Frederic Boase - Modern English Biography (volume 1 of 4) A-H

Note.—There is a portrait of him by Leech in his two page cartoon, called “Mr. Punch’s fancy ball” in Punch 9 Jany. 1847, where he is represented as playing the violin in the orchestra between the double bass and the clarionet. His first contribution to Punch , entitled “The above bridge navy,” appeared in No. 4, 7 Aug. 1841 with John Leech’s earliest cartoon, “Foreign Affairs.”

A’BECKETT, Sir William ( eld. son of Wm. A’Beckett of Golden square ). b. London 28 July 1806; ed. at Westminster; barrister L.I. 30 June 1829; went to Sydney 1837; solicitor general of New South Wales 1841; a judge of court of N.S.W. 24 Nov. 1845; resident judge at Port Philip 3 Feb. 1846; chief justice and judge of admiralty court of Victoria 25 Aug. 1851; knighted by patent 19 Nov. 1852; returned to England 1858; author of great part of The Georgian Era 4 vols. 1832–34; of Universal biography 3 vols. 1840; and of The Earl’s choice and other poems 1863. ( m. (1) 1832 Emily dau. of E. Hayley, she d. 1 June 1841. m. (2) 1849 Matilda dau. of E. Hayley, she d. 8 Aug. 1879 aged 64). d. Abbotsville, Upper Norwood, Surrey 27 June 1869.

Note.—He edited at Sydney from 1837–38 a periodical called the Literary News, of which no copies are supposed to be now in existence.

ABELL, Lucia Elizabeth ( 2 dau. of Wm. Balcombe, navy agent, purveyor to Napoleon Bonaparte at St. Helena, and afterwards the colonial treasurer of N.S.W. who d. 19 March 1829 ). Author of Recollections of the Emperor Napoleon during the first three years of his captivity on the island of St. Helena 1848, including the time of his residence at her father’s house, “the Briars.” ( m. Edward Abell). d. 18 Chester terrace, Eaton sq. London 29 June 1871. Recollections of the Emperor Napoleon 3rd ed. 1873, pt. Of Mrs. Abell.

ABERCROMBY, George Ralph Abercromby, 3 Baron. b. Edinburgh 30 May 1800; M.P. for Clackmannan, (whig) 13 July 1824–2 June 1826, 10 Aug. 1830–23 April 1831, and 6 July 1841–18 Feb. 1842; M.P. for Stirlingshire 30 April 1838–23 June 1841; major 3 dragoon guards 22 June 1826–21 Nov. 1828; succeeded 14 Feb. 1843; lord lieutenant of Clackmannan 1843 to death; was blind. d. Airthney castle, Stirling 25 June 1852.

ABERCROMBY, The Honble. Alexander, b. 4 March 1784; ensign 52 foot 16 Aug. 1799; lieut. col. 28 foot 8 Dec. 1808–25 July 1814; commanded a brigade at battle of Albuera 16 May 1811; captain Coldstream guards 25 July 1814–25 Oct. 1821, when placed on half pay on reduction of regiment; C.B. 4 June 1815; K.M.T.; K.T.S.; K.S.G.; M.P. for co. Clackmannan 11 April 1817–10 June 1818. d. at his country seat in Scotland 27 Aug. 1853. Napier’s Peninsular War, book xii, chapters 6 and 7.

ABERCROMBY, Sir George Samuel, 6 baronet. b. Edinburgh 22 May 1824; succeeded 6 July 1855. d. Forglen house, Turriff Banffshire 15 Nov. 1872.

ABERCROMBY, Sir Robert, 5 baronet. b. Forglen house, Banffshire 4 Feb. 1784; M.P. for Banffshire 2 Nov. 1812–10 June 1818; succeeded 18 July 1831. d. Forglen house 6 July 1855.

