Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Sandwich (3 January 1647/48 – 29 November 1688) was an English aristocrat and politician.

Early life

Montagu was born in Hinchinbrooke,

Huntingdonshire Huntingdonshire (; abbreviated Hunts) is a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire and a historic county of England. The district council is based in Huntingdon. Other towns include St Ives, Godmanchester, St Neots and Ramsey. The popu ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

on 3 January 1647/48. He was a son of the former Hon. Jemima Crew and Edward Montagu, 1st Earl of Sandwich, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of England to Portugal. Among his many siblings were Hon. Sidney Montagu, Hon. John Montagu (the

Dean of Durham The Dean of Durham is the "head" (''primus inter pares'' – first among equals) and chair of the Chapter, the ruling body of Durham Cathedral. The dean and chapter are based at the ''Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cu ...

), Lady Jemima Montagu (who married Sir Philip Carteret), Lady Anne Montagu (who married Sir Richard Edgecumbe), and Lady Catherine Montagu (who married Nicholas Bacon). His father was the only surviving son and heir of Sir Sidney Montagu of Hinchingbrooke

Master of Requests Master of Requests, from the Latin Requestarum Magister, is an office that developed in several European systems of law and government in the late Middle Ages and the early modern period. Holders of the title had the responsibility of presenting pe ...

and, his first wife, Pauline Pepys (third daughter of John Pepys of Cottenham). Montagu's grandfather was a younger brother of

Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester (7 November 1642) was an English judge, politician and peer. Life He was the 3rd son of Edward Montagu of Boughton and grandson of Sir Edward Montagu, Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench from 1539 to ...

. His maternal grandparents were

John Crew, 1st Baron Crew John Crew, 1st Baron Crew of Stene (1598 – 12 December 1679) was an English lawyer and politician, who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1624 and 1660. He was a Puritan and sided with the Parliamentary cause during the Civi ...

and the former Jemima Waldegrave (a daughter and co-heiress of

Joan Joan may refer to: People and fictional characters * Joan (given name), including a list of women, men and fictional characters *: Joan of Arc, a French military heroine *Joan (surname) Weather events *Tropical Storm Joan (disambiguation), multip ...

and Edward Waldegrave of

Lawford Lawford is a large village and civil parish in the Tendring district of northeast Essex, England. It is approximately northeast from the centre of Colchester and west of, and contiguous with, Manningtree. Mistley merges with the east side of M ...

Hall). Among his maternal relatives included uncles

Thomas Crew, 2nd Baron Crew Thomas Crew, 2nd Baron Crew (1624 – 30 November 1697) of Steane, Northamptonshire was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1654 and 1679, when he inherited the peerage Baron Crew. Life Crew ...

and

Nathaniel Crew, 3rd Baron Crew Nathaniel Crew, 3rd Baron Crew (31 January 163318 September 1721) was Bishop of Oxford from 1671 to 1674, then Bishop of Durham from 1674 to 1721. As such he was one of the longest-serving bishops of the Church of England. Crew was the son of Jo ...

(the

Bishop of Durham The Bishop of Durham is the Anglican bishop responsible for the Diocese of Durham in the Province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler has been the Bishop of Durham ...

) and aunt Anne Crew, who married Sir Henry Wright, 1st Baronet of

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fore ...

. He was educated mainly in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

, where he lived with his cousin

Walter Montagu Walter Montagu (c. 1603–1677) was an English courtier, secret agent (a.k.a. David Cutler) and Benedictine abbot. Life He was the second son of Henry Montagu, 1st Earl of Manchester, by his first wife Catherine Spencer. He was born in the par ...

, although he is said "not to have been much of a scholar". After Montagu's father was raised to the peerage as the

Earl of Sandwich Earl of Sandwich is a noble title in the Peerage of England, held since its creation by the House of Montagu. It is nominally associated with Sandwich, Kent. It was created in 1660 for the prominent naval commander Admiral Sir Edward Montagu. ...

in 1660, Edward was styled Viscount Hinchingbrooke until his accession as the 2nd Earl in 1672. From 1661 to 1664, he travelled in France and from 1664 to 1665, he travelled in Italy.

Career

From 1670, until his succession to the earldom in 1672, he was a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

for

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maids ...

, serving alongside George Montagu. After he left the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

, his seat was taken over by Sir Edward Spragge. In 1681, Edward was to be appointed

Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdonshire This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdonshire. Huntingdonshire became part of Huntingdon and Peterborough in 1965; see Lord Lieutenant of Huntingdon and Peterborough. From 1672 until 1965, all Lords Lieutenant were a ...

upon his return from abroad, but he never took up the office, which was exercised successively by

Robert Bruce, 1st Earl of Ailesbury Robert Bruce, 1st Earl of Ailesbury (later styled Aylesbury) and 2nd Earl of Elgin, PC, FRS (ca. March 1626 – 20 October 1685), was a Scottish politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1660 to 1663, when he inherited his father's ti ...

and

Thomas Bruce, 2nd Earl of Ailesbury Thomas Bruce, 2nd Earl of Ailesbury (later styled Aylesbury) and 3rd Earl of Elgin (1656 – 16 December 1741), styled Lord Bruce between 1663 and 1685, was an English politician and memoirist. He was the son of Robert Bruce, 2nd Earl of Elgin, ...

