Georgian England

Seizing the Moment

/ RGilbert

If the news articles about Rishi Sunak becoming the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom would only add a simple graphic, we would not need to read the entire story.  At a glance, we would see which boxes are checked.  Among other bits of trivia, most of the reports point out that he is the youngest person to hold this office in 200 years.  At 42-years-old, Mr.  Sunak is eighteen years older than William Pitt the Younger was, when he became Prime Minister of Great Britain in 1783.  Like Rishi Sunak, Mr.  Pitt had been Chancellor of the Exchequer prior to his rise to the Tory leadership position.

Palace of Westminster from Victoria Tower Gardens

William Pitt was 21-years old in 1780, when he was elected to the House of Commons with the help of his friend Charles Manners, Duke of Rutland.  The Duke had connected Mr.  Pitt with a wealthy landowner, who sponsored the young man’s candidacy for a rotten borough under his control.  A rotten borough was a district that should not have been entitled to any representation in Parliament, because it had become depopulated.  These boroughs were often corrupt, because their MPs were usually beholden to powerful, self-interested patrons.

Just 20-years-old when he was elected to Parliament in 1774, Charles Manners was even younger than Mr. Pitt had been.   Representing the constituency of Cambridge University, he was known at the time as the Marquess of Granby.  He served for five years, until he became Duke of Rutland upon the death of his grandfather.  Not long after becoming Duke of Rutland, Charles Manners raised the 86th Regiment of Foot for service in the American Revolutionary War.  He asked his friend Anthony St. Leger to come out of his retirement from the military and lead it.  Colonel St. Leger, the founder of the horse racing world’s classic St. Leger Stakes, readily agreed.  He shipped out to St. Lucia with his troops, to defend an important British port against the French fleet, and returned to England in 1781, in time for the September running of the St. Leger Stakes at Doncaster.  In recognition of St. Leger’s inspiring leadership in the West Indies, King George III promoted him to Major General.

St. James’s Palace

In February 1783, Charles Manners became Lord Steward of the Household of King George and a member of the Privy Council.  The following February, Prime Minister Pitt appointed Charles to be Lord Deputy of Ireland.  Anthony St. Leger accompanied the Duke of Rutland to Dublin Castle as Major General on his staff.  

Charles was a lively, popular man.  Despite his marriage to Mary Isabella Somerset, who was considered to be the most elegant and beautiful woman of her time, Charles had a reputation for licentiousness.  He also had a love for rich food and red wine and would often forego sleep.  His fast-paced living took its toll.  At the time of his tragic death from liver disease in 1787, Charles was 33-years old, nine years younger than the age of United Kingdom’s youngest prime minister in 200 years.

Lord Rockingham’s Passion

/ RGilbert

Liz Truss made history by resigning as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom on October 19, 2022, after only 44 days in office. It was 240 years ago, on July 1, 1782, when the second term of Prime Minister Charles Watson-Wentworth, Marquess of Rockingham, ended after only 96 days. The flu epidemic of 1782 took the life of 52-year-old Lord Rockingham.  He had been successfully controlling his dropsy through diet and exercise but, like many of the early fatalities of the novel corona virus pandemic in 2020, a comorbidity inhibited his ability to fight the illness.

One of the wealthiest men in England, Lord Rockingham lived near Rotherham in South Yorkshire, England, in Wentworth Woodhouse, a 300-room estate that sprawled over 225 acres. Although he was an influential politician and served in the House of Lords, his passion was raising and racing horses. He kept 200 of them in his stables at his estate.

Lord Rockingham’s friend, Colonel Anthony St. Leger, lived at the nearby Park Hill Estate in Firbeck. They shared a passion for horses. In 1776, Colonel St. Leger moved an annual two-mile race from Firbeck to a better track at Doncaster.  One of his fillies finished second behind the winner, a three-year-old filly owned by Lord Rockingham.  Two years later, Lord Rockingham suggested that the annual race be named after its founder.  To this day, the St. Leger Stakes is still run every September at Doncaster.

York Racecourse
York Racecourse

Horse racing in York, England, dates back to the Roman occupation, and the York Racecourse has been on its current site at Knavesmire since 1730. The first grandstand was built there in 1754, financed by 250 people under a subscription scheme devised by Lord Rockingham. The elegant two-story building with a rooftop viewing platform, designed by architect John Carr, was not only the first grandstand at the York Racecourse, it was the first one anywhere.  

Whistlejacket by George Stubbs at the National Gallery, London

The painting of Lord Rockingham’s Arabian thoroughbred Whistlejacket by George Stubbs was acquired in 1997 by the National Gallery in London for £11 million. It caused a sensation when it was first commissioned about 1762.  The rearing horse is depicted nearly life-size against a tan background. At the time, it was a departure from the expectation that the muscular animal would be depicted under the control of a rider against a scenic setting. It has been suggested that Lord Rockingham wanted the viewer to focus on the raw power and beauty of the horse, without any distraction. A plain colorfield was the best way to achieve this effect. Whistlejacket is now considered to be George Stubbs’ masterpiece.

Crying time

/ RGilbert
London Bound
London bound

One year ago today, on February 27, 2020, I was on a plane bound for London.  There were a few more documents I wanted to review at the National Archives and one book I particularly had to see at the British Library.  Two weeks after I got home, travel was restricted.  As much as I would have liked to return to England, I was very grateful and relieved that I had gone when I did.

Royal Opera House – Curtain Call

In January of 2019, I had been in London doing research for a new historical novel about the world of opera.  It was exciting to stay in Covent Garden and attend a performance of the Royal Opera.  On my last day in town, I indulged a whim to go see a portrait of a British Army officer that I had come across when I was writing my novel, A Moon Garden.  When I saw the painting, I was captivated.  The artist had masterfully captured the essence of a young, confident, strong, and beautiful man.  

It was difficult to find out anything about this soldier, and I realized that the novel was going to have to wait.  It had become my mission to uncover this man’s story and tell it.  After researching for a year, I began writing.  My pursuit of information was ongoing throughout the year that it took to complete the written chronology of the life of this inspiring man.  When I was nearly finished, I became sad.  As I wrote the last lines, I cried.

A friend recognized my symptoms.  She laughed at me and said, “You did this last time too.”

“When I wrote A Moon Garden?”

“Yes,”

“I cried?”

“You got very emotional.”

I did.  Writing the novel was a psychological journey. The main character was constantly faced with challenges and crises in matters of war, love, family, and community.  As I wrote his story, I felt his worries, his joys, his internal conflicts.  I would listen to arias while working at my desk and suddenly find myself weeping.  But that was separate from what I experienced when I finished writing the book. A different kind of sadness enveloped me.

While I felt the thrill of accomplishment, I also had a sense of loss.  After spending over a year researching and writing about my fictional characters, I had a strong attachment to them.  Although I was glad at last to be able to share the story with my readers, it was an adjustment to let go and change my priorities.  That is how I feel now about this soldier.  For two years, I was singularly absorbed in connecting with him, discovering who he was, what he did, where he went, how he thought, why he made his choices. It is a relief to know that his story is closer to being known. 

For a few minutes, I indulged in some crying time.  The mood has passed.  I still have work to do.

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