Hugh Cecil Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale, (25 January 1857
–13 April 1944) was an
English peer and sportsman.
Early life
Born in 1857, he was the second son of Emily Susan (), daughter of St George Francis Caulfeild of
Donamon Castle of
Roscommon
Roscommon (; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60, N61 and N63 roads.
The name Roscommon is derived from Coman mac Faelchon who buil ...
, Ireland and
Henry Lowther, 3rd Earl of Lonsdale.
In 1882, he succeeded his brother,
St George Lowther, 4th Earl of Lonsdale
St George Henry Lowther, 4th Earl of Lonsdale (4 October 1855 – 8 February 1882) was a British nobleman, the eldest son of Henry Lowther, 3rd Earl of Lonsdale and Emily Caulfeild. From 1872 until his succession to the earldom in 1876, he was st ...
, and was succeeded in turn by his brother,
Lancelot Lowther, 6th Earl of Lonsdale
Lancelot Edward Lowther, 6th Earl of Lonsdale, OBE, DL (25 June 1867 – 11 March 1953) was an English peer, the fourth and youngest son of Henry Lowther, 3rd Earl of Lonsdale.
Biography
Lowther was educated at Malvern College and Magdalene Col ...
upon his death in 1944.
Career
Lonsdale inherited enormous wealth derived from his father's
Cumberland coalmines, and owned of land. He had residences at
Lowther Castle, at
Whitehaven Castle,
Barleythorpe and
Carlton House Terrace, London.
He was appointed
Lieutenant-Colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...
in command of the
Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry on 3 March 1897
[''Army List'', various dates.] and from February 1900 to 1901, he was Assistant
Adjutant-General for the
Imperial Yeomanry during the first part of the
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the So ...
. He became
Honorary Colonel of the Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry on 16 November 1908, shortly after it had transferred to the
Territorial Force.
[ During ]World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
his chief role was as a recruitment officer of both men and horses. He formed his own pals battalion, the Lonsdales (11th Battalion, Border Regiment). He helped found Our Dumb Friends League (now The Blue Cross) and was its chairman during the war.
Lonsdale was known as the Yellow Earl for his penchant for the colour. He was a founder and first president of the Automobile Association (AA) which adopted his livery.
In 1907, Lonsdale was part of the famous wager with John Pierpont Morgan
John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and investment banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age. As the head of the banking firm that ultimately became kno ...
over whether a man could circumnavigate the globe and remain unidentified.
In August 1895 the German Emperor Wilhelm II visited Lowther Castle for some grouse shooting. The kings of Italy and Portugal later came to stay, and the Kaiser a second time in 1902. The Kaiser conferred upon the Earl a knighthood of the first class of the Order of the Prussian Crown.
Although he was a Peer, he was rarely seen in the House of Lords
The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminst ...
. Because of his extravagance he was forced to sell some of his inherited properties. In 1921 Whitehaven Castle was sold, and in 1926 Barleythorpe. The same year the west Cumberland coalmines closed. In 1935 he moved from Lowther Castle because he could no longer afford to live there and moved to much smaller accommodation.
His free-spending had largely wrecked the estate, and his heir, his brother Lancelot, the 6th Earl was forced to auction off the contents of Lowther Castle in 1947. This proved to be the largest English country house sale of the 20th century.
Personal life
In 1878, before obtaining his inheritance, Lonsdale married Lady Grace Cecilie Gordon, third daughter of Maria Antoinetta Pegus (c. 1821–1893) and Charles Gordon, 10th Marquess of Huntly
Charles Gordon, 10th Marquess of Huntly (4 January 1792 – 18 September 1863), styled Lord Strathavon from 1794 to 1836 and Earl of Aboyne from 1836 to 1853, was a Scottish peer and first a Tory (1818–1830) and then a Whig (1830 onwards) p ...
. Her family opposed the marriage as Lonsdale was not then wealthy and seemed irresponsible. This proved to be correct as the following year he invested in cattle in America; the venture collapsed and the Lowther family was forced to save him.
The couple then lived at Barleythorpe Hall near Oakham. Grace became pregnant but had a miscarriage after a fall while hunting. After this she was unable to bear children and remained a partial invalid for the rest of her life. She died in 1941.
After an affair with the actress Violet Cameron caused a scandal, Lonsdale set out in 1888 to explore the Arctic regions of Canada as far north as Melville Island, nearly dying before reaching Kodiak, Alaska in 1889 and returning to England. His collection of Inuit
Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territorie ...
artefacts that he assembled during his explorations in Alaska and north-west Canada at this time is now in the British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
.
Lonsdale died in 1944 at Stud House, Barleythorpe, aged 87.
Sports
Lonsdale was a founding member and first president of the National Sporting Club, and donated the original Lonsdale Belts in 1909 for the boxing
Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
championship trophy. His name was later given to the Lonsdale clothing brand of boxing garments and the Lonsdale cigar size.
He enjoyed foxhunting, serving as Master of the Quorn from 1893 to 1898 and of the Cottesmore Hunt
The Cottesmore Hunt, which hunts mostly in Rutland, is one of the oldest foxhound packs in Britain. Its name comes from the village of Cottesmore where the hounds were kennelled.
History
The Cottesmore Hunt's origins may be traced back to 166 ...
for long periods. He was also a director of Arsenal Football Club and served as chairman for a brief period in 1936, and later became the club's honorary president.
After the First World War, Hugh gave up hunting and became more involved with race horses. He became a senior steward of the Jockey Club. He had two major wins with his colt Royal Lancer in 1922, the St Leger and the Irish St Leger
The Irish St Leger is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 6 furlongs (2,816 metres), and it i ...
. He was also the first president of the International Horse Show
The Royal International Horse Show (originally the International Horse Show) is the official horse show of the British Horse Society and consists of both showing and showjumping events. The event is held during July each year at the All England ...
at Olympia.
From 1929 Lonsdale was the joint editor of the ''Lonsdale Library of Sports, Games and Pastimes'', a book series published by Seeley, Service and Co.
In popular culture
Lonsdale was the subject of a biography by Douglas Sutherland
Douglas Chalmers Hutchinson Sutherland (18 November 1919 – 28 August 1995) was a British author and journalist, best known for his biographies and the humorous ''English Gentleman'' books.
Background
Sutherland was born in 1919 at Bongate ...
.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lonsdale, Hugh Lowther, 5th Earl of
1857 births
1944 deaths
People from Cumberland
Arsenal F.C. directors and chairmen
British racehorse owners and breeders
Deputy Lieutenants of Rutland
English socialites
Founders of sporting institutions
5
Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order
Knights of the Garter
Legion of Frontiersmen members
Lord-Lieutenants of Cumberland
Hugh
Masters of foxhounds in England
People from Westmorland
Westmorland and Cumberland Yeomanry officers