Lord Edward Cavendish

Lord Edward Cavendish
"a good fellow". Caricature by Spy published in Vanity Fair in 1886.
Born28 January 1838
Marylebone, London, England
Died18 May 1891 (aged 53)
Marylebone, London, England
OccupationsPolitician, soldier
TitleLieutenant-Colonel
Spouse
Emma Lascelles
(m. 1865)
ChildrenVictor Cavendish, 9th Duke of Devonshire
Lord Richard Cavendish
Lord John Cavendish
Parent(s)William Cavendish, 7th Duke of Devonshire
Lady Blanche Howard

Lieutenant-Colonel Lord Edward Cavendish MP (28 January 1838 – 18 May 1891) was a 19th-century British politician, soldier, and nobleman.

Family background

Born in Marylebone, Cavendish was the third son of William Cavendish, 7th Duke of Devonshire,[1] by his wife, Lady Blanche Howard (a daughter of the 6th Earl of Carlisle and a niece of the 6th Duke of Devonshire). His father and his two surviving brothers were all Members of Parliament (MPs): his eldest brother Spencer, MP for North Lancashire 1857–91 and later 8th Duke of Devonshire, led the Liberal Party and was asked three times to be Prime Minister by Queen Victoria; the middle brother, Frederick was MP for the West Riding and Chief Secretary for Ireland and was assassinated in 1882.

Military career

Cavendish was commissioned into the part-time 2nd Derbyshire Militia (Chatsworth Rifles) as an ensign on 30 January 1856,[2] and then served as a Regular officer in the Rifle Brigade from 1858[3] to 1865.[4] After retiring from the army he rejoined the Chatsworth Rifles as a captain in 1866 was promoted to major in 1874.[5][6] He was promoted to lieutenant-colonel commandant of the regiment (now the 3rd (2nd Derbyshire Militia) Battalion, Sherwood Foresters) on 9 April 1881, but transferred to command the 1st Volunteer Battalion of the King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster) on 17 March 1888.[6][7]

Political career

Cavendish served as MP for West Derbyshire from the creation of the constituency until his death. Like his eldest brother, he became a Liberal Unionist in reaction to the Liberal Party's policy on Irish Home Rule. Upon his death in Marylebone aged 53, his son, Victor, was elected unopposed to replace him, later becoming the 9th Duke of Devonshire.

Family life

Cavendish married his cousin Emma Lascelles (d. 1920), a daughter of the Rt. Hon. William Lascelles, on 3 August 1865. They had three sons:

Ancestry

Notes

  1. ^ The Annual register of world events: a review of the year, Vol.133, ed.Edmund Burke, (Longmans, Green and Co., 1892), 160.
  2. ^ Edinburgh Gazette, 8 February 1856.
  3. ^ Edinburgh Gazette, 23 February 1858.
  4. ^ Edinburgh Gazette, 14 July 1865.
  5. ^ London Gazette, 27 February 1874.
  6. ^ a b Army List, various dates.
  7. ^ London Gazette, 16 March 1888.
  8. ^ "Casualty Details: Cavendish, Lord John Spencer". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 12 November 2024.