ABERDEEN, George Hamilton Gordon, 4 Earl of ( 1 son of George Gordon, styled Lord Haddo 1764–91, by Charlotte, youngest dau. of Wm. Baird of Newbyth, co. Haddington, she d. 8 Oct. 1795 ). b. Edinburgh 28 Jany. 1784; ed. at Harrow, and St. John’s coll. Cam., M.A. 1804; succeeded his grandfather 13 Aug. 1801; visited Greece, Turkey and Russia; founded Athenian society 1804, of which no one might be a member who had not visited Athens; rep. peer Scotland 15 Dec. 1806–1 June 1814; K.T. 16 March 1808; ambassador to Vienna 29 July 1813–April 1814, when he prevailed with the Emperor to join the allied sovereigns against Napoleon by treaty of Toplitz 9 Sep. 1813; present at battles of Dresden and Leipsic; signed treaty of peace at Paris 1 June 1814; created a peer of the U.K. as Viscount Gordon of Aberdeen, co. Aberdeen 1 June 1814; P.C. 23 July 1814; took name of Hamilton before that of Gordon by royal license 13 Nov. 1818; chancellor of univ. of Aberdeen 1827; chancellor of duchy of Lancaster 26 Jan. 1828–2 June 1828; sec. of state for foreign affairs 2 June 1828–2 Nov. 1830 and 2 Sep. 1841–5 July 1846; sec. of state for the colonies 5 June 1834–18 April 1835; ranger of Greenwich park 1 Feb. 1845; lord lieut. of Aberdeenshire 23 April 1846; first lord of the treasury 28 Dec. 1852–1 Feb. 1855; an elder brother of Trinity house Nov. 1853–54; a comr. for executing office of treasurer of exchequer of Great Britain, and lord high treasurer of Ireland 6 Mch. 1854; president of Society of Antiquaries 1812–46; F.R.S. 28 April 1808, F.R.G.S. 1830, K.G. 7 Feb. 1855; visited by the Queen at Haddo house, 15 Oct. 1857; author of Inquiry into principles of beauty in Grecian architecture , 1822. ( m. (1) 28 July 1805 Catherine Elizabeth, 3 dau. of John James Hamilton, 1 Marquess of Abercorn, she was b. 10 Jan. 1784, and d. 29 Feb. 1812. m. (2) 8 July 1815 Harriet, 2 dau. of honble. John Douglas and widow of James Hamilton, eld. son of 1 Marquess of Abercorn, she was b. 8 June 1792, and d. 26 Aug. 1833). d. 7 Argyll st. Regent st. London 14 Dec. 1860. bur. in family vault at Stanmore 21 Dec. Correspondence of Earl of Aberdeen 1850–53 , privately printed 1880; Edinburgh Review , clviii , 547–77 (1883); Thirty years of foreign policy 1854; Proc. of Royal Society of Edin. iv , 477–83 (1862); The British cabinet in 1853 , pp. 7–43, pt. ; Jerdan’s National portrait gallery , vol. 3, pt. ; I.L.N. i , 461 (1842), xx , 1, (1853) xxxvii , 635 (1860) pts. ; A.R. (1860) 376–83.

Note.—Lord Byron in his “English bards and Scotch reviewers,” refers to him as “The travelled Thane, Athenian Aberdeen.” He was allowed the very rare distinction of being permitted to retain the order of the Thistle, together with that of the Garter. Exclusive of royalty, 12 Knights of the Thistle (since the re-establishment of the order in 1687), have been elected to the Garter, of these 12 only 4 have retained both orders.

ABERDEEN, George John James Hamilton-Gordon, 5 Earl of. b. Bentley priory, Stanmore 28 Sep. 1816; ed. privately, and at Trin. coll. Cam., M.A. 1837; attaché at Constantinople 1837; M.P. Aberdeenshire (lib.) 22 Aug. 1854–14 Dec. 1860, when he succeeded; went to Egypt, Sep. 1854, and June 1860; went to Madrid, May 1863 to petition Queen of Spain for a remission of sentence on Manuel Matamoros, (who was sentenced to 9 years penal servitude for preaching Protestantism, he was eventually exiled from Spain, he was b. Malaga, Oct. 1834 and d. Lausanne, 31 July 1866.) d. Haddo house, Aberdeenshire 22 March 1864. bur. Methlie churchyard 29 March. Memoir of Lord Haddo by Rev. E. B. Elliott, 6 ed. 1873; The true nobility by Alexander Duff 1868; I.L.N. xxiv , 265 (1854) pt.

ABERDEEN, George Hamilton-Gordon, 6 Earl of. b. 10 Dec. 1841; succeeded 22 March 1864; one of the Scotch 8 in rifle competition at Wimbledon for Elcho challenge shield 1864 and 1865; dropped his title and adopted name of George H. Osborne about 22 May 1866; sailor in American merchant service June 1866 to death; sailed from Boston for Melbourne in the ship “Hera” 21 Jany. 1870, washed overboard and drowned in latitude 40˝10´, longitude 58˝14´, 27 Jany. 1870. Memoir of Lord Haddo, by Rev. E. B. Elliott, 6 ed. 1873 , 315–28; Sir Bernard Burke’s Reminiscences (1882) 201–26.