William Legge 2nd Earl of Dartmouth PC,
FRSThe Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
(20 June 1731 – 15 July 1801), styled as
Viscount Lewisham from 1732 to 1750, was a
BritishThe former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
statesmanA statesman is usually a politician or other notable public figure who has had a long and respected career in politics or government at the national and international level. As a term of respect, it is usually left to supporters or commentators to use the term...
who is most remembered for his part in the government before and during the
American RevolutionThe American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
.
Background
Dartmouth was the son of George Legge, Viscount Lewisham (d. 1732), son of
William Legge, 1st Earl of DartmouthWilliam Legge, 1st Earl of Dartmouth , only son of George Legge, 1st Baron Dartmouth, succeeded to his father's barony in 1691. In 1702 he was appointed a member of the Board of Trade and Plantations, and eight years later he became Secretary of State for the Southern Department and joint keeper of...
. His mother was Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Arthur Kaye, 3rd Baronet. He succeeded his grandfather in the earldom in 1750.
Political career
Lord Dartmouth was
Secretary of State for the ColoniesThe Secretary of State for the Colonies or Colonial Secretary was the British Cabinet minister in charge of managing the United Kingdom's various colonial dependencies....
from 1772 to 1775. It was Lord Dartmouth who, in 1764, at the suggestion of
Thomas HaweisThomas Haweis was born in Redruth, Cornwall, on 1 January 1734, where he was baptised on 20 February 1734...
, recommended
John NewtonJohn Henry Newton was a British sailor and Anglican clergyman. Starting his career on the sea at a young age, he became involved with the slave trade for a few years. After experiencing a religious conversion, he became a minister, hymn-writer, and later a prominent supporter of the abolition of...
, the former slave trader, to the
Bishop of ChesterThe Bishop of Chester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Chester in the Province of York.The diocese expands across most of the historic county boundaries of Cheshire, including the Wirral Peninsula and has its see in the City of Chester where the seat is located at the Cathedral...
, and was instrumental in his being accepted for the Anglican ministry.
In 1772, in correspondence with Sir William Johnson, the Superintendent of Northern Indian Affairs in America, he suggested there was no reasonable way the British Government could support new trade regulations with the Indians. He sympathised with Johnson's arguments but stated the Colonies do not seem inclined to concur with any new regulations.
Philanthropy
Lord Dartmouth was a large donor to and the leading trustee for the English trust that would finance the establishment of the Indian Charity School, in Lebanon, Connecticut by
Eleazar WheelockEleazar Wheelock was an American Congregational minister, orator, educator, and founder of Dartmouth College....
to educate and
convertReligious conversion is the adoption of a new religion that differs from the convert's previous religion. Changing from one denomination to another within the same religion is usually described as reaffiliation rather than conversion.People convert to a different religion for various reasons,...
the Indians. Wheelock subsequently founded
Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
in
Hanover, New HampshireHanover is a town along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 11,260 at the 2010 census. CNN and Money magazine rated Hanover the sixth best place to live in America in 2011, and the second best in 2007....
, naming the school in Lord Dartmouth's honor in hopes of getting his financial support. Lord Dartmouth refused. In London, Lord Dartmouth supported the new
Foundling HospitalThe Foundling Hospital in London, England was founded in 1741 by the philanthropic sea captain Thomas Coram. It was a children's home established for the "education and maintenance of exposed and deserted young children." The word "hospital" was used in a more general sense than it is today, simply...
, a charitable institution for the care and maintenance of London's abandoned children. He served as a vice president of the organization from 1755 until his death. The famous painter
Sir Joshua ReynoldsSir Joshua Reynolds RA FRS FRSA was an influential 18th-century English painter, specialising in portraits and promoting the "Grand Style" in painting which depended on idealization of the imperfect. He was one of the founders and first President of the Royal Academy...
painted the Earl's portrait and donated it to the hospital. The portrait is still in the Foundling Hospital Collection and can be seen at the
Foundling MuseumThe Foundling Museum in London tells the story of the Foundling Hospital, Britain's first home for abandoned children. The museum houses the nationally important Foundling Hospital Art Collection as well as the Gerald Coke Handel Collection, the world's greatest privately amassed collection of...
in London. He was admitted a Fellow of the Royal Society on 7 November 1754.
Family
Lord Dartmouth married Frances Catherine, daughter of Sir Charles Gounter Nicoll, in 1755. Their younger sons Admiral the Hon.
Sir Arthur Kaye LeggeAdmiral Sir Arthur Kaye Legge KCB was an officer of the British Royal Navy who served in three wars and commanded ships in several campaigns. Known as a brave officer and an effective commander, Legge was given several very important postings in the latter part of his career as a rear-admiral,...
and the Right Reverend the Hon.
Edward LeggeEdward Legge was an English churchman and academic, bishop of Oxford from 1816 and Warden of All Souls College, Oxford from 1817.-Life:...
,
Bishop of OxfordThe Bishop of Oxford is the diocesan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Oxford in the Province of Canterbury; his seat is at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford...
, both gained distinction. Their daughter Charlotte married
Charles Duncombe, 1st Baron FevershamCharles Duncombe, 1st Baron Feversham was a British Member of Parliament.Feversham was appointed High Sheriff of Yorkshire in 1790. He was elected to the House of Commons for Shaftesbury in 1790, a seat he held until 1796, and then represented Aldborough from 1796 to 1806, Heytesbury from 1812 to...
. Lord Dartmouth died in July 1801, aged 70, and was succeeded by his eldest son,
GeorgeGeorge Legge, 3rd Earl of Dartmouth KG, PC, FRS , styled Viscount Lewisham until 1801, was a British politician.-Background:...
. Lady Dartmouth died in July 1805. The family lived at Sandwell Hall (since demolished) in the
Sandwell ValleySandwell Valley is an area of green belt in the West Midlands of England, on the border of Birmingham and West Bromwich, with Walsall at its northern end....
.
External links
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