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A Perfect Match - historical characters

Augusta, Princess: Princess Augusta (1768–1840) was the sixth child of George III and Queen Charlotte. She never married.

Baddeley woman: Sophia Baddeley (1745–1786) was an actress and courtesan. She had an affair with Lady Melbourne’s husband, Peniston Lamb, 1st Viscount Melbourne.

Bankes: Henry Bankes (1757–1834) was the owner of Corfe Castle and Kingston Lacy in Dorset. He attended Cambridge University where he became friends with William Pitt.

Bedford, Duke of: Francis Russell, 5th Duke of Bedford (1765–1802) was a Whig politician who formed part of the Devonshire House set. He died unmarried.

Burney, Miss: Frances Burney (1752–1840) was an English novelist and diarist. Her novels included Evelina (1778) and Cecilia (1782). She served as second keeper of the robes to Queen Charlotte 1786–91.

Chippendale: Thomas Chippendale (1718–1779) was an expert cabinet maker and designer whose work was fashionable and influential. His son Thomas (1749–1822) was also a skilled designer.

Crane, Dr: John Crane was residing physician in Weymouth, Dorset, and published Cursory Observations on Sea-bathing in 1795 advocating the benefits of sea water for all kinds of illnesses. He recommended drinking sea water as well as bathing in it!

Devonshire, Duchess of: Georgiana Cavendish (née Spencer), Duchess of Devonshire (1757–1806), was the first wife of William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire. Georgiana was fashionable and extravagant with an addiction to gambling. She had an affair with Charles Grey, later 2nd Earl Grey, and had a daughter by him in 1792. She was an ardent Whig and intimate friend of Charles James Fox and reputedly won votes for him by kissing voters during the Westminster Election of 1784.

Devonshire, Duke of: William Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire (1748–1811) was a wealthy Whig politician and nobleman.

Duncannon, Lady: Henrietta Ponsonby (née Spencer), Viscountess Duncannon (1761–1821), later Countess of Bessborough, was Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire’s sister. She had an affair with Richard Brinsley Sheridan in 1788 that almost ended her marriage.

Egremont, Lord: George Wyndham, 3rd Earl of Egremont (1751–1837), of Petworth House in Sussex was an art collector and bred racehorses. He had an affair with Lady Melbourne and was probably the father of William Lamb.

Elizabeth, Princess: Princess Elizabeth (1770–1840) was the third daughter of George III and Queen Charlotte. She married Philip Augustus Frederick, Hereditary Prince of Hesse-Homburg, in 1818, at the age of 47.

Fielding: Henry Fielding (1707–1754) was an English novelist and author of Tom Jones.

Fitzherbert, Mrs: Maria Fitzherbert (née Smythe, previously Weld) (1756–1837) was the secret wife of George, Prince of Wales. Her mother was related to the Earl of Sefton and her first husband was Edward Weld of Lulworth Castle, Dorset. Although the twice-widowed Catholic was married to the prince, the marriage was illegal because it did not have the King’s consent.

Foster, Lady Elizabeth: Lady Elizabeth Foster (née Hervey) (1758–1824) was the intimate friend of Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, and the mistress of Georgiana’s husband William, 5th Duke of Devonshire. She lived with the Duke and Duchess in a strange ménage à trois. After Georgiana’s death, she married the Duke.

Fox, Mr: Charles James Fox (1749–1806) was a Whig politician who led the Opposition to Pitt’s Tory government.

Gillray: James Gillray (1756–1815) was a British caricaturist and printmaker, known for his social and political cartoons.

Gloucester, Duke of: William Henry, 1st Duke of Gloucester (1743–1805), was a younger brother of George III. He built Gloucester House in Weymouth and lent it to the King to recuperate in 1789. The King later bought the house from him.

Gordon, Duchess of: Jane Gordon (née Maxwell), Duchess of Gordon (c1748–1812), was a Scottish beauty and leading political hostess for the Tory party.

Grey, Mr: Charles Grey (1764–1845), later 2nd Earl Grey, was a Whig politician and future British Prime Minister (1830–4). He  had an affair with Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire. Earl Grey tea is named after him.

Hamilton: Gavin Hamilton (1723–1798) was a Scottish artist, archaeologist, and dealer in old masters and antiquities based in Rome. He acted as agent for Charles Townley. Sources suggest that he restored the Discobolus sold to Lord Lansdowne somewhat creatively.

Hamilton, Sir William: Sir William Hamilton (1730/1–1803) was British Ambassador to Naples (1764–1800) and a prolific collector of art and antiquities. He sold many of his Etruscan vases to the British Museum. His second wife, Emma Hart, was the famed mistress of Vice Admiral Lord Nelson.

Jersey, Lady: Frances Villiers (née Twysden), Countess of Jersey (1753–1821), was a mistress of George, Prince of Wales, who was known for her beauty and her malicious tongue. She had a brief affair with Georgiana’s husband William, 5th Duke of Devonshire, in 1778.

King: George III (1738–1820) was King of Great Britain 1760–1820. He is most remembered for his madness – the mental instability that afflicted him during the Regency crisis of 1788–9 and forced the Regency of 1811–20. Doctors believe his mental illness may have been due to the hereditary condition of porphyria.

Lamb, Peniston: Peniston Lamb (1770–1805) was the eldest son of Lady Melbourne. He never married and died of tuberculosis in 1805.

