Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville

Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville

Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville (born March 14, 1771 in Edinburgh , † June 10, 1851 at Melville Castle near Dalkeith , Scotland ) was a British statesman.

Early years and family

Dundas was born in 1771 as the only son of Henry Dundas , later Viscount Melville . After first going to school in Edinburgh, he attended the Georg-August University of Göttingen , the University of Edinburgh and the Emmanuel College of the University of Cambridge accompanied by his court master John Bruce (approx. 1745-1826) . In 1788 he was admitted to the Lincoln's Inn as a lawyer.

Six years later he became his father's private secretary and at the same time a member of the House of Commons . In the same year he married Anne Saunders, with whom he had six children. His eldest son inherited his title, the second son, Richard Saunders Dundas , became First Sea Lord .

Political career

After having been an inconspicuous member of parliament for many years, he first came into the public eye with several speeches during the impeachment proceedings against his father. In 1807 he became President of the Board of Control , which oversaw the British East India Company . His activity in this regard, which lasted until 1812, was interrupted in 1809 for six months, during which he was Chief Secretary for Ireland . In 1811 he inherited his father's title.

As First Lord of the Admiralty from 1812 to 1827 and First Lord Sea Lord from 1828 to 1830, he led the Royal Navy to victory in the Napoleonic Wars . In the peacetime that followed, Dundas tried in a variety of ways to mitigate the massive downsizing of the fleet. At first he was skeptical of the emerging steamships; he feared that the Royal Navy would lose its supremacy on the oceans. In addition, Dundas campaigned for the exploration of the Arctic .

Dundas died at Melville Castle in 1851.

Honors

Dundas was accepted in 1817 as a member (" Fellow ") in the Royal Society . In his honor, carrying Melville Island and the Strait Viscount Melville Sound in northern Canada, the Melville Bay in Greenland and Melville Island in northern Australia his name. In the Antarctic, Cape Melville , Melville Highlands and, indirectly, Melville Peak and the Melville Peninsula are named after him.

literature

• Johanna Oehler: “Abroad at Göttingen” British students as actors in the transfer of cultural knowledge 1735–1806 , Wallstein, Göttingen 2016, pp. 167–190

Web links

Commons : Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Entry to Dundas; Robert Saunders (1771-1851); 2nd Viscount Melville in the Archives of the Royal Society , London

Individual evidence

1. ^ Johanna Oehler: "Abroad at Göttingen" British students as actors in the transfer of cultural knowledge 1735–1806 , Wallstein, Göttingen 2016, pp. 190–198

predecessor	Office	successor
Henry Dundas	Viscount Melville 1811-1851	Henry Dundas
William, Duke of Clarence	First Lord of the Admiralty 1828–1830	James Graham