George Seymour, 7th Marquess of Hertford

George Francis Alexander Seymour, 7th Marquess of Hertford (20 October 1871 – 16 February 1940) was the son of Hugh Seymour, 6th Marquess of Hertford.[1]

The Most Honourable The Marquess of Hertford
Personal details
Born	George Francis Alexander Seymour 20 October 1871
Died	16 February 1940 (aged 68) Torquay, Devonshire, England
Resting place	Westminster Abbey
Nationality	British
Spouse(s)	Alice Cornelia Thaw ​ ​ (m. 1903; div. 1908)​
Parents	6th Marquess of Hertford Hon. Mary Hood
Residence	Ragley Hall

Early life

Seymour was born 20 October 1871. He was the second child and eldest son of eight children born to Hugh Seymour, 6th Marquess of Hertford (1843–1912) and the Hon. Mary Hood.[2] His siblings were Lady Margaret Alice Seymour (1869–1901), Lady Emily Mary Seymour (1873–1948), Lady Victoria Frederica Wilhelmina Georgina Seymour (1874–1960), Lady Jane Edith Seymour (b. 1877), Lord Henry Charles Seymour (1878–1939), who married Lady Helen Grosvenor, a daughter of the 1st Duke of Westminster, Lord Edward Beauchamp Seymour (1879–1917), and Lord George Frederick Seymour (1881–1940).[1][3]

His paternal grandparents were Francis Seymour, 5th Marquess of Hertford, and Lady Emily Murray, daughter of David Murray, 3rd Earl of Mansfield.[4] His maternal grandparents were Alexander Hood, 1st Viscount Bridport, a British Army officer, and Lady Mary Penelope, the daughter of Arthur Hill, 3rd Marquess of Downshire.[5]

Career

In 1895,[6] he was sent to Australia by his family "for the good of his health and the country", due to his blatant behaviour.[7] He settled in Mackay, growing sugar cane and bananas, but quickly created great animosity, due to being a dishonest employer:[8] he was sued by a labourer (who won the case) for underpayment, and boasted tricking kanakas who purchased his chickens into thinking gold sovereigns were less valuable than silver half crowns.[7]

He was noted for all-male house parties at his isolated residence 'The Rocks' near Mackay, and achieved notoriety for "skirt dancing" in a sequinned outfit with butterfly wings,[6] as one newspaper phrased it: "gyrating in the fluffy serpentine dance before a Kanaka audience... His legs being tough and skinny his audience show little inclination to pot him as long pig."[9][10] When he returned to England in 1897, a Mackay newspaper noted the citizens were "more interested in his departure" than his arrival.[7]

From 1889 to 1894, he served in the Black Watch and was a Lieutenant in the Warwickshire Imperial Yeomanry.[1] He held the office of Deputy Lieutenant for Warwickshire and Justice of the Peace for Warwickshire.[11]

He appeared on stage in the United States in one of Charles Frohman's companies under the name of Eric Hope.[2]

He filed for bankruptcy in 1909 and 1910, shortly before inheriting his father's titles and estate, Ragley Hall.[6]

Peerage

In 1884, he became the Earl of Yarmouth and in 1901, he became the 7th Marquess of Hertford.[6]

After his father's death on 23 March 1912,[2] he succeeded as the 7th Earl of Hertford, the 7th Earl of Yarmouth, the 8th Baron Conway of Ragley, the 7th Viscount Beauchamp, the 7th Marquess of Hertford, and the 8th Baron Conway and Killultagh.[12][13]

Personal life

On 27 April 1903, he married heiress Alice Cornelia Thaw (1880–1955).[14] She was the daughter of William Thaw Sr.[15] At the wedding he extorted her parents to increase the dowry under the threat he would not go through the marriage.[16] The marriage was annulled in 1908 due to non-consummation.[17][18] As part of the divorce, all financial interests were returned to Thaw,[19][20] and she resumed using her maiden name.[21][22]

In May 1913, he became engaged to Mrs. Moss-Cockle, who was much older than him and received $3,250,000 by her former husband.[23] By July of the same year, the engagement was called off, with The New York Times writing: "It is rumored that lately the course of true love has not been running as smoothly as it ought to in the case of the Marquis of Hartford and Mrs. Moss Cockie, whose engagement was recently announced."[24]

Lord Hertford died at his home in Torquay, Devonshire in 1940, aged 68 and childless. His titles passed to his nephew, Hugh Seymour.[1]

