Robert Jocelyn, 3rd Earl of Roden

Robert Jocelyn, 3rd Earl of Roden, KP PC PC (Ire) (27 October 1788 – 20 March 1870), styled Viscount Jocelyn between 1797 and 1820, was an Irish Tory politician and supporter of Protestant causes.

The Right Honourable The Earl of Roden KP PC PC (I)
Treasurer of the Household
In office March 1812 – 29 July 1812
Monarch	George III
Prime Minister	Hon. Spencer Perceval The Earl of Liverpool
Preceded by	The Earl of Courtown
Succeeded by	Lord Charles Bentinck
Vice-Chamberlain of the Household
In office 28 July 1812 – 9 April 1827
Monarch	George III George IV
Prime Minister	The Earl of Liverpool
Preceded by	The Earl of Yarmouth
Succeeded by	The Marquess of Graham
Personal details
Born	27 October 1788
Died	20 March 1870 (aged 81) Edinburgh, Scotland
Nationality	British
Political party	Tory
Spouse(s)	(1) Hon. Maria Stapleton (c. 1793–1861) (2) Clementina Andrews (d. 1903)

Background

The 3rd Earl of Roden, painted by Frederick Richard Say, c. 1830.

Jocelyn was the son of Robert Jocelyn, 2nd Earl of Roden, and his first wife Frances Theodosia, daughter of the Very Reverend Robert Bligh, Dean of Elphin.[1][2]

Political career

An ardent conservative, Jocelyn was Member of Parliament for County Louth from 1806 to 1807 and again from 1810 to 1820, when he succeeded his father in the earldom. In March 1812 he was sworn of the Privy Council[3] and appointed Treasurer of the Household under Spencer Perceval,[3] an office he retained when Lord Liverpool became Prime Minister in June 1812 after Perceval's assassination. In July 1812 he was made Vice-Chamberlain of the Household,[4] a post he held until the Liverpool administration fell in 1827.

In 1821 he was created Baron Clanbrassil, of Hyde Hall in the County of Hertford and Dundalk in the County of Louth,[5] in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, which entitled him to an automatic seat in the House of Lords. The same year, on 20 August 1821, he was also appointed a Knight of the Order of St Patrick.[6] In 1858 he was sworn of the Irish Privy Council.[7]

Supporter of Protestant causes

Despite Lord Roden's political career, he is best remembered for his strong support for Protestant causes in the north of Ireland and elsewhere. He supported religious societies such as the Hibernian Bible Society, the Sunday School Society, the Evangelical Alliance and the Protestant Orphan Society, and also conducted service in the private chapel at Tullymore Park, Castlewellan, County Down, his chief residence in Ireland. He was an important leader in the Orange Order, eventually rising to the rank of Grand Master.[1]

However, in 1849 a clash took part between Orangeman and Roman Catholics at Dolly's Brae, near Castlewellan, in which several people were killed after he had invited the Orangemen onto his estate and addressed them, urging them to "do their duty as loyal, Protestant men". A commission was set up to examine the event, and severely criticised Roden for his conduct. As a result of this he was removed from his position as a member of the Commission of the Peace.[1]

Family

Lord Roden was twice married. He married firstly the Hon. Maria Frances Catherine, daughter of Thomas Stapleton, 16th Baron le Despencer, on 9 January 1813. They had three sons and three daughters. His eldest son, Robert Jocelyn, Viscount Jocelyn, was also a politician, but predeceased his father. After Roden's first wife's death on 25 February 1861, he married secondly Clementina Janet, daughter of Thomas Andrews, of Greenknowes, and widow of Captain Robert Lushington Reilly, of Scarva, County Down, on 16 August 1862. They had no children. In later life Lord Roden spent time in Edinburgh, Scotland, to improve his health. He died there in March 1870, aged 81, and was succeeded in the earldom by his grandson, Robert, the son of Viscount Jocelyn. The Countess of Roden died on 9 July 1903.[1]

References

1. Lee, Sidney, ed. (1892). "Jocelyn, Robert (1788-1870)" . Dictionary of National Biography. 29. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
2. thepeerage.com Robert Jocelyn, 3rd Earl of Roden
3. "No. 16586". The London Gazette. 24 March 1812. p. 561.
4. "No. 16632". The London Gazette. 11 August 1812. p. 1579.
5. "No. 17724". The London Gazette. 14 July 1821. p. 1461.
6. Rayment, Leigh. "Knights of the Order of St Patrick". Retrieved 13 December 2008.
7. leighrayment.com Privy Counsellors – Ireland

External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Earl of Roden
• thePeerage.com: Robert Jocelyn, 3rd Earl of Roden