. The 1st Earl also exercised for him, in the same fashion, the office of

Lord Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Cambridgeshire. The title Lord Lieutenant is given to the British monarch's personal representative in the counties of the United Kingdom. Lord Lieutenants are supported by an appoint ...

in 1685, but the appointment was rescinded after Ailesbury's death the same year. His father's biographer described him as "a steady, not very robust young man, who would never set the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

alight". Edward's brief marriage to Anne Boyle seems to have been happy enough: his mother had a warm regard for her daughter-in-law.

Personal life

Viscount Hinchingbrooke was betrothed to Elizabeth Malet (the daughter of John Mallet of Enmore Manor and heiress to his great fortune). The engagement was broken off at her request: she later married

John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester (1 April 1647 – 26 July 1680) was an English poet and courtier of King Charles II's Restoration court. The Restoration reacted against the "spiritual authoritarianism" of the Puritan era. Rochester embodie ...

. It was said that she found Edward "unexciting"; historians have remarked that she is likely to have found far more excitement than she could have wished for with Rochester, who was probably the most debauched

rakehell In a historical context, a rake (short for rakehell, analogous to " hellraiser") was a man who was habituated to immoral conduct, particularly womanizing. Often, a rake was also prodigal, wasting his (usually inherited) fortune on gambling, ...

of his era.

Marriage and issue

In January 1667, Montagu was married to Lady Anne Boyle, daughter of

Richard Boyle, 2nd Earl of Cork Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Burlington, 2nd Earl of Cork (20 October 1612 – 15 January 1698) was an Anglo-Irish nobleman who served as Lord High Treasurer of Ireland and was a Cavalier. Early life He was born at ''The College'' in Youghal in ...

and Lady Elizabeth Clifford, ''

suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...

'' Baroness Clifford, as the only surviving child of

Henry Clifford, 5th Earl of Cumberland Henry Clifford, 5th Earl of Cumberland (28 February 159211 December 1643) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1614 and 1622. He was created a baron in 1628 and succeeded to the title Earl of Cumberlan ...

. Among Lady Anne's siblings were

Charles Boyle, 3rd Viscount Dungarvan Charles Boyle, Viscount Dungarvan, 3rd Baron Clifford, FRS ( bapt. 12 December 1639 – 12 October 1694), was an English peer and politician. He was a member of a famous Anglo-Irish aristocratic family. Early life Charles Boyle was the son ...

, Richard Boyle (who died before they married at the

Battle of Lowestoft The Battle of Lowestoft took place on during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. A fleet of more than a hundred ships of the United Provinces commanded by Lieutenant-Admiral Jacob van Wassenaer, Lord Obdam attacked an English fleet of equal size comm ...

), Lady Frances Boyle (wife of

Wentworth Dillon, 4th Earl of Roscommon Wentworth Dillon, 4th Earl of Roscommon (1637–1685), was an Anglo-Irish landlord, Irish peer, and poet. Birth and origins Wentworth was born in October 1637 in Dublin, probably in St George's Lane. He was the only son of James Dillon, 3 ...

), Lady Elizabeth Boyle (wife of

Nicholas Tufton, 3rd Earl of Thanet Nicholas Tufton, 3rd Earl of Thanet (7 August 1631 – 24 November 1679), styled Lord Tufton until 1664, was an English nobleman. Tufton was the eldest son of John Tufton, 2nd Earl of Thanet, and Lady Margaret, daughter of Richard Sackville, ...

), and Lady Henrietta Boyle (wife of

Lawrence Hyde, 1st Earl of Rochester Laurence Hyde, 1st Earl of Rochester, (March 1642 – 2 May 1711) was an English statesman and writer. He was originally a supporter of James II but later supported the Glorious Revolution in 1688. He held high office under Queen Anne, daugh ...

). Together, they had three children: *

Edward Montagu, 3rd Earl of Sandwich Edward Montagu, 3rd Earl of Sandwich (10 April 1670 – 20 October 1729) was born in Burlington House, London, England to Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Sandwich and Lady Ann Boyle. He was styled Viscount Hinchingbrooke from 1672 until his access ...

(1670–1729), who married Lady Elizabeth Wilmot, daughter of the Earl of Rochester, in 1689. * Hon.

Richard Montagu Richard Montagu (or Mountague) (1577 – 13 April 1641) was an English cleric and prelate. Early life Montagu was born during Christmastide 1577 at Dorney, Buckinghamshire, where his father Laurence Mountague was vicar, and was educated at ...

(1671–1697), who became a Member of Parliament for

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by John, King of England, King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cr ...

. * Hon. Elizabeth Montagu, who died unmarried. His wife, Lady Anne died in 1671. Lord Sandwich died on 29 November 1688. Their eldest Edward, who inherited the Earldom, is generally considered to have been insane. There is no evidence that the condition was hereditary, although the first Earl seems to have suffered from depression in his later years.Bryant, Arthur ''Pepys- the Years of Peril''

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambridge University Pr ...

1935 p.74

References

External links

Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Sandwich, d. 1689
by

Abraham Blooteling Abraham Blooteling (or Bloteling) (1634–1690) was a Dutch designer and engraver. Life He was born at Amsterdam. From the style of his etchings it is likely that he was a pupil of the Visschers. Following the French incursions into the Nethe ...

Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Sandwich (1647 or 1648-circa 1688), Politician; MP for Dover
at the

National Portrait Gallery, London The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London housing a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. It was arguably the first national public gallery dedicated to portraits in the world when it ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sandwich, Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of 1648 births 1688 deaths Lord-Lieutenants of Cambridgeshire Lord-Lieutenants of Huntingdonshire English MPs 1661–1679 Edward Montagu, 02nd Earl of Sandwich Earls of Sandwich Members of the Parliament of England for Dover