Frederick North, 5th Earl of Guilford
Frederick North, 5th Earl of Guilford GCMG (* February 7, 1766 - October 14, 1827 ), until 1817 Frederick North (often called Lord Guilford ) was a British politician and colonial administrator and Philhellene .
Life
North was the youngest son of Prime Minister Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford ( named Lord North from 1752 to 1790 ). He spent for health reasons a large part of his youth in continental Europe and studied law at Eton College and at Christ Church College of Oxford University . He was an avid supporter of Greek and Italian culture. From 1792 to 1794 he represented the constituency of Banbury in the House of Commons . From 1795 to 1797 he served as State Secretary to the Viceroy of Corsica and from 1798 to 1805 as Governor of Ceylon . In 1817 he inherited the title of Earl of Guilford after his two older brothers died.
When he died unmarried and childless in 1827, his second nephew Francis North inherited his title of nobility.
Foundation of the Ionian Academy
In 1824, North established the Ionian Academy in Corfu , which was then under British control. As the first university in modern Greece , although it was closed in 1864, it was of major importance for the training of the intellectual leadership of the new Greek state and thus for the spiritual rebirth of Greece.
North, who converted to the Greek Orthodox Creed, remained a generous patron of the Ionian University until his death.
North put a lot of energy and financial resources into building a unique library that reflected his fascination with Greek and Italian culture.
Honors
A statue of the Earl still stands on Corfu. A library and a street are also named after him.
Individual evidence
Web links
- Frederick North, 5th Earl of Guilford on thepeerage.com , accessed August 19, 2015.
- British Library biography
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| Francis North |
Earl of Guilford 1817-1827 |
Francis North |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | North, Frederick, 5th Earl of Guilford |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Lord Guilford; North, Frederick |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British politician, academic and philhellene |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 7, 1766 |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 14, 1827 |