George William Frederick Villiers, 4th Earl of Clarendon (January 12, 1800 - June 27, 1870), was an English diplomat and statesman. January 12 is the 12th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... --66. ... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... 1870 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...

Lineage

Born in London on January 12, 1800. He was the eldest son of Hon. George Villiers (1759-1827), youngest son of the 1st Earl of Clarendon (second creation), by Theresa, only daughter of the first Lord Boringdon, and granddaughter of the first Lord Grantham. The earldom of the lord chancellor Clarendon became extinct in the Hyde line by the death of the 4th earl, his last male descendant. Jane Hyde, countess of Essex, the sister of that nobleman (she died in 1724), left two daughters; of these the eldest, Lady Charlotte, became heiress of the Hyde family. She married the Hon. Thomas Villiers (1709-1786), second son of the 2nd earl of Jersey, who served with distinction as English minister in Germany, and in 1776 the earldom of Clarendon was revived in his favour. The connection with the Hyde family was therefore in the female line and somewhat remote. But a portion of the pictures and plate of the great chancellor was preserved to this branch of the family, and remains at The Grove, their family seat at Hertfordshire. The 2nd and 3rd earls were sons of the 1st, and, neither of them having sons, the title passed, on the death of the 3rd Earl (John Charles) in 1838, to their younger brother's son. London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ... January 12 is the 12th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... --66. ... Edward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendon (February 18, 1609 - December 9, 1674), English historian and statesman. ... This article is about the year 1776. ... Hertfordshire (pronounced Hartfordshire and abbreviated as Herts) is an inland county in the United Kingdom, officially part of the East of England Government region. ... 1838 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

Early life

Young George Villiers entered upon life in circumstances which gave small promise of the brilliancy of his future career. He was well born; he was heir presumptive to an earldom; and his mother was a woman of great energy, admirable good sense, and high feeling. But the means of his family were contracted; his education was desultory and incomplete; he had not the advantages of a training either at a public school or in the House of Commons. He went up to Cambridge at the early age of sixteen, and entered St John's College on June 29, 1816. In 1820, as the eldest son of an earl's brother with royal descent, he was enabled to take his M.A. degree under the statutes of the university then in force. In the same year he was appointed attache to the British embassy at St. Petersburg, where he remained three years, and gained that practical knowledge of diplomacy which was of so much use to him in after-life. He had received from nature a singularly handsome person, a polished and engaging address, a ready command of languages, and a remarkable power of composition. The House of Commons is a component of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also includes the Sovereign and the House of Lords. ... The University of Cambridge is the second-oldest in the English-speaking world, after Oxford University. ... Full name The College of Saint John the Evangelist of the University of Cambridge Motto - Named after The Hospital of Saint John the Evangelist, Cambridge, named after John the Evangelist Previous names - Established 1511 Sister College Balliol College Master Prof. ... June 29 is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 185 days remaining. ... 1816 was a leap year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 1820 was a leap year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Saint Petersburg (Russian: Санкт-Петербу́рг, English transliteration: Sankt-Peterburg), colloquially known as Питер (transliterated Piter), formerly known as Leningrad (Ленингра́д, 1924–1991) and Petrograd (Петрогра́д, 1914–1924), is a city located in Northwestern Russia on the delta of the river Neva at the east end of the Gulf of Finland...