References

1. "MARQUESS OE HERTFORD; Former Husband of Alice Thaw Dies in Devonshire at 68". The New York Times. 17 February 1940. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
2. "MARQUIS OF HERTFORD DEAD. His Heir Is the Earl of Yarmouth, Who Married Alice Thaw". The New York Times. 24 March 1912. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
3. Linzee, John William (1917). The Lindeseie and Limesi Families of Great Britain: Including the Probates at Somerset House, London, England, of All the Spellings of the Name Lindeseie from 1300 to 1800. Priv. Print. [The Fort Hill Press]. p. 747. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
4. Urban, Sylvanus (1848). The Gentleman's Magazine, Vol. 183. E. Cave. p. 657. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
5. "GREAT FAMILIES; Special Histories That Reach to the Present Day THE HOUSE OF CECIL. By G. Ravenscroft Dennis. THE SEYMOUR FAMILY. By A. Audrey Locke. THE CAVENDISH FAMILY. By Francis Bickley. LA TREMOILLE FAMILY. By Winifred Stephens, Illustrated. Houghton Mifflin Company. $2.50". The New York Times. 18 October 1914. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
6. Aldrich, Robert; Wotherspoon, Garry (2005). Who's Who in Gay and Lesbian History Vol.1: From Antiquity to the Mid-Twentieth Century. Routledge. p. 403. ISBN 9781134722150. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
7. Moore, Clive "Sunshine And Rainbows", University of Queensland Press, 2001, pp46-48
8. "THE EARL OF YARMOUTH ON THE WITNESS STAND; Gave His Pedigree and Said that He Was a Real Earl. Valet Testified that Whenever His Master Paid His Wages, He Borrowed Part of It Back". The New York Times. 10 May 1901. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
9. The Clipper, Hobart, Tas, Sat 11 Apr 1896
10. "LORD YARMOUTH MADE JUDGE AND JURY LAUGH; Said He Was Libeled in Australia, and Told Why He Did Not Sue. Drew a Funny Picture to Show How He Looked In Ballet Costume -- To Continue His Testimony Monday". The New York Times. May 11, 1901. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
11. Mosley, Ed., Charles (2003). Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
12. "Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page". leighrayment.com. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
13. Dismore, Jane (2014). Duchesses: Living in 21st Century Britain. Bonnier Publishing Ltd. p. 36. ISBN 9781905825752. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
14. "Mrs. Geoffrey Whitney, Broker's Widow And Member of Thaw Family, Dies at 75". New York Times. May 10, 1955. Retrieved 2010-10-09. Alice Cornelia Thaw Whitney, the widow of Geoffrey G. Whitney, Boston stockbroker, and sister of the late Harry K. Thaw, died here yesterday in her home of ...
15. "EARL OF YARMOUTH'S WEDDING; Arrangements for the Marriage of the British Nobleman to Miss Thaw Are Announced". The New York Times. 5 April 1903. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
16. "EARL OF YARMOUTH WINS MISS THAW; Titled English Actor and American Heiress Will Wed. Acquaintance Began Three Months Ago -- Bride-Elect Worth $1,000,000, and Will Inherit More Millions". The New York Times. 18 February 1903. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
17. MacColl, Gail; Wallace, Carol (2012). To Marry an English Lord. Workman Publishing. p. 352. ISBN 0-761-17198-3.
18. "MRS. COPLEY THAW ENGAGED.; Former Countess of Yarmouth to Marry Boston Broker in Spring". The New York Times. 19 December 1912. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
19. "LADY YARMOUTH KEPT HER MONEY; Gave Only a Monthly Allowance to the Earl, and That May Stop. EARL WILL MAKE A FIGHT Mrs. Thaw, Suffering from Rheumatism, Will Not Attend the Opening of Her Son's Trial". The New York Times. January 5, 1908. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
20. "EARL LOSES THAW MONEY.; All Financial Interests Extinguished by Annullment of Yarmouth's Marriage". The New York Times. 13 October 1908. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
21. "YARMOUTH DECREE ABSOLUTE; Countess, Who Was Miss Alice Thaw, May Resume Maiden Name". The New York Times. 13 August 1908. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
22. "EX-LADY YARMOUTH RETURNS.; Now Known as Mrs. Copley Thaw -- Has Taken House in London". The New York Times. 19 November 1908. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
23. "HERTFORD TO MARRY AGAIN.; Former Earl of Yarmouth Engaged to a Widow with $3,250,000". The New York Times. 9 May 1913. Retrieved 28 September 2017.
24. "HERTFORD NOT TO MARRY.; Engagement of Former Husband of Alice Thaw to Mrs. Cockle Is Off". The New York Times. 3 July 1913. Retrieved 28 September 2017.

External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Marquess of Hertford
• George Photographs of Francis Alexander Seymour, 7th Marquess of Hertford (1871-1940) at the National Portrait Gallery, London