Daily entries from the 17th century London diary
If you would like to write a summary for this topic, email phil [at] gyford [dot] com
Philip Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Chesterfield (1634 – January 28, 1714) was the son of Henry Stanhope, Lord Stanhope and his wife, Katherine. He inherited the title of Earl of Chesterfield upon his grandfather's death in 1656.
His first marriage was to Lady Anne Percy, daughter of the Earl of Northumberland. Following her death, a marriage had been arranged between him and Mary, daughter of the 3rd Lord Fairfax. Despite the fact the banns had been read twice, Mary jilted Chesterfield for the 2nd Duke of Buckingham with whom she had fallen in love. Chesterfield subsequently married Elizabeth Butler, daughter of James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde and his wife, Elizabeth. They had one daughter, but it is not certain that Chesterfield was the father.
According to Samuel Pepys, Chesterfield was a ladies' man, and had been one of the many lovers of Barbara Villiers, the most notorious mistress of King Charles II. His second wife, tired of his neglect, began flirting with the king's brother, the Duke of York, and also with James Hamilton.
Elizabeth died in 1665, and he married a third time, to Lady Elizabeth Dormer, who finally provided him with two sons.
| Legal offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by The Duke of Monmouth |
Justice in Eyre south of the Trent 1679–bef. 1686 |
Succeeded by The Earl of Huntingdon |
| Peerage of England | ||
| Preceded by Philip Stanhope |
Earl of Chesterfield 1656–1714 |
Succeeded by Philip Stanhope |
Philip Stanhope, second Earl of Chesterfield, ob. 1713, act. suae 80. We learn, from the memoir prefixed to his “Printed Correspondence,” that he fought three duels, disarming and wounding his first and second antagonists, and killing the third. The name of the unfortunate gentleman who fell on this occasion was Woolly. Lord Chesterfield, absconding, went to Breda, where he obtained the royal pardon from Charles II. He acted a busy part in the eventful times in which he lived, and was remarkable for his steady adherence to the Stuarts. Lord Chesterfield’s letter to Charles II., and the King’s answer granting the royal pardon, occur in the Correspondence published by General Sir John Murray, in 1829.
“Jan. 17th, 1659. The Earl of Chesterfield and Dr. Woolly’s son of Hammersmith, had a quarrel about a mare of eighteen pounds price; the quarrel would not be reconciled, insomuch that a challenge passed between them. They fought a duel on the backside of Mr. Colby’s house at Kensington, where the Earl and he had several passes. The Earl wounded him in two places, and would fain have then ended, but the stubbornness and pride of heart of Mr. Woolly would not give over, and the next pass [he] was killed on the spot. The Earl fled to Chelsea, and there took water and escaped. The jury found it chance-medley.”—Rugge’s “Diurnal,” Addit MSS., British Museum.—B.
Lord Chesterfield, Phillip Stanhope, was the second Earl of Chesterfield and something of a rogue; notorious for drinking, gambling and an exceeding wild nature. His killing of Wolly was indeed his third duel, all of which were illegal at this time. His first encounter was a duel with Lord St. John and his second with the son of Major General Edward Whalley. Edward was first cousin of Oliver Cromwell and one of the regicide judges and signer of the death certificate of Charles I. Edward
This duellist, the second earl (1633-1714) was the grandfather of the famous Lord Chesterfield (1694-1773), the 4th earl, who wrote the “Letters” to his son.
Amazon says:
Not originally intended for publication, the celebrated and controversial correspondences between Lord Chesterfield and his son Philip, dating from 1737, were praised in their day as a complete manual of education, and despised by Samuel Johnson for teaching “the morals of a whore and the manners of a dancing-master.”
[Moved from the 17 January 1660 entry by Phil]
That 4th Lord Chesterfield, also Philip Stanhope
(again, the GRANDSON of the 2nd earl who appears here) is also remembered for receiving a devastating put-down in the form of a letter to him from Samuel Johnson (who was mad that Chesterfield hadn’t assisted him as a patron when Johnson was struggling over his dictionary); and for introducing in 1751 the Calendar Bill for 1752 — which modernized the calendar in Britain and British possessions.
Gentlemen, please pardon if this is irrelevant, but how did the first Earl of Chesterfield acquire his earldom?
The 1st Earl of Chesterfield, gentlemen, was the grandfather of his successor, the second Earl of Chesterfield.
Philip Stanhope, 1st Earl of Chesterfield (1584-1656), son of Sir John Stanhope and his wife Cordell Allington, was an English aristocrat.
He was married in 1605 to Cathrine, daughter of Francis, Lord Hastings. He was the great-grandson of Anne Stanhope (1497-1587), the wife of Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset (c.1506-1552). He was knighted in 1605 by King James I and made Baron Stanhope of Shelford. He was made 1st Earl of Chesterfield in 1628 by King Charles I. He was succeeded by his grandson, also Philip.
Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Stanhope%2C_1st_Earl_of_Chesterfield
I am in possession of two volumes of the record of the graduates of Oxford (writers and clergy), printed in 1721. In one is the bookplate of Philip Earl Stanhope