William North, 6th Baron North

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
William North, 6th Baron North. Mezzotint after a painting by Godfrey Kneller

William North, 6th Baron North , 2nd Baron Gray of Rolleston FRS (born December 22, 1678 in Caldecote , Cambridgeshire , † October 31, 1734 in Madrid ) was an English or British nobleman, general and politician who led the Jacobite conspiracy of 1722.

Life

Origin and youth

William North was the eldest son of Charles North, 5th Baron North and 1st Baron Gray of Rolleston, and of Katherine († 1694), the only daughter of William Gray, 1st Baron Gray of Warke . After his father's death in 1691, his mother married Francis Russell in the same year, who became governor of Barbados in 1694 , where she died shortly afterwards. William, who had already inherited his father's estates in Cambridgeshire, also inherited their estates in Essex and Kent . He grew up with his brother Charles and older sister Dudleya , and they were raised together. The siblings developed a close bond and the two brothers developed a deep admiration for their older, intelligent sister. From October 1691, William and Charles attended Magdalene College in Cambridge , which Charles left as a master's in 1695 . William, on the other hand, left college in 1694 without a degree and moved to the newly founded Foubert's Military Academy in London. To avoid the growing debt, his uncle Roger North advised him in 1696 to go abroad. When he came of age in 1699, he returned to England and became a member of the House of Lords as Baron North and Gray of Rolleston .

Military career

At the beginning of the War of the Spanish Succession , North joined the English Army in March 1702 as captain of the Foot Guards . In January 1703 he became regimental commander of the 10th Infantry Regiment, with whom he at the August 1704 Battle of Hochstadt participated in which he was wounded and lost his right hand. In December 1704 he returned to England with Marlborough . In February 1705 he was promoted to brigadier general, in 1709 to major general and in 1710 to lieutenant general . He took part in the campaigns in Flanders until 1711, u. a. In 1708 at the siege of Lille , in September 1709 at the battle of Malplaquet , in 1710 at the siege of Béthune and in 1711 at that of Bouchain . In 1712 he became governor of Portsmouth .

Political career

While serving in the Army during the summer months, he spent the winter months in London, where he quickly became a major MP in the House of Lords. He was considered a staunch Tory throughout his political career . In numerous debates between 1706 and 1723, North, who was considered an eloquent and passionate speaker, expressed himself critically and often mockingly towards the Whigs . He particularly stood out during the debates on the union with Scotland , he also fought against the impeachment proceedings against Henry Dingverell . In 1710 he voted like Marlborough against the campaigns planned for that year. During his visit to London, Prinz Eugen also visited North. In 1711, North became a member of the Privy Council and was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire.

North opposed the Protestant line of succession, which excluded the Catholic James Francis Edward Stuart , the son of King James II, who was overthrown in 1689, from the line of succession. When the government tried in June 1713 to persuade the other European powers not to grant asylum to James Stuart, the so-called pretender , North protested, as did when a bounty was offered on the pretender in April 1714 . In 1714, the Protestant George I ascended the British throne, and from then on North was considered a Jacobite suspect by the Whig government , so that he lost his office as Governor of Portsmouth. Lord Bolingbroke , the leader of the Tories, on the other hand, valued North as an honest and loyal supporter who supported the interests of the Stuarts not only in his own interests. Although the Pretender encouraged him to do so, North was not actively involved in the 1715 Jacobite Rising. However, he was suspected by the government and was arrested, but was soon released. However, he had to give up his post as Lord Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire. 1720 became North Fellow of the Royal Society .

