William Wellesley, 2nd Earl Cowley

Lieutenant Colonel The Right Honourable
The Earl Cowley
Personal details
Born
William Henry Wellesley

(1834-08-25)25 August 1834
Stuttgart, Kingdom of Württemberg
Died28 February 1895(1895-02-28) (aged 60)
Draycot House, Wiltshire
Spouse
Emily Gwendolen Peers-Williams
​
​
(m. 1863)​
ChildrenHenry Wellesley, 3rd Earl Cowley
Lady Eva Erskine-Wemyss
Parent(s)Henry Wellesley, 1st Earl Cowley
Olivia Cecilia FitzGerald
EducationEton College
Military service
Allegiance United Kingdom
Branch/serviceColdstream Guards
RankLieutenant colonel
Battles/warsCrimean War
Oudh Campaign
AwardsOrder of the Medjidie

Lieutenant Colonel William Henry Wellesley, 2nd Earl Cowley (25 August 1834 - 28 February 1895) was an English aristocrat and soldier.

Early life

Wellesley was born on 25 August 1834 at Stuttgart, Kingdom of Württemberg.[1] He was the eldest son of the former Hon. Olivia Cecilia FitzGerald (d. 1885) and Henry Wellesley, 1st Earl Cowley, who served as the British Ambassador to France between 1852 and 1867.[2]

His younger siblings included Lady Feodorowna Cecilia (wife of the 1st Viscount Bertie), Lady Sophia Georgiana Robertina (wife of the 5th Earl of Hardwicke), Hon. Cecil Charles Foley (who served in the Royal Navy and died unmarried), and Col. Hon. Frederick Arthur (who married three times, including lastly to Evelyn, Duchess of Wellington, the widow of Henry Wellesley, 3rd Duke of Wellington and sister to William's wife Emily).[3]

His father was the eldest son of Henry Wellesley, 1st Baron Cowley, and Lady Charlotte Cadogan (daughter of Charles Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan). William was a grand-nephew of the 1st Duke of Wellington and the 1st Marquess Wellesley.[4] His maternal grandparents were 20th Baroness de Ros and Lord Henry FitzGerald (fourth son of the 1st Duke of Leinster).[2]

Career

Wellesley was educated at Eton before becoming a Lieutenant in the Coldstream Guards in 1852.[1] He was made a captain in 1854. He served in the Crimean War in 1855 and the Oudh campaign in India in 1858 for which he was awarded the Order of the Medjidie, 5th Class.[1] From 1860 to 1863, he was Lt.-Col. of the Coldstream Guards.[4]

In 1859, he was Military Secretary to Lord Elphinstone, the Governor of Bombay.[4]

Upon the death of his father on 15 July 1884, he succeeded as 3rd Baron Cowley of Wellesley, 2nd Viscount Dangan, and 2nd Earl Cowley.[4]

Personal life

On 8 August 1863, Wellesley was married to Emily Gwendolen Peers-Williams (1839–1932), second daughter of Col. Thomas Peers Williams MP, of Temple House and the former Emily Bacon (daughter of Anthony Bushby Bacon of Benham Park).[5] Together, they were the parents of:[4]

Lord Cowley died at Draycot House in Wiltshire on 28 February 1895,[7] and was succeeded by his son, Henry.[4] His widow died on 9 November 1932.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b c G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume III, page 481.
  2. ^ a b Dod's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage of Great Britain and Ireland, Including All the Titled Classes. 1904. p. 1123. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  3. ^ a b Burke's Genealogical and Heraldic History of Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage. Burke's Peerage Limited. 1938. p. 677. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Debrett's Peerage, Baronetage, Knightage, and Companionage: Comprising Information Concerning All Persons Bearing Hereditary Or Courtesy Titles, Knights, and Companions of All the Various Orders, and the Collateral Branches of All Peers and Baronets. Dean & Son, Limited. 1902. p. 220. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  5. ^ Griffith, John Edwards (1914). Pedigrees of Anglesey and Carnarvonshire Families, with Their Collateral Branches in Denbighshire, Merionethshire, and Other Parts. Bridge Books. p. 69. ISBN 978-0-9508285-5-8. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  6. ^ Walford, Edward (1860). The county families of the United Kingdom; or, Royal manual of the titled and untitled aristocracy of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland. Dalcassian Publishing Company. p. 313. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
  7. ^ "Death of a Peer of England". The New York Times. 1 March 1895. p. 5. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
Peerage of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Earl Cowley
1884–1895 		Succeeded by