Upon his return to England in 1823 he was appointed to a commissionership of customs, an office which he retained for about ten years. In 1831 he was despatched to France to negotiate a commercial treaty, which, however, led to no result. On 16 August 1833 he was appointed minister at the court of Spain. Ferdinand VII died within a month of his arrival at Madrid, and the infant queen Isabella, then in the third year of her age, was placed by the old Spanish law of female inheritance on her contested throne. Don Carlos, the late king's brother, claimed the crown by virtue of the Salic Law of the House of Bourbon which Ferdinand had renounced before the birth of his daughter. Isabella II and her mother Christina, the queen regent, became the representatives of constitutional monarchy, Don Carlos of Catholic absolutism. The conflict which had divided the despotic and the constitutional powers of Europe since the French Revolution of 1830 broke out into civil war in Spain, and by the Quadruple Treaty, signed on 22 April 1834, France and England pledged themselves to the defence of the constitutional thrones of Spain and Portugal. For six years Villiers continued to give the most active and intelligent support to the Liberal government of Spain. He was accused, though unjustly, of having favoured the revolution of La Granja, which drove Christina, the queen mother, out of the kingdom, and raised Espartero to the regency. He undoubtedly supported the chiefs of the Liberal party, such as Espartero, against the intrigues of the French court; but the object of the British government was to establish the throne of Isabella on a truly national and liberal basis and to avert those complications, dictated by foreign influence, which eventually proved so fatal to that princess. Villiers received the grand cross of the Bath in 1838 in acknowledgment of his services, and succeeded, on the death of his uncle, to the title of Earl of Clarendon; in the following year, having left Madrid, he married a young widow, Lady Katharine Barham (nee Grimston), eldest daughter of James Walter, first earl of Verulam. Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Religion... 1823 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1831 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... August 16 is the 228th day of the year (229th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1833 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Ferdinand VII (October 14, 1784 - September 29, 1833) was King of Spain from 1813 to 1833. ... Coat of arms The Plaza de España square Madrid, the capital of Spain, is located in the center of the country at 40°25′ N 3°45′ W. Population of the city of Madrid proper was 3,093,000 (Madrilenes, madrileños) as of 2003 estimates. ... Isabella II (October 10, 1830–1904), Isabel II in Spanish, was queen of Spain. ... The King of the Franks, in the midst of the Military Chiefs who formed his Treuste, or armed Court, dictates the Salic Law (Code of the Barbaric Laws). ... This article or section should include material from France: Wars of Religion - Bourbon Dynasty. ... Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix commemorates the July Revolution The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution, was a revolt by the middle class against Bourbon King Charles X which forced him out of office and replaced him with the Orleanist King Louis-Philippe. ... The term Quadruple Alliance refers to several historical military alliances; none of which remain in effect. ... April 22 is the 112th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (113th in leap years). ... 1834 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... In politics, the term liberal refers to: an adherent of the ideology of liberalism —an ideology espousing liberty. ... Military Badge of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. ... 1838 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

In January 1840 he entered Lord Melbourne's administration as Lord Privy Seal, and from the death of Lord Holland in the autumn of that year Lord Clarendon also held the office of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster until the dissolution of the ministry in 1841. Deeply convinced that the maintenance of a cordial understanding with France was the most essential condition of peace and of a liberal policy in Europe, he reluctantly concurred in the measures proposed by Lord Palmerston for the expulsion of the Mohammed Ali of Egypt from Syria; he strenuously advocated, with Lord Holland, a more conciliatory policy towards France; and he was only restrained from sending in his resignation by the dislike he felt to break up a cabinet he had so recently joined. January is the first month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... 1840 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne (March 15, 1779-November 24, 1848) was home secretary (1830-1834) and prime minister (1834 and 1835-1841) of Britain, and mentor of Queen Victoria. ... The Lord Privy Seal or Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal is one of the traditional sinecure offices in the British Cabinet. ... Henry Richard Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland (21 November 1773 - 22 October 1840), was an English politician and a major figure in Whig politics in the early 19th century. ... The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is, in modern times, a sinecure office in the British government. ... 1841 is a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... World map showing location of Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston (October 20, 1784 - October 18, 1865) was a British Prime Minister and Liberal politician. ... See Mehemet Ali (Turkey) for the Turkish foreign minister and regent. ...

