The Earl Cadogan | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Cadogan byLouis Laguerre | |
| Born | 1672 Liscarton, County Meath, Ireland |
| Died | 17 July 1726 (aged 53–54) Kensington, London, England |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | England Great Britain |
| Branch | English Army British Army |
| Years of service | 1689–1726 |
| Rank | General |
| Unit | 1st Regiment of Foot Guards |
| Battles / wars | |
GeneralWilliam Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan,KT, PC (c. 1672 – 17 July 1726) was a British army officer, diplomat andWhig politician. He began his military career during theWilliamite War in Ireland in 1689 and ended it with the suppression of theJacobite rising of 1715. A close associate and confidant of theDuke of Marlborough, he also sat in theEnglish andBritish House of Commons from 1705 until 1716, when he was raised to the peerage asBaron Cadogan. A strong supporter of theHanoverian Succession, he succeeded Marlborough in 1722 asMaster-General of the Ordnance and senior army commander.
Cadogan was born inIreland around 1672,[1] the son of the barristerHenry Cadogan and his wife Bridget Waller, daughter of theregicide SirHardress Waller. His family wereIrish Protestants ofWelsh descent. William's grandfatherWilliam Cadogan served as an officer inOliver Cromwell'sNew Model Army.
He was one of five children, including two brothers Ambrose andCharles and two sisters: Frances, who died young, and Penelope, who marriedSir Thomas Prendergast, 1st Baronet.[2] The family owned an estate at Liscarton inCounty Meath. His father served asHigh Sheriff of the county and also acquired property inCounty Limerick.
At the age of ten, he was sent to England to be educated atWestminster School, then run byRichard Busby. William's father intended him to take up a law career like himself and, in March 1687, he was accepted as a student atTrinity College, Dublin.[3] By this time he had developed into a tall, well-built young man.[4]
Midway through his studies, however, theGlorious Revolution took place in England in which the ProtestantWilliam of Orange seized the throne from the CatholicJames II. In Ireland, the largely CatholicIrish Army remained loyal to James, while Protestants declared their support for William. The Protestants ofUlster formed anArmy of the North, in which William Cadogan enlisted as aCornet ofDragoons.
During 1689 he took part in the defence ofEnniskillen which was one of only two places, along withDerry, which held out against theJacobite Irish Army. Following therelief of Derry and Enniskillen by a large expeditionary force underPercy Kirke, Cadogan served with theWilliamite troops for the remainder of theIrish War.[5]
He was present atDundalk Camp during the autumn of 1689, when the Army suffered large casualties from sickness. The following year he served at theBattle of the Boyne a major victory in which William III personally led his forces to victory over the Jacobites, leading to the capture of Dublin.[6]
Later in the same year, he took part in theSiege of Cork where he first served with Marlborough, then an Earl. It appears that it was during this action that Cadogan, although only a junior officer, attracted the attention of his future commander by his conduct.[7]
Following the climatic victory at theSiege of Limerick in 1691 he continued to serve in Ireland for three years having decided to become a professional soldier rather than return to his law studies. In 1694, he purchased aCaptaincy inErle's Regiment, which was then based inFlanders as part of theNine Years' War with France.
In 1695, he took part in theSiege of Namur, an importantGrand Alliance victory. Following thePeace of Ryswick he returned to Ireland, where in 1698 he became amajor of theInniskilling Dragoons.[8]
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In June 1701, Cadogan was selected asQuartermaster General to Marlborough on the latter's appointment to command the British contingent in the Low Countries.[9] Marlborough had been impressed by Cadogan's administrative skills and his courage and the Siege of Cork a decade before. He had Cadogan promoted to Colonel, over the heads of more experienced officers. In July 1701 he accompanied both Marlborough and King William toHolland.[10]
Britain had not yet officially entered the war, although military preparations were underway. He learnt to speakDutch at this time, having already masteredFrench. During his time inAmsterdam, he fell in love with a Dutch heiress named Margaretta Munter.[11] He married her two years later.
