for Londonderry 1801–1814 With: Sir George Hill, 2nd Bt 1801–1802 Lord George Thomas Beresford 1802–1812 Hon. William Ponsonby 1812–1814 |
Succeeded by Hon. William Ponsonby Alexander Stewart |
| Military offices | ||
| Preceded by Richard Wilford |
Colonel of the 25th Light Dragoons 1813–1818 |
Regiment disbanded |
| Preceded by George, Prince of Wales |
Colonel of the 10th (The Prince of Wales's Own) Royal Regiment of (Light) Dragoons (Hussars) 1820–1843 |
Succeeded by The Earl Beauchamp |
| Preceded by The Earl Cathcart |
Colonel of the 2nd Regiment of Life Guards 1843–1854 |
Succeeded by The Lord Seaton |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Sir George Shee, Bt Sir James Cockburn, Bt |
Under-Secretary of State for War and the Colonies 1807–1809 With: E. Cooke |
Succeeded by Hon. F. J. Robinson Hon. Charles Jenkinson |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by No representation due to the Treaties of Tilsit (previously John Frere) |
British Minister to Prussia 1813–1814 |
Succeeded by George Henry Rose |
| Preceded by The Earl of Aberdeen |
British Ambassador to Austria 1814–1823 |
Succeeded by Hon. Sir Henry Wellesley |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by The Duke of Cleveland |
Lord Lieutenant of Durham 1842–1854 |
Succeeded by The Earl of Durham |
| Peerage of Ireland | ||
| Preceded by Robert Stewart |
Marquess of Londonderry 1822–1854 |
Succeeded by Frederick Stewart |
| Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
| New creation | Earl Vane 1823–1854 |
Succeeded by George Vane-Tempest |
| Baron Stewart 1814–1854 | ||
Footnotes (including sources)
| ‡ General |
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