Edward Knatchbull-Hugessen, 1st Baron Brabourne
| The Right Honourable The Lord Brabourne PC | |
|---|---|
|
"A promising apprentice". Knatchbull-Hugessen M.P. as caricatured by Ape (Carlo Pellegrini) in Vanity Fair, June 1870. | |
| Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department | |
|
In office 25 May 1866 – 26 June 1866 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Prime Minister | The Earl Russell |
| Preceded by | Hon. Thomas Baring |
| Succeeded by | The Earl Belmore |
|
In office 10 December 1868 – 11 January 1871 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Prime Minister | William Ewart Gladstone |
| Preceded by | Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, Bt |
| Succeeded by | George Shaw-Lefevre |
| Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies | |
|
In office 14 January 1871 – 17 February 1871 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Prime Minister | William Ewart Gladstone |
| Preceded by | William Monsell |
| Succeeded by | James Lowther |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 29 April 1829 |
| Died | 6 February 1893 (aged 63) |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Spouse(s) |
(1) Anna Maria Elizabeth Southwell (d. 1889) (2) Ethel Mary Walker |
| Alma mater | Magdalen College, Oxford |
Edward Hugessen Knatchbull-Hugessen, 1st Baron Brabourne PC (29 April 1829 – 6 February 1893), known as E. H. Knatchbull-Hugessen, was a British Liberal politician. He served as Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department under Lord Russell in 1866 and under William Ewart Gladstone from 1868 to 1871 and was also Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies under Gladstone from 1871 to 1874. In 1880 he was elevated to the peerage as Baron Brabourne.
Background and education
Born Edward Hugessen Knatchbull, he was the younger son of Sir Edward Knatchbull, 9th Baronet, who twice served as Paymaster-General, and his second wife Fanny Catherine Knight, who was a niece of author Jane Austen. In 1849 he assumed by Royal licence the additional surname of Hugessen, which was the maiden surname of his father's mother. Knatchbull-Hugessen was educated at Eton and Magdalen College, Oxford, where he was President of the Oxford Union.
Political career
In 1857 Knatchbull-Hugessen was elected Member of Parliament for Sandwich, a seat he would hold until 1880.[1] He served as a Lord of the Treasury under Lord Palmerston from 1859 to 1860, as Under-Secretary of State for Home Affairs under Lord Russell in 1866 and under Gladstone from 1868 to 1871 and as Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies under Gladstone from 1871 to 1874.[2] He was admitted to the Privy Council in 1873[3] and raised to the peerage as Baron Brabourne, of Brabourne in the County of Kent, in 1880.[4]
Brabourne edited the first edition of Jane Austen's letters, published in 1884. This edition included about two-thirds of her surviving letters, and was dedicated to Queen Victoria. He inherited the letters after his mother's death in December 1882.[5] He also wrote short stories, one of which was published in The Gentlewoman in December 1891.[6]
He died on 6 February 1893 at Smeeth Paddocks, and was buried at Smeeth, Kent, on 9 February.[7]
Family
He was twice married: first, on 19 October 1852, at St. Stephen's, Hertfordshire, to Anna Maria Elizabeth, younger daughter of the Rev. Marcus Richard Southwell, vicar of that church, by whom he had two sons and two daughters:[7]
- Hon. Katharine Cecilia Knatchbull-Hugessen (died 21 March 1926).
- Hon. Eva Mary Knatchbull-Hugessen (d. 23 October 1895).
- Edward Knatchbull-Hugessen, 2nd Baron Brabourne (5 April 1857 – 29 December 1909).
- Cecil Marcus Knatchbull-Hugessen, 4th Baron Brabourne (27 November 1863 – 15 February 1933).
Lady Brabourne died on 2 May 1889, and on 3 June 1890 Lord Brabourne remarried Ethel Mary Walker, daughter of Colonel Sir George Gustavus Walker.[7] They had two children:
- Hon. Adrian Norton Knatchbull-Hugessen (5 July 1891 – 30 March 1976).
- Hon. Alicia Mary Dorothea Knatchbull-Hugessen (18 February 1893 – 15 January 1974).
Lord Brabourne was succeeded by his eldest son from his first marriage, Edward.
References
- ↑ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "S" (part 2)
- ↑ Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990,
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 23961. p. 1645. 25 March 1873.
- ↑ The London Gazette: no. 24847. p. 3173. 25 May 1880.
- ↑ Austen, Jane & Lord Brabourne, Letters of Jane Austen; Bentley, 1884 (reissued by Cambridge University Press 2009, ISBN 978-1-108-00338-4)
- ↑ 'Christmas Numbers' in The Times, issue 33508 dated 15 December 1891, p. 6
- 1 2 3 Rae 1901.
- Attribution
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Rae, William Fraser (1901). "Knatchbull-Hugessen, Edward Hugessen". In Sidney Lee. Dictionary of National Biography, 1901 supplement. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Lord Brabourne
- Lord Brabourne edition of Jane Austen's letters
- Works by Edward Knatchbull-Hugessen, 1st Baron Brabourne at Project Gutenberg
- Works by or about Edward Knatchbull-Hugessen, 1st Baron Brabourne at Internet Archive
- Works by Edward Knatchbull-Hugessen, 1st Baron Brabourne at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lord Charles Pelham-Clinton James Macgregor |
Member of Parliament for Sandwich 1857–1880 With: Lord Clarence Paget 1857–1866 Charles Capper 1866–1868 Henry Brassey 1868–1880 |
Succeeded by Henry Arthur Brassey Charles Henry Compton Roberts |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Hon. Thomas Baring |
Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department May–June 1866 |
Succeeded by The Earl Belmore |
| Preceded by Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, Bt |
Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department 1868–1871 |
Succeeded by George Shaw-Lefevre |
| Preceded by William Monsell |
Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies 1871–1874 |
Succeeded by James Lowther |
| Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
| New creation | Baron Brabourne 1880–1893 |
Succeeded by Edward Knatchbull-Hugessen |
|