Involved in the Atterbury conspiracy

In the next attempt of the Jacobites to overthrow the Hanoverian king, however, North was undoubtedly involved. After the South Sea bubble burst in 1720, he belonged to the core of the group of conspirators around Bishop Francis Atterbury , which prepared an armed uprising from the beginning of 1722. North was in close contact with Christopher Layer , a Norfolk attorney who had traveled to Rome as a messenger to the Pretender in 1721. Upon his return, Layer sought authorized godparents to represent the pretender and his wife as godparents at his daughter's baptism. After Charles Boyle, 4th Earl of Orrery , turned down, North took on the honorable task. After being baptized in April 1722, a friendship developed between North and Layer. The military experienced North probably supplemented and revised the Jacobite overthrow plans. North was designated as the commander of the insurgents in London and Westminster and thus had the difficult task of occupying the capital. The Pretender bestowed on him the title of Earl of North and appointed him Lord Regent . Just before the conspirators could start the uprising, Layer was arrested. During interrogation he admitted his contacts with North, and on September 26, 1722, North was ordered to be arrested for high treason. North was able to escape first and escaped on a smuggler's boat. He reached the Isle of Wight , where he was arrested and taken to the Tower of London . His home had been searched for evidence and, as a peer , North was interrogated by other nobles. Although there was little doubt about his involvement in the conspiracy, according to Layer, North was never brought to justice. At his own trial, Layer asked that North and Orrery also be called as witnesses. North made a brief statement, but it was limited to court orders. Since the statements were contradicting each other, the exact extent of North's involvement in the conspiracy is unknown to this day.

Life in exile

On May 25, 1723, North was released after paying a bail of £ 20,000 and four guarantors each had to deposit £ 10,000. On October 28, he was released from his offices and functions and shortly thereafter went into exile. He first lived in the Netherlands, where he had close contact with Atterbury and other leading Jacobites such as the Earl of Orrery and Philip Wharton, 1st Duke of Wharton in Brussels and Paris until 1728 . In 1727 he was considered a candidate for the post of leading secretary of the Jacobites, but James Graeme , the Jacobite agent in Vienna, was appointed in his place. North probably did not get the post because he had fallen out with Atterbury and criticized the Pretender's separation from his wife.

Upon returning to Britain, North feared prosecution and conviction, but in exile he could not dispose of the income from his British possessions. However, he refused to use his wife's inheritance to pay off his debts and to bring about a lifestyle appropriate to his class. After numerous requests, he received a post in the Spanish army in 1728 thanks to the mediation of James Butler, 2nd Duke of Ormonde, who was also in exile . In the same year he converted to Catholicism. This removed him further from the leading Jacobites around Atterbury, who bitterly rebuked North for converting, and his relationship with the Pretender also cooled. North commanded troops in and around Barcelona in the Spanish service . Like the Duke of Wharton, he unsuccessfully asked the British government for a pardon in 1731 and ultimately died bitterly in exile in Spain.

Marriage and inheritance

In October 1705 North Maria Margaretta († 1762), a daughter of Cornelis de Jonge van Ellemeet , the general tax collector of the Netherlands , married. His wife brought a rich dowry into the marriage, which, however, remained childless. Marriage is described by some historians as loveless, on the other hand Maria Margaretta has been described as attractive, and numerous love letters to his wife have been received from North. After his death, his wife was second married to Patrick Murray, 5th Lord Elibank , with whom she lived in Scotland.

North had an illegitimate son, William Greyson, who was born around 1724. His mother could have been Catherine Vanderline, who was married to an older man but was his mistress for several years during North's exile before he separated from her in Spain.

With his death, the title Baron Gray of Rolleston and the Jacobite title Earl North expired , the title Baron North inherited Francis North, 4th Baron Guilford , a grandson of his cousin Francis North, 2nd Baron Guilford .

Web links

Commons : William North, 6th Baron North  - Collection of Pictures, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Catharine Gray on thepeerage.com , accessed August 17, 2015.
predecessor Office successor
Charles North Baron North
1690-1734 		Francis North
Charles North Baron Gray of Rolleston
1690-1734 		Title expired
personal data
SURNAME North, William, 6th Baron North
ALTERNATIVE NAMES North, William, 2nd Baron Gray of Rolleston; North, William, Baron North and Gray
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British nobleman, general and politician, Jacobite conspirator
DATE OF BIRTH December 22, 1678
PLACE OF BIRTH Caldecote (Cambridgeshire)
DATE OF DEATH October 31, 1734
Place of death Madrid