Wriothesley Russell, 3rd Duke of Bedford

The Duke of Bedford
Duke of Bedford
Arms of the Duke of Bedford
Tenure26 May 1711 – 23 October 1732
SuccessorJohn Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford
Other titles3rd Marquess of Tavistock
7th Earl of Bedford
7th Baron Russell
5th Baron Russell of Thornhaugh
3rd Baron Howland
Born(1708-05-25)25 May 1708
Died23 October 1732(1732-10-23) (aged 24)
Spouse(s)Anne Egerton
ParentsWriothesley Russell, 2nd Duke of Bedford
Elizabeth Howland

Wriothesley Russell, 3rd Duke of Bedford (25 May 1708 – 23 October 1732) was an English nobleman and peer. He was the son of Wriothesley Russell, 2nd Duke of Bedford. He was marginally involved in the politics of Hanoverian Succession.[1][2]

Lady Anne Egerton by Enoch Seeman

Russell married his sister's stepdaughter, Lady Anne Egerton, daughter of Scroop Egerton, 1st Duke of Bridgwater, on 22 April 1725. Russell courted Egerton, trying to get Sarah Churchill, Queen Anne's famous favourite, as a go-between, for political reasons, as he has opposed Walpole.[2]

He died in 1732, aged 24 at Corunna, Spain, without issue. He was buried on 14 December 1732 in the 'Bedford Chapel' at St. Michael's Church, Chenies, Buckinghamshire, and his titles passed to his brother, John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford.

It has been suggested that his marriage had been "purely for show."[3] His widow re-married, had offspring, and ultimately became an ancestor of Diana, Princess of Wales, and thus William, Prince of Wales.[4] In any case, it was clearly more of a marriage about politics, than sex or love.[2]

References

  1. ^ Gestrich, Andreas; Schaich, Michael (2016). The Hanoverian Succession:Dynastic Politics and Monarchical Culture. Taylor & Francis. p. 260. ISBN 9781317029328. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Field, Ophelia (2018). The Favourite: The Life of Sarah Churchill and the History Behind the Major Motion Picture. ISBN 9781474605366. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  3. ^ Willoughby Brydges, Cassandra (2007). Rosemary O'Day (ed.). Cassandra Brydges, Duchess of Chandos, 1670-1735: Life and Letters. Boydell Press. p. 297. ISBN 9781843833420. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  4. ^ Evans, Richard K. (2007). The Ancestry of Diana, Princess of Wales: For Twelve Generations. New England Historic Genealogical Society. p. 57. ISBN 9780880822084. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
Peerage of England
Preceded by Duke of Bedford
1711–1732 		Succeeded by