The interval of Sir Robert Peel's great administration (1841-1846) was to the leaders of the Whig party a period of repose; but Lord Clarendon took the warmest interest in the triumph of the principles of free trade and in the repeal of the corn laws, of which his brother, Charles Pelham Villiers, had been one of the earliest champions. For this reason, upon the formation of Lord John Russell's first administration, Lord Clarendon accepted the office of President of the Board of Trade. Twice in his career the governor-generalship of India was offered him, and once the governor-generalship of Canada; these he refused from reluctance to withdraw from the politics of Europe. But in 1847 a sense of duty compelled him to take a far more laborious and uncongenial appointment. The desire of the cabinet was to abolish the lord-lieutenancy of Ireland, and Lord Clarendon was prevailed upon to accept that office, with a view to transform it ere long into an Irish secretaryship of state. But he had not been many months in Dublin before he acknowledged that the difficulties then existing in Ireland could only be met by the most vigilant and energetic authority, exercised on the spot. The crisis was one of extraordinary peril. Agrarian crimes of horrible atrocity had increased threefold. The Catholic clergy were openly disaffected. This was the second year of the Irish famine, and extraordinary measures were required to regulate the bounty of the government and the nation. In 1848 the revolution in France let loose fresh elements of discord, which culminated in an abortive insurrection, and for a lengthened period Ireland was a prey to more than her wonted symptoms of disaffection and disorder. Lord Clarendon remained viceroy of Ireland till 1852, and left behind him permanent marks of improvement. His services were expressly acknowledged in the queen's speech to both Houses of Parliament in September 1848 ? this being the first time that any civil services obtained that honour; and he was made a Knight of the Garter (retaining also the grand cross of the Bath by special order) on 23 March 1849. This is about the British Prime Minister. ... This article is about the British Whig party. ... Free trade is an economic concept referring to the selling of products between countries without tariffs or other trade barriers. ... The Corn Laws, in force between 1815 and 1846, were import tariffs ostensibly designed to protect British farmers and landowners, against competition from cheap foreign grain imports. ... Charles Pelham Villiers (January 3, 1802–January 16, 1898) was a British politician and lawyer of the 19th century. ... John Russell, 1st Earl Russell (August 18, 1792 - May 28, 1878), known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was a Whig politician who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century. ... The President of the Board of Trade the title of a cabinet position in the United Kingdom government. ... 1847 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (also known as the Viceroy or in the Middle Ages as the Lord Deputy) was the head of Englands (pre-1707) or Britains (post 1707) administration in Ireland. ... Dublins Hapenny Bridge. ... 1848 is a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1852 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... September is the ninth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of four Gregorian months with the length of 30 days. ... 1848 is a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... A garter is one of the Orders most recognisable insignia. ... March 23 is the 82nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (83rd in Leap years). ... 1849 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs

Upon the formation of the coalition ministry between the Whigs and the Peelites, in 1853, under Lord Aberdeen, Lord Clarendon became Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. The country was already "drifting" into the Crimean War, an expression of his own which was never forgotten. Clarendon was not responsible for the policy which brought war about; but when it occurred he employed every means in his power to stimulate and assist the war departments, and above all he maintained the closest relations with the French. The tsar Nicholas had speculated on the impossibility of the sustained joint action of France and England in council and in the field. It was mainly by Lord Clarendon at Whitehall and by Lord Raglan before Sevastopol that such a combination was rendered practicable, and did eventually triumph over the enemy. The diplomatic conduct of such an alliance for three years between two great nations jealous of their military honour and fighting for no separate political advantage, tried by excessive hardships and at moments on the verge of defeat, was certainly one of the most arduous duties ever performed by a minister. The result was due in the main to the confidence with which Lord Clarendon had inspired the emperor of the French, and to the affection and regard of the empress, whom he had known in Spain from her childhood. George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen (January 28, 1784 - December 14, 1860) was a Tory politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1852 until 1855. ... The position of Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs was created in the United Kingdoms governmental reorganization of 1782, in which the Northern and Southern Departments became the Home and Foreign Offices. ... The Crimean War lasted from 28 March 1854 to 1856. ... Nicholas I Pavlovich (Russian: Николай I Павлович, July 6 (June 25, Old Style), 1796–March 2 (February 18, Old Style), 1855) was the Emperor of Russia and king of Poland from 1825 until his death in 1855. ... Field Marshal Lord Raglan during the Crimean War, portrait by Roger Fenton, ca. ... Sevastopol (Севастополь, Sevastopol’ in Ukrainian; Aqyar in Crimean Tatar), formerly known as Sebastopol, is a port city in Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of Crimean peninsula. ...

