Charles Beauclerk, 2nd Duke of St Albans

Charles Beauclerk, 2nd Duke of St Albans, KG KB (6 April 1696 – 27 July 1751) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1718 until 1726 when he succeeded to a peerage as Duke of St Albans. He was an illegitimate grandson of King Charles II.

His Grace The Duke of St Albans KG KB
Arms of Charles Beauclerk, 2nd Duke of St Albans: Arms of 1st Duke of St Albans (royal arms of King Charles II debruised by a baton sinister gules charged with three roses argent (Lennox)) quartering de Vere
Member of the Great Britain Parliament for Bodmin
In office 1718–1722 Serving with John Legh (1715–1722)
Preceded by	Francis Robartes John Legh
Succeeded by	Isaac le Heup Richard West
Member of the Great Britain Parliament for Windsor
In office 1722–1726 Serving with The Earl of Inchiquin (1722–1727)
Preceded by	Sir Henry Ashurst Samuel Travers
Succeeded by	The Earl of Inchiquin Lord Vere Beauclerk
Personal details
Born	6 April 1696
Died	27 July 1751 (aged 55) London, England
Spouse(s)	Lucy Werden ​ (m. 1722)​
Children	George Beauclerk, 3rd Duke of St Albans Lady Diana Barrington Diane Beauclerk-Lennox Suzanne Beauclerk
Mother	Lady Diana de Vere
Father	Charles Beauclerk, 1st Duke of St Albans

Origins

He was the son and heir of Charles Beauclerk, 1st Duke of St Albans by his wife Diana de Vere, daughter and sole heiress[1] of Aubrey de Vere, 20th Earl of Oxford. His paternal grandparents were King Charles II of England and his mistress Nell Gwynne.[2] He was styled Earl of Burford until 1726.

Career

He was educated at Eton College from 1706 and matriculated at New College, Oxford on 24 April 1714.[3] From 1716 to 1717 he undertook a Grand Tour in Italy.[4]

He was elected as a Member of Parliament for Bodmin, Cornwall, at a by-election on 26 February 1718. At the 1722 general election he was returned as an MP for Windsor. He sat until 1726 when on the death of his father he succeeded to the peerage and vacated his seat in the House of Commons. He was appointed Master of the Hawks in 1726 which office he held until his death. He was Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire from 1727 to his death. In 1730 he was appointed Constable and Governor of Windsor Castle and Warden of Windsor Forest. He was appointed Lord of the Bedchamber in 1738 and held the position until his death. He was High Steward of Windsor.[4]

Marriage and children

On 13 December 1722 he married Lucy Werden [5] the eldest daughter and co-heiress of Sir John Werden, 2nd Baronet, by whom he had two children:

• George Beauclerk, 3rd Duke of St Albans (1730–1786); son and heir
• Lady Diana Beauclerk (c. 1746–1766); married the Rev. and Hon. Shute Barrington, a son of John Shute Barrington, 1st Viscount Barrington.

Mistresses

By his mistress and first-cousin Renee Lennox (1709–1774), illegitimate daughter of Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond (himself an illegitimate son of Charles II of England), by his mistress Jacqueline de Mezieres he had a daughter:

• Diane Beauclerk-Lennox (1727–?); became the mistress of Baron Alessandro Mompalalao Cuzkeri.

By his mistress Marie-Françoise de la Rochefoucauld, daughter of Casimir-Jean Charles, Lord of Fontpastour and Chey, he had a daughter:

• Suzanne Beauclerk; married Jean IX Nolasque, Marquess of Noves and Count of Mimet.

Death and burial

Beauclerk died in 1751, aged 55 in London, and was interred in Westminster Abbey.

References

1. Her other sisters died unmarried
2. Thepeerage.com - C Beauclerk, 1st Duke
3. "'Barrowby-Benn', in Alumni Oxonienses 1500-1714, ed. Joseph Foster (Oxford, 1891), pp. 79-105". British History Online. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
4. "BEAUCLERK, Charles, Earl of Burford (1696-1751)". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
5. "Portrait of a lady, possibly Lucy Duchess of St Albans". Archived from the original on 15 February 2013.