Charles Churchill (British Army officer, born 1679)
Lieutenant General Charles Churchill (1679 – 14 May 1745) was a British Army General and a Member of Parliament.
Lieutenant General Charles Churchill | |
---|---|
Born | 1679 |
Died | 14 May 1745 (aged 65 or 66) |
Allegiance | ![]() |
Service/ | British Army |
Rank | Lieutenant-General |
Battles/wars | War of the Spanish Succession |
Career
Born the natural (illegitimate) son of Elizabeth Dodd and General Charles Churchill (1656–1714) and so the nephew of the 1st Duke of Marlborough, Churchill spent his early career in the British Army during the War of the Spanish Succession and was then Member of Parliament for Castle Rising from 1715 to 1745.[1]
He was despatched to Vienna in 1721 on a mission to secure the release of a "Mr Knight" who was being held in the Citadel of Antwerp.[2] In 1727 he was promoted to Brigadier[3] and appointed a Groom of the Bedchamber[4] and in 1728 King George II and Queen Caroline inspected his Regiment of Dragoons.[5]
He was also Governor of the Royal Hospital Chelsea from 1720 until 1722.[6] and Governor of Plymouth.[7]
Family
He was married to Catherine, younger daughter of Sir Henry Hobart, 4th Baronet; she died on 2 June 1725.[8] Churchill had a relationship with Anne Oldfield, an English actress, by whom he had an illegitimate son, Charles Churchill (of Chalfont). He also had an illegitimate daughter, Harriet, whose mother is uncertain. Harriet married Sir Everard Fawkener and, later, Thomas Pownall.[9]
References
- "Leigh Rayment". Archived from the original on 18 August 2016. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
- "No. 5929". The London Gazette. 11 February 1721. p. 1.
- "No. 6572". The London Gazette. 11 April 1727. p. 3.
- "No. 6634". The London Gazette. 19 December 1727. p. 2.
- "No. 6671". The London Gazette. 4 May 1728. p. 1.
- H. Godfrey, ed. (1927), Survey of London, 11, pp. 37–60
- "Sneakers Roots". Archived from the original on 7 February 2010. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
- Burke's Peerage 1949, p. 291.
- Perry, Norma. ""Sir Everard Fawkener, Friend and Correspondent of Voltaire (Banbury, 1975), 109–12; Edward J. Davies, "Further Notes on Governor Thomas1 Pownall". The American Genealogist. 77 (2002): 190–94.
Parliament of Great Britain | ||
---|---|---|
Preceded by Horatio Walpole, junior William Feilding |
Member of Parliament for Castle Rising 1715–1745 With: William Feilding 1715–1724 The Earl of Mountrath 1724–1734 Thomas Hanmer 1734–1737 Viscount Andover 1737–1745 |
Succeeded by William Howard Richard Rigby |
Military offices | ||
Preceded by Joseph Johnson |
Colonel of Churchill's Regiment of Marines 1709–1713 |
Regiment disbanded |
New regiment | Colonel of The Prince of Wales' Own Regiment of Dragoons 1715–1717 |
Succeeded by Sir Charles Hotham |
Preceded by Thomas Stanwix |
Governor, Royal Hospital Chelsea 1720–1722 |
Succeeded by William Evans |
Preceded by Charles Trelawny |
Governor of Plymouth 1722–1745 |
Succeeded by The Earl of Dunmore |
Preceded by Humphrey Gore |
Colonel of Churchill's Regiment of Dragoons 1723–1745 |
Succeeded by The Viscount Cobham |