In 1856 Lord Clarendon took his seat at the congress of Paris convoked for the restoration of peace, as first British plenipotentiary. It was the first time since the appearance of Lord Castlereagh at Vienna that a secretary of state for foreign affairs had been present in person at a congress on the continent. Lord Clarendon's first care was to obtain the admission of Piedmont-Sardinia to the council chamber as a belligerent power, and to raise the barrier which still excluded Prussia as a neutral one. But in the general anxiety of all the powers to terminate the war there was no small danger that the objects for which it had been undertaken would be abandoned or forgotten. It is due entirely to the firmness of Lord Clarendon that the principle of the neutralization of the Black Sea was preserved, that the Russian attempt to trick the allies out of the cession in Bessarabia was defeated, and that the results of the war were for a time secured. The congress was eager to turn to other subjects, and perhaps the most important result of its deliberations was the celebrated Declaration of the Maritime Powers, which abolished privateering, defined the right of blockade, and limited the right of capture to enemy's property in enemy's ships. Lord Clarendon has been accused of an abandonment of what are termed the belligerent rights of Great Britain, which were undoubtedly based on the old maritime laws of Europe. But he acted in strict conformity with the views of the British cabinet, and the British cabinet adopted those views because it was satisfied that it was not for the benefit of the country to adhere to practices which exposed the vast mercantile interests of Britain to depredation, even by the cruisers of a secondary maritime power, and which, if vigorously enforced against neutrals, could not fail to embroil her with every maritime state in the world. 1856 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, (June 18, 1769 - August 12, 1822), known until 1821 by his courtesy title of Viscount Castlereagh, was an Anglo-Irish politician born in Dublin who represented the United Kingdom at the Congress of Vienna. ... Vienna (German: Wien [viːn]) is the capital of Austria, and also one of Austrias nine federal states (Bundesland Wien). ... Kingdom of Sardinia, in 1839: Mainland Piedmont, with Savoia upper left (pink) and Nizza (Nice) lower left (brown) both now French, and Sardinia in the inset The Kingdom of Sardinia is a former kingdom in Italy. ... Satellite view of the Black Sea, taken by NASA MODIS Cities of the Black Sea The Black Sea (known as the Euxine Sea in the antiquity) is an inland sea between southeastern Europe and Asia Minor. ... Old map of Bessarabia Bessarabia or Bessarabiya (Basarabia in Romanian, Besarabya in Turkish) was the name used by Russia to designate the eastern part of the territory known as Moldova (Moldavia in English), which was occupied by Russia in 1812. ...

Upon the reconstitution of the Whig administration in 1859, Lord John Russell made it a condition of his acceptance of office under Lord Palmerston that the foreign department should be placed in his own hands, which implied that Lord Clarendon should be excluded from office, as it would have been inconsistent alike with his dignity and his tastes to fill any other post in the government. The consequence was that from 1859 till 1864 Lord Clarendon remained out of office, and the critical relations arising out of the Civil War in the United States were left to the guidance of Earl Russell. But he re-entered the cabinet in May 1864 as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster; and upon the death of Lord Palmerston in 1865, Lord Russell again became prime minister, when Lord Clarendon returned to the foreign office, which was again confided to him for the third time upon the formation of Gladstone's administration in 1868. To the last moment of his existence, Lord Clarendon continued to devote every faculty of his mind and every instant of his life to the public service; and he expired surrounded by the boxes and papers of his office on June 27, 1870. No man owed more to the influence of a generous, unselfish and liberal disposition. If he had rivals he never ceased to treat them with the consideration and confidence of friends, and he cared but little for the ordinary prizes of ambition in comparison with the advancement of the cause of peace and progress. The American Civil War was fought in the United States from 1861 until 1865 between the United States – forces coming mostly from the 23 northern states of the Union – and the newly-formed Confederate States of America, which consisted of 11 southern states that had declared their secession. ... This article is about the month of May. ... 1864 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is, in modern times, a sinecure office in the British government. ... 1865 is a common year starting on Sunday. ... William Ewart Gladstone (29 December 1809–19 May 1898) was a British Liberal politician and Prime Minister (1868–1874, 1880–1885, 1886 and 1892–1894). ... 1868 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... 1870 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...