War broke out in 1702, following the accession ofQueen Anne to the throne. Cadogan was made Marlborough'schief of staff, soon becoming a trusted figure alongside other intimates including the General's brotherCharles Churchill, military secretaryAdam de Cardonnel and theartillery commander ColonelHolcroft Blood. He also worked with the Dutch political representativeAnthonie Heinsius.[12] Cadogan soon demonstrated a flair forlogistics and administration. He also came to head the extensiveintelligence-gathering operations.
In early 1704 while travelling back to England, carrying important documents, his ship was attacked by a FrenchPrivateer. Fearing the seizure of his secret papers, he threw them over the side into the sea. However, his ship managed to get away and safely into harbour. While in London he had an audience with Queen Anne.[13]
During the campaign of 1704, he was one of the few entrusted with the truth of Marlborough's march from the Spanish Netherlands to the Danube[14] and played a major role in the organisation of theMarch to the Danube.[15] He wrote "This march has hardly left me time to eat or sleep".[16]
He fought at the battles of theSchellenberg andBlenheim. Shortly after he was promoted tobrigadier general and became Marlborough'schief of staff.
He commanded the army's scouting part which located the French army on the morning ofRamillies,[17] and acted as a senior messenger for Marlborough during the battle, recallingOrkney's British infantry from their diversionary attack on the French right flank to assault the French centre around Ramillies itself.[18]
In August 1706 Cadogan was captured while scouting enemy positions and taken as a prisoner toTournai. Marlborough was distressed when he heard that he was missing, claiming "I shall not be quiet till I know his fate". Within two days an exchange had been agreed upon, with Cadogan being swapped with a French General captured at Ramillies.[19]
AtOudenarde he commanded the allied advance guard, which established crossings over theRiver Scheldt.[20] In 1706 he was promoted tomajor general and commanded the forces which broke through the French left towards the end of the battle.[21]
In 1709 he was promoted tolieutenant general. He fought atMalplaquet, and was wounded in the neck at thesiege of Mons, but quickly recovered.[22] At the end of 1709 Cadogan was appointed as aLieutenant of the Tower of London. During thebreaking of the lines of Ne Plus Ultra, he again commanded the allied advance guard, and established a bridgehead across the lines prior to Marlborough's arrival with the main army.[23]
After Marlborough's dismissal from his posts at the end of 1711 Cadogan remained with the army, but refused to return with it when Britain withdrew from the war in 1712, going into voluntary exile with the Duke. In doing so he lost his rank, positions and emoluments under the crown. He was strongly opposed to the terms of theTreaty of Utrecht, agreed by theTory Government, siding with the opposition Whigs who called for "No Peace Without Spain".
During Marlborough's voluntary exile during the last years of Queen Anne's reign, Cadogan accompanied him, and often acted as a go-between to maintain Marlborough's links with Britain.[24] When the Hanoverian KingGeorge I succeeded in 1714, he reinstated Cadogan to his military offices. Marlborough was reappointed commander-in-chief, although as his deputy Cadogan had increasingly to take on much of the Duke's workload.
Cadogan was rewarded with the post ofAmbassador to the Dutch Republic. He was tasked with restoring the relationship with Britain's recent ally which had been damaged by the country's sudden withdrawal from the war. Cadogan oversaw negotiations for afresh treaty which was concluded the following year.
In 1715 he replaced theDuke of Argyll in command of the army charged with suppressing aJacobite rising of 1715.[25] A major rising had broken out in Autumn 1715 in theScottish Highlands. Argyll as the senior Scottish commander led the initial attempts to contain theJacobites from his position atStirling Castle. In November Argyll fought an intense but indecisive battle against the Jacobites at theBattle of Sherrifmuir, after which it was decided in London that he was insufficiently committed to the Hanoverian cause.
Cadogan was then sent north by Marlborough to provide effective leadership.[26] He brought with him many of the 6,000 Dutch troops supplied as part of a treaty commitment, whose shipping to Britain he had overseen. During his absence fromThe Hague, the diplomatHoratio Walpole fulfilled his duties there.
