The Earl of Salisbury | |
|---|---|
 James Cecil and his sister Lady Catherine byJohn Michael Wright, 1669 | |
| Born | 1666 |
| Died | 1694 (aged 28) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | James Cecil, 5th Earl of Salisbury |
| Parent(s) | James Cecil, 3rd Earl of Salisbury Lady Margaret Manners |
James Cecil, 4th Earl of Salisbury (1666–1694), until 1683 known by thecourtesy title ofViscount Cranborne, was an English nobleman, politician, andpeer.
Acourtier ofKing James II, during theGlorious Revolution of 1688 he commanded a regiment in support of the king. Afterwards, he was imprisoned in theTower of London for some twenty-two months, eventually being charged withhigh treason. Although released in October 1690 following a general pardon, he died in 1694 at the age of twenty-eight.
Baptised on 25 September 1666, Salisbury was one of the ten children ofJames Cecil, 3rd Earl of SalisburyKG, by his marriage in 1661 toLady Margaret Manners, a daughter ofJohn Manners, 8th Earl of Rutland. He was educated atSt John's College, Cambridge,[1] and as his father's eldest surviving son succeeded him when he died in May 1683.[2] In 1656 Thomas Russell purchased half ofWitley Park in Surrey for Cecil's father-in-law and a half share, therefore, passed on the marriage of each daughter, one of whom was Cecil's wife.[3]
On 13 July 1683, at the age of sixteen, the newEarl of Salisbury married Frances Bennett (1670–1713), a daughter of Simon Bennett, ofBuckinghamshire.[2] Bennett, who by the time of this marriage had died, had left three daughters, and in hiswill had left them each £20,000, subject to their not marrying before the age of sixteen or without the consent of those he named, with the proviso that the legacy of a daughter doing so was to be reduced to £10,000. Frances Bennett married Salisbury before she was sixteen, but with the consent of the Executors to the will, and this later led to litigation.[4]
Salisbury inherited from his father the position of Capital Steward of theborough ofHertford.[5]
After his marriage, he travelled abroad for some years, returning to England at about the beginning of 1688.[6] That year, he was appointed aGentleman of the Bedchamber toKing James II and converted toRoman Catholicism, but his appointment was overtaken by theGlorious Revolution of October to December 1688, during which he served the king asColonel of a regiment ofhorse.
Salisbury was arrested in January 1688/89. On 26 October 1689 theHouse of Commonsimpeached him with theEarl of Peterborough forhigh treason on the grounds of "departing from their allegiance and being reconciled to the Church of Rome" and asked theHouse of Lords to commit them.[6] On the same day the Lords ordered the two men to be brought to the bar of that House. Salisbury was already imprisoned in theTower of London, and the Lords ordered that "his lady, friends and servants" were to have access to him.[6] Brought to the House on 28 October, in reply to the charge Salisbury said:
I went abroad young and was seven years out, and did not return a year before I was committed. As for my religion, when I come to defend it, I will defend myself as well as I can: I hope this honourable house doth not expect I should accuse myself."[6]
Salisbury remained in the Tower without trial. On 2 October 1690, the House of Lords read hispetition, which stated "That he hath been a prisoner for a year and nine months, notwithstanding the late act of free and generalpardon, and praying to be discharged." On 30 October, the Lords found that both Salisbury and Peterborough had been pardoned by "theking andqueen's most gracious, general and free pardon" and resolved to discharge them both without hearing the views of the House of Commons on the matter.[6] A decade later, parliament included a provision in theAct of Settlement 1701 stating plainly that "no pardon under theGreat Seal of England be pleadable to an impeachment by the Commons in Parliament".[7]
After his release, Salisbury pursued a case in theHigh Court of Chancery concerning his wife's marriage portion under her father'swill, as only £10,000 of a legacy of £20,000 had been paid. The dispute was about whether the amount should be reduced because Lady Salisbury had been under the age of sixteen when she married, a circumstance which the Executors to the will had agreed to. On 1 May 1691, the Court found in Salisbury's favour and ordered that he should receive a further £10,000, by way of a charge on his wife's sisters' estates.[4]
In March 1693/94,John Dryden dedicated his new playLove Triumphant to Salisbury.[8] His intention was probably to make a gesture of defiance to the new government, of which Dryden disapproved.[9]
Salisbury's son and heir,James Cecil, 5th Earl of Salisbury (1691–1728), was born on 8 June 1691. James the 4th himself died on 24 October 1694, at the age of twenty-eight, to be succeeded by his infant son. His widow survived him until 1713.
Barely a month before Salisbury's death, his wife's mother, Mrs Bennett, had been murdered by a butcher who broke into her house.[10]
Salisbury had five sisters, all of whom lived to marry.Lady Margaret Cecil (1672–1727) married firstlyJohn Stawell, 2nd Baron Stawell (died 1692), and secondlyRichard Jones, 1st Earl of Ranelagh. Lady Catherine Cecil (died 1688) marriedSir George Downing, 2nd Baronet, in 1683. Lady Frances Cecil (died 1698) marriedSir William Halford, 4th Baronet (died 1695), in 1692. Lady Mary Cecil (died 1740) marriedSir William ForesterKB (1655–1717). Another sister, Lady Mildred Cecil (died 1727), married firstlySir Uvedale Corbet, 3rd Baronet (1668–1701), and secondlySir Charles Hotham, 4th Baronet (ca. 1663–1723).[2]
Salisbury's great-grandson, anotherJames Cecil (1748–1823), was created the firstMarquess of Salisbury in 1789; andhis grandson, thethird Marquess, was three timesPrime Minister of the United Kingdom, between 1885 and 1902.[10]
| Peerage of England | ||
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| Preceded by | Earl of Salisbury 1683–1694 | Succeeded by |