Mansfield, Lord: William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield (1705–1793), was a British barrister and politician, who served as Lord Chief Justice of the King’s Bench 1756–88. During the Gordon Riots of 1780, his house in Bloomsbury Square was ransacked and his library destroyed.

Mary, Princess: Princess Mary (1776–1857) was the fourth daughter of George III and Queen Charlotte. She married her cousin William, 2nd Duke of Gloucester, in 1816 at the age of 40.

Melbourne, Lady: Elizabeth Lamb (née Milbanke), Viscountess Melbourne (1751–1818), was a leading Whig hostess and mother of William Lamb, Viscount Melbourne, the future British Prime Minister. An ambitious woman, she was devoted to her family but not faithful to her husband. Her lovers included George, Prince of Wales, and George Wyndham, 3rd Earl of Egremont, who probably fathered her son William, and possibly Frederick and Emily as well.

Montagu, Mrs: Elizabeth Montagu (1718–1800) was a brilliant conversationist, writer, and wealthy bluestocking hostess who held literary assemblies at her home, Montagu House in Portman Square.

More, Mrs: Hannah More (1745–1833) was a bluestocking and evangelical Christian writer whose moral works were highly influential in her time.

Newton: John Newton (1725–1807) was an ex-slave trader who became a Church of England minister after his conversion to Christianity and was rector at St Mary Woolnoth (1780–1807). He wrote the hymn Amazing Grace.

Norfolk, Duke of: The foremost Duke in the English peerage. From 1786 to 1815, the title was held by Charles Howard, 11th Duke of Norfolk (1746–1815).

Onslow, Lord: George Onslow, 3rd Baron Onslow, later 1st Earl of Onslow (1731–1814), was a British politician and owner of Clandon Park in Surrey.

Piozzi, Mrs: Hester Lynch Piozzi (née Salusbury, previous married name Thrale) (1741–1821) was the widow of a wealthy brewer and a bluestocking writer. She toured Europe with her second husband, the Italian musician Gabriel Piozzi, whom she married in 1784.

Pitt, Mr: William Pitt the Younger (1759–1806) was a Tory politician who served as First Lord of the Treasury 1783–1801 and again from 1804 until his death in 1806. He was educated at Pembroke College, Cambridge, where he became friends with William Wilberforce.

Prince of Wales: George, Prince of Wales, later George IV (1762–1830), was the eldest son of George III. He was recklessly extravagant and dissolute and an intimate friend of Charles James Fox, leader of the Whig Opposition.

Princess Royal: Princess Charlotte Augusta (1766–1828) was the eldest daughter of George III and was known as the Princess Royal. She married Prince Friedrich William, the Hereditary Prince of Württemberg, in 1797.

Queen: Queen Charlotte (née Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz) (1744–1818) was the wife of George III. They married in 1761, just a few hours after meeting. The marriage was a happy one and produced 15 children but was overshadowed by the King’s mental illness in later years.

Reynolds, Sir Joshua: Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723–1792) was a leading 18th century English portrait painter and President of the Royal Academy (1769–1792).

Richardson, Samuel: Samuel Richardson (1689–1761) was an English author. He wrote several popular novels including Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded (1740) and The History of Sir Charles Grandison (1753).

Russell, Dr: Richard Russell (1687–1759) was a Brighton physician who wrote A dissertation concerning the use of sea water in diseases of the glands in 1750. It was written in Latin and translated into English in 1752.

Sefton, Lord: Charles Molyneux, 1st Earl of Sefton (1748–1795) was a Whig politician and Irish peer. His son William, later 2nd Earl of Sefton (1772–1838), was a member of the Prince of Wales’s set. He married Maria Craven in 1792.

Sheridan, Mr: Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751–1816) was a playwright and theatre owner and Whig politician. He had an affair with Henrietta Ponsonby, Lady Duncannon, and remained obsessed with her after their relationship was over.

Siddons, Mrs: Sarah Siddons (1755–1831) was probably the greatest tragic actress of her time. Her most famous roles were as Shakespearean characters such as Lady Macbeth.

Townley, Mr: Charles Townley (1737–1805) was an antiquarian and collector, and a trustee of the British Museum from 1791. His house in Park Street was designed to house his collections which included Discobolus and the bust of a young woman named Clytie, whom Sir Henry Ellis noted that he called his wife. As a Catholic, Townley feared that his house would be attacked during the Gordon Riots of 1780. Some sources record that he escaped with Clytie in his carriage whilst others doubt whether this would have been physically possible for him to have done on his own. Mr Merry’s help is, of course, fictitious.

Wedgwood: Josiah Wedgwood (1730–95) was an English potter and abolitionist. Wedgwood’s creamware was very fashionable.

Wilberforce, Mr: William Wilberforce (1759–1833) was an influential politician and abolitionist. He became friends with William Pitt at Cambridge University. During the 1790s and 1800s, he was leader of a group of evangelical Christian politicians nicknamed the ‘Saints’. He took opium to combat his ongoing stomach disorders.

Worcester, Marquess of: Henry Somerset (1766–1835), known as Marquess of Worcester until 1803 when he inherited his father’s title as 6th Duke of Beaufort, was a Tory politician. He married Lady Charlotte Leveson-Gower in 1791.