Cadogan found that Argyll remained reluctant to move against the Jacobites due to the wintery conditions. This continued even afterJames Stuart, who proclaimed himself to be King, arrived nearAberdeen in December.
Argyll and Cadogan worked together for a while, although the Duke no longer enjoyed the confidence of the government in London. Cadogan established better supply lines for the Army, personally took part in scouting operations, and organised the advance on the rebel capital atPerth. Rather than face a siege of the city, the Jacobites withdrew toDundee.[27] In February 1716, James abandoned the attempt to personally lead the rebellion in Scotland and sailed for the Continent.
Soon afterwards, Argyll resigned and went to London, turning over total command to Cadogan. He was shortly afterwards dismissed from all his military and political roles, amidst allegations that he had Jacobite sympathies. Cadogan's task was to oversee continued military operations across northern Scotland, forcing the leadingClan chiefs to submit. In April Cadogan declared the rebellion to be over, and returned to London the following month. Marlborough was instrumental in securing him apeerage as a reward for his efforts during the campaign.[28]
Cadogan was aWhigMember of Parliament forWoodstock from 1705 to 1716. On 21 June 1716, he was made Baron Cadogan ofReading, having recently purchasedCaversham Park,Oxfordshire (nowBerkshire) near that town. He was also made aKnight of the Thistle and, the following year, a member of thePrivy Council. Also in 1717, he was promoted to full general.[29] On 8 May 1718 George I made him 1st Earl Cadogan, ofOakley, co.Buckingham, Viscount Caversham, of Caversham, co.Oxford and Earl Cadogan. In later years he also served asMaster of the Robes (1714–1726) and governor of theIsle of Wight (1715–1726).[30]
When the Duke of Marlborough died in 1722, Cadogan walked at the head of the procession at his funeral. He succeeded his former commander asMaster-General of the Ordnance (1722–1725). However, the Opposition's staunch hostility towards him meant that he had lost any political influence several years before his death on 17 July 1726. Despite his closeness to Marlborough, he was much occupied in his later years with alawsuit brought against him by Marlborough's widow. He was himself rather litigious by nature, even engaging in a bitter lawsuit against his own sister Penelope over her son's inheritance.
He married Margaret Cecilia Munter in April 1704 atThe Hague. They had two daughters:Sarah (born 18 September 1705), who marriedCharles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond, and Margaret (born 21 February 1707), who married Charles John Bentinck, fourth son ofWilliam Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland. With no male heir the earldom became extinct. His younger brother Charles, who had married Elizabeth Sloane, the daughter of the noted Irish-bornphysician andlandowner SirHans Sloane, inherited the barony by special remainder, passing it down through his son.
| Parliament of England | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forWoodstock 1705–1707 With:Charles Bertie | Succeeded by Parliament of Great Britain |
| Parliament of England | ||
| Preceded by Parliament of England | Member of Parliament forWoodstock 1707–1716 With:Charles Bertie 1707–1708 Sir Thomas Wheate, Bt 1708–1716 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | British Ambassador to the Netherlands 1707–1709 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | British Ambassador to the Netherlands 1714–1720 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded byas Chargé d'Affaires | British Ambassador to the Holy Roman Emperor April–October 1720 | Succeeded byas Chargé d'Affaires |
| Military offices | ||
| Preceded by | Colonel ofCadogan's Regiment of Horse 1703–1712 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Colonel of theColdstream Regiment of Foot Guards 1714–1722 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Master-General of the Ordnance 1722–1725 | Succeeded by |
| Colonel of the1st Regiment of Foot Guards 1722–1726 | Succeeded by | |
| Court offices | ||
| Preceded by | Master of the Robes 1714–1726 | Succeeded by |
| Honorary titles | ||
| Preceded by | Lieutenant of the Tower of London 1709–1713 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of the Isle of Wight 1715–1726 | Succeeded by |
| Peerage of Great Britain | ||
| New creation | Earl Cadogan 1718–1726 | Extinct |
| Baron Cadogan 1716–1726 | ||
| Baron Cadogan 1718–1726 | Succeeded by | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
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