Signed Clarendon Military Passport 1857

Download high resolution version (1000x1399, 303 KB)Signed Document from George Villiers, 4th Earl of Clarendon File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Download high resolution version (1000x1399, 303 KB)Signed Document from George Villiers, 4th Earl of Clarendon File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

Family Connections to Other Statesmen

Lord Clarendon's daughter Lady Constance Villiers and niece Edith Villiers both married prominent statesmen and public figures. Lady Constance Villiers married the 16th Earl of Derby. Lord Derby was himself as Baron Stanley of Preston, a Governor-General of Canada, and a son of the 14th Earl of Derby who had been Prime Minister in the 1860s. Clarendon's niece Edith Villiers was the wife of Robert Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Earl of Lytton, a Governor-General and Viceroy of India. Sir Frederick Arthur Stanley, 16th Earl of Derby, 1st Baron Stanley of Preston (January 15, 1841 - June 14, 1908) was Colonial Secretary from 1885 to 1886 and Governor-General of Canada from 1888 to 1893. ... Edward George Geoffrey Smith-Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby. ... The Rt Hon. ...

Succession

John William Ponsonby, 4th Earl of Bessborough also known as Lord Duncannon (31 August 1781 - 16 May 1849) was an English politician. ... The Lord Privy Seal or Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal is one of the traditional sinecure offices in the British Cabinet. ... Richard Plantagenet Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (1797-1861) was a British Tory politician and aristocrat. ... Henry Richard Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland (21 November 1773 - 22 October 1840), was an English politician and a major figure in Whig politics in the early 19th century. ... The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is, in modern times, a sinecure office in the British government. ... Sir George Grey, of Fallodon, 2nd Baronet (1799-1882) was a perennial Whig cabinet minister in the mid-19th century, serving in the cabinets of Lord Melbourne, Lord John Russell, Lord Aberdeen, and Lord Palmerston. ... Henry Richard Vassall-Fox, 3rd Baron Holland (21 November 1773 - 22 October 1840), was an English politician and a major figure in Whig politics in the early 19th century. ... The President of the Board of Trade the title of a cabinet position in the United Kingdom government. ... James Andrew Broun-Ramsay, 1st Marquess and 10th Earl of Dalhousie (April 22, 1812–December 19, 1860) was a British statesman, and a colonial administrator in India. ... John William Ponsonby, 4th Earl of Bessborough also known as Lord Duncannon (31 August 1781 - 16 May 1849) was an English politician. ... The Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (also known as the Viceroy or in the Middle Ages as the Lord Deputy) was the head of Englands (pre-1707) or Britains (post 1707) administration in Ireland. ... Archibald William Montgomerie, 13th earl of Eglinton (September 29, 1812 - October 4, 1861), was born at Palermo. ... John Russell, 1st Earl Russell (August 18, 1792 - May 28, 1878), known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was a Whig politician who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century. ... The position of Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs was created in the United Kingdoms governmental reorganization of 1782, in which the Northern and Southern Departments became the Home and Foreign Offices. ... The Rt Hon. ... Edward Cardwell, 1st Viscount Cardwell (July 24, 1813–February 15, 1886) was a prominent British politician in the Peelite and Liberal parties during the middle of the 19th century. ... The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is, in modern times, a sinecure office in the British government. ... George Joachim Goschen, 1st Viscount Goschen (10 August 1831 - 7 February 1907) was a British statesman and businessman ironically best remembered for being forgotten by Lord Randolph Churchill. ... John Russell, 1st Earl Russell (August 18, 1792 - May 28, 1878), known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was a Whig politician who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in the mid-19th century. ... The position of Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs was created in the United Kingdoms governmental reorganization of 1782, in which the Northern and Southern Departments became the Home and Foreign Offices. ... The Rt Hon. ... The Rt Hon. ... The position of Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs was created in the United Kingdoms governmental reorganization of 1782, in which the Northern and Southern Departments became the Home and Foreign Offices. ... Granville George Leveson-Gower, 2nd Earl Granville (May 11, 1815 - March 31, 1891) was an English statesman. ...

This article incorporates text from the public domain 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. The title Earl of Clarendon was created in 1776 for Thomas Villiers. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ... The Eleventh Edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica ( 1911) in many ways represents the sum of knowledge at the beginning of the 20th century. ...