Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of Northumberland,
KGThe 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...
, PC (c. 1714 – 6 June 1786) was an Engish peer, landowner and art patron.
He was born Hugh Smithson, the son of Langdale Smithson and grandson of Sir Hugh Smithson, 3rd Baronet from whom he inherited the baronetcy in 1733. He changed his surname to Percy when he married
Elizabeth SeymourElizabeth Percy, née Seymour, Duchess of Northumberland, heiress to the earldom of Northumberland and 2nd Baroness Percy was a British peeress....
, daughter of
Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of SomersetGeneral Algernon Seymour, 7th Duke of Somerset was the son of Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset and his wife, Elizabeth...
, on 16 July 1740. She was
Baroness Percy in her own right, and indirect heiress of the Percy family, which was one of the leading landowning families of England, and had previously held the
Earldom of NorthumberlandThe title of Earl of Northumberland was created several times in the Peerages of England and Great Britain, succeeding the title Earl of Northumbria. Its most famous holders were the House of Percy , who were the most powerful noble family in Northern England for much of the Middle Ages...
for several centuries. The title,
Earl of Northumberland passed to Hugh Percy, as Elizabeth's husband, when her father died. In 1766, the earl was created 1st
Duke of NorthumberlandThe Duke of Northumberland is a title in the peerage of Great Britain that has been created several times. Since the third creation in 1766, the title has belonged to the House of Percy , which held the title of Earl of Northumberland from 1377....
and was created
Baron LovaineThe title Baron Lovaine was created in the Peerage of Great Britain for the 1st Duke of Northumberland in 1784. The title was created with a special remainder to pass to his second son, Lord Algernon Percy, which it did so on the duke's death in 1786...
on 28 June 1784, with a special remainder in favour of his younger son, Algernon. He was created a Knight of the
Order of the GarterThe 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...
(K.G.) in 1756 and a
Privy CounsellorA privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...
in 1762.
Sir Hugh was one of the most important patrons of
CanalettoGiovanni Antonio Canal better known as Canaletto , was a Venetian painter famous for his landscapes, or vedute, of Venice. He was also an important printmaker in etching.- Early career :...
in England. The other great patron
Lord BrookeEarl of Warwick is a title that has been created four times in British history and is one of the most prestigious titles in the peerages of the British Isles.-1088 creation:...
(Earl of Warwick, fourth creation), of
Warwick CastleWarwick Castle is a medieval castle in Warwick, the county town of Warwickshire, England. It sits on a bend on the River Avon. The castle was built by William the Conqueror in 1068 within or adjacent to the Anglo-Saxon burh of Warwick. It was used as a fortification until the early 17th century,...
was a quasi-brother-in-law. Smithson made a
Grand TourThe Grand Tour was the traditional trip of Europe undertaken by mainly upper-class European young men of means. The custom flourished from about 1660 until the advent of large-scale rail transit in the 1840s, and was associated with a standard itinerary. It served as an educational rite of passage...
and was in Venice in 1733, where he acquired two large Canalettos for his seat at Stanwick. In 1736 he became one of the two vice presidents of the
Society for the Encouragement of Learning. He re-built
Stanwick ParkStanwick Park was a palladian country house at Stanwick St John in Yorkshire. It was re-built by the 1st Duke of Northumberland, a great patron of the arts, c1739-1740, mostly to his own designs. The Duke's principal seat was Alnwick Castle thus Stanwick Park was always a secondary residence...
c. 1739–1740, mostly to his own designs. He was one of the 175 commissioners for the building of
Westminster BridgeWestminster Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge over the River Thames between Westminster on the north side and Lambeth on the south side, in London, England....
, a structure he had Canaletto paint two more large canvases, c. 1747. He built an observatory, designed by
Robert AdamRobert Adam was a Scottish neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam , Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him...
, on Ratcheugh Crag, at
LonghoughtonLonghoughton is a small rural village in Northumberland, England. It lies near the coast, about northeast of Alnwick, in the similarly named parish of Longhoughton....
.
Thomas ChippendaleThomas Chippendale was a London cabinet-maker and furniture designer in the mid-Georgian, English Rococo, and Neoclassical styles. In 1754 he published a book of his designs, titled The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's Director...
dedicated his
Gentleman & Cabinet maker's director (1754) to him. He became 2nd
Earl of NorthumberlandThe title of Earl of Northumberland was created several times in the Peerages of England and Great Britain, succeeding the title Earl of Northumbria. Its most famous holders were the House of Percy , who were the most powerful noble family in Northern England for much of the Middle Ages...
(fifth creation) on the death of his father-in-law, Duke Algernon, on 7 February 1750.
The duke and duchess were prominent patrons of
Robert AdamRobert Adam was a Scottish neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer. He was the son of William Adam , Scotland's foremost architect of the time, and trained under him...
for
neoclassicalNeoclassicism is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the "classical" art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome...
interiors in the
JacobeanThe Jacobean style is the second phase of Renaissance architecture in England, following the Elizabethan style. It is named after King James I of England, with whose reign it is associated.-Characteristics:...
mansion
Northumberland HouseNorthumberland House was a large Jacobean mansion in London, which was so called because for most of its history it was the London residence of the Percy family, who were the Earls and later Dukes of Northumberland, and one of England's richest and most prominent aristocratic dynasties for many...
, the London seat of the
Earls of NorthumberlandThe title of Earl of Northumberland was created several times in the Peerages of England and Great Britain, succeeding the title Earl of Northumbria. Its most famous holders were the House of Percy , who were the most powerful noble family in Northern England for much of the Middle Ages...
; it was demolished ca. 1870–1871, in connection with the creation of
Trafalgar SquareTrafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
. Remnants of the Northumberland House Glass Drawing-Room are preserved at the
Victoria and Albert MuseumThe Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
. The greater Adam interiors for the Duke are at
Syon HouseSyon House, with its 200-acre park, is situated in west London, England. It belongs to the Duke of Northumberland and is now his family's London residence...
, executed in the 1760s. At
Alnwick CastleAlnwick Castle is a castle and stately home in the town of the same name in the English county of Northumberland. It is the residence of the Duke of Northumberland, built following the Norman conquest, and renovated and remodelled a number of times. It is a Grade I listed building.-History:Alnwick...
, Northumberland, the Duke employed
James WyattJames Wyatt RA , was an English architect, a rival of Robert Adam in the neoclassical style, who far outdid Adam in his work in the neo-Gothic style.-Early classical career:...
, whose work has been effaced by later remodellings. One or other Adam designed
Brizlee TowerBrizlee Tower is a Grade 1 listed folly tower set atop a hill in Hulne Park, the walled home park of the Duke of Northumberland in Alnwick, Northumberland...
for the duke.
The duke and duchess had two children:
The duke's illegitimate son (by Elizabeth Hungerford Keate),
James SmithsonJames Smithson, FRS, M.A. was a British mineralogist and chemist noted for having left a bequest in his will to the United States of America, to create "an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men" to be called the Smithsonian Institution.-Biography:Not much is known...
(1765–1829), is famed for having made the founding bequest and provided the name for the
Smithsonian InstitutionThe Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
in
Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....