William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, Prime Minister

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Cavendish,_4th_Duke_of_Devonshire

William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, KG, PC (8 May 1720[1] – 2 October 1764), styled Lord Cavendish before 1729 and Marquess of Hartington between 1729 and 1755, was a British Whig statesman who was briefly titular Prime Minister of Great Britain.

He was elected MP for Derbyshire in 1741 and 1747, but left the House of Commons for the Lords in 1751 by a writ of acceleration as Baron Cavendish and was sworn of the Privy Council. He was Lord Lieutenant of Ireland from 2 April 1755 until 3 January 1757, when his successor, the 4th Duke of Bedford, entered the office. After inheriting his father's peerage titles (chiefly the Dukedom of Devonshire), Devonshire was given the Garter and appointed First Lord of the Treasury (most historians consider him Prime Minister during this service) in November 1756, and he served as First Lord until May 1757 in an administration effectively run by William Pitt the Elder. In 1762, he was sworn of the Privy Council of Ireland.

He married Lady Charlotte Elizabeth Boyle, Baroness Clifford (1731–1754), the daughter and heiress of the 3rd Earl of Burlington of the 1st creation, a famous architect and art collector. Through her, the Devonshires inherited Chiswick House and Burlington House in London; Bolton Abbey and Londesborough Hall in Yorkshire; and Lismore Castle in County Waterford, Ireland. The Duke employed Capability Brown to landscape the garden and park at Chatsworth House, his main residence. He hired James Paine to design the new stable block.

The Duke had four children:

William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire (1748–1811)

Lady Dorothy Cavendish (1750–1794). Married William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland, who also became Prime Minister.

Lord Richard Cavendish (1752–1781)

George Augustus Henry Cavendish, created 1st Earl of Burlington of the 2nd creation (1754–1834). Lord Burlington's grandson, the 2nd Earl of Burlington, would later inherit the Devonshire dukedom as 7th Duke of Devonshire.

Titles from birth to death

Lord Cavendish of Hardwick (1720-1729)

Marquess of Hartington (1729-1741)

Marquess of Hartington, MP (1741-1751)

The Rt. Hon. Marquess of Hartington (1751-1755)

His Grace The Duke of Devonshire, PC (1755-1756)

His Grace The Duke of Devonshire, KG, PC (1756-1764)

4th Duke of Devonshire

Prime Minister;

Knight of the Garter

William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire1

M, #2890, b. 1720, d. 2 October 1764

William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire was born in 1720.3 He was the son of William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire and Catherine Hoskins.1 He married Charlotte Elizabeth Boyle, Baroness Clifford, daughter of Richard Boyle, 4th Earl of Cork and Lady Dorothy Savile, on 27 March 1748 at Pall Mall, St. James's, London, England.3 He died on 2 October 1764 at Spa, Germany.3

    William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire was styled as Marquess of Hartington between 1729 and 1751.4 He held the office of Member of Parliament (M.P.) (Whig) for Derbyshire between 1741 and 1751.1 He was invested as a Privy Counsellor (P.C.) between 1751 and 1762.1 He succeeded to the title of 7th Baron Cavendish of Hardwick, co. Derby [E., 1605] on 13 June 1751, in his father's lifetime.4 He held the office of Governor of County Cork between 1754 and 1764.1 He held the office of Lord High Treasurer [Ireland] between 1754 and 1764.1 He held the office of Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland from 1755 to 1756.1 He succeeded to the title of 4th Marquess of Hartington, co. Derby [E., 1694] on 5 December 1755.1 He succeeded to the title of 4th Duke of Devonshire [E., 1694] on 5 December 1755.1 He succeeded to the title of 7th Earl of Devonshire [E., 1618] on 5 December 1755.1 He was invested as a Knight, Order of the Garter (K.G.) in 1756.1 He held the office of Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury between 16 November 1756 and 25 June 1757.1 He held the office of Lord Chamberlain between 1757 and 1762.1 He has an extensive biographical entry in the Dictionary of National Biography.5

Children of William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire and Charlotte Elizabeth Boyle, Baroness Clifford

William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire+6 b. 14 Dec 1748, d. 29 Jul 1811

Lady Dorothy Cavendish+7 b. 27 Aug 1750, d. 3 Jun 1794

Lord Richard Cavendish1 b. c 1751, d. 1781

George Augustus Henry Cavendish, 1st Earl of Burlington+8 b. 21 Mar 1754, d. 4 May 1834

Citations

[S37] Charles Mosley, editor, Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003), volume 1, page 1128. Hereinafter cited as Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition.

[S3409] Caroline Maubois, "re: Penancoet Family," e-mail message from unknown author e-mail (France) to Darryl Roger Lundy, 2 December 2008. Hereinafter cited as "re: Penancoet Family."

[S6] G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume IV, page 346. Hereinafter cited as The Complete Peerage.

[S6] Cokayne, and others, The Complete Peerage, volume III, page 121.

[S18] Matthew H.C.G., editor, Dictionary of National Biography on CD-ROM (Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press, 1995), Cavendish, William. Hereinafter cited as Dictionary of National Biography.

[S6] Cokayne, and others, The Complete Peerage, volume III, page 302.

[S37] Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition, volume 1, page 1130.

[S6] Cokayne, and others, The Complete Peerage, volume II, page 433.