Henry Bentinck, 1st Duke of Portland (17 March 1682 – 4 July 1726), of Titchfield, Hampshire, styled Viscount Woodstock from 1689 until 1709, was a British Whig politician who sat in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

and

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 65 ...

from 1705 until 1709 when he succeeded to the peerage as

Earl of Portland Earl of Portland is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of England, firstly in 1633 and secondly in 1689. What proved to be a long co-held title, Duke of Portland, was created in 1716 and became extinct in 1990 upon the death of t ...

. He was

Governor of Jamaica This is a list of viceroys in Jamaica from its initial occupation by Spain in 1509, to its independence from the United Kingdom in 1962. For a list of viceroys after independence, see Governor-General of Jamaica. For context, see History of Jama ...

from 1721 to 1726.

Early life

Bentinck was the second, but eldest surviving, son of

William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland Hans William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland, (20 July 164923 November 1709) was a Dutch and English nobleman who became in an early stage the favourite of William, Prince of Orange, Stadtholder in the Netherlands, and future King of England. He ...

, and his wife Anne ''née'' Villiers. His mother was from the

Villiers family Villiers ( ) is an aristocratic family in the United Kingdom. Over time, various members of the Villiers family were made knights, baronets, and peers. Peerages held by the Villiers family include the dukedoms of Buckingham (1623–1687) and Cleve ...

, the eldest daughter of Sir Edward Villiers and sister of

Edward Villiers, 1st Earl of Jersey Edward Villiers, 1st Earl of Jersey (c. 165625 August 1711) was an English peer, courtier, and statesman of the Villiers family. He was created Baron Villiers and Viscount Villiers in 1691 and Earl of Jersey in 1697. A leading Tory politician ...

. From 1702 to 1703, Bentinck did the

Grand Tour The Grand Tour was the principally 17th- to early 19th-century custom of a traditional trip through Europe, with Italy as a key destination, undertaken by upper-class young European men of sufficient means and rank (typically accompanied by a tut ...

around Europe, travelling through Italy and Germany with his tutor, the historian

Paul de Rapin Paul de Rapin (25 March 1661 – 25 April 1725), sieur of Thoyras (and therefore styled de Rapin de Thoyras), was a Huguenot historian writing under English patronage. His ''History of England'', written and first published in French in 1724– ...

. On 9 June 1704, he married Lady Elizabeth Noel, daughter of Wriothesley Baptist Noel, 2nd Earl of Gainsborough and Catherine Greville at

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and F ...

, an heiress with a fortune of £60,000, who brought him the estate of Titchfield in Hampshire.

Career

At the 1705 English general election, Bentinck was returned in a contest as Whig

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

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

. Apart from carrying out minor functions, he appears to have been inactive in Parliament. At the

1708 British general election The 1708 British general election was the first general election to be held after the Acts of Union had united the Parliaments of England and Scotland. The election saw the Whigs finally gain a majority in the House of Commons, and by November ...

, he was returned unopposed for Southampton and in a contest at

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

, and opted to sit for Hampshire. He acted as a teller for the Whigs. He succeeded his father as Earl of Portland on 23 November 1709 and vacated his seat in the House of Commons to sit in the

Lords Lords may refer to: * The plural of Lord Places *Lords Creek, a stream in New Hanover County, North Carolina *Lord's, English Cricket Ground and home of Marylebone Cricket Club and Middlesex County Cricket Club People *Traci Lords (born 19 ...

. He now owned the principal family seat of Bulstrode in Berkshire, and also inherited estates worth about £850,150 in Cheshire, Cumberland, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Sussex, Westminster and Yorkshire, In 1710, he was appointed Colonel of the 1st Troop of Horse Guards until 1713. He was created Marquess of Titchfield and

Duke of Portland Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...

on 6 July 1716. In 1719 he was one of main subscribers in the

Royal Academy of Music (1719) The Royal Academy of Music was a company founded in February 1719, during George Frideric Handel's residence at Cannons, by a group of aristocrats to secure themselves a constant supply of opera seria. It is not connected to the London con ...

, a corporation that produced

baroque opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

on stage. He was appointed Lord of the Bedchamber in 1717 and held the post for the rest of hislife. Portland lost a huge amount of money in the

South Sea Bubble South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...

in 1720. In 1721, he accepted the post of

, which was a lucrative but not a very prestigious post, and one with a low survival rate.

Death and legacy

Portland died in Jamaica at

Spanish Town Spanish Town ( jam, label= Jamaican Creole, Panish Tong) is the capital and the largest town in the parish of St. Catherine in the historic county of Middlesex, Jamaica. It was the Spanish and British capital of Jamaica from 1534 until 1872. T ...

on 4 July 1726, aged 45, and his body was returned to England for burial. He was interred on 3 November 1796 in

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

in the vault of the Dukes of Ormond located in the King Henry VII Chapel. Portland and his wife had three sons and seven daughters, who included * William Bentinck, Viscount Woodstock, later Marquess of Titchfield, later 2nd Duke of Portland (1709–1762) * Lord George (1715–1759), soldier *Lady Anne (d. 1749), married Col. Daniel Paul *Lady Amelia Catharina (d. 1756), married Jacob van Wassenaer, Heer van Hazerswoude-Waddingsveen *Lady Isabella (d. 1783), married Henry Monck, uncle of Charles Monck, 1st Viscount Monck; their daughter Elizabeth married the 1st Marquess of Waterford.

References

External links

Biography of the 1st Duke, with links to online catalogues, from Manuscripts and Special Collections, The University of Nottingham
{{DEFAULTSORT:Portland, Henry Bentinck, 01 Duke of 1682 births 1726 deaths British Life Guards officers British MPs 1707–1708 British MPs 1708–1710 101 Governors of Jamaica H Burials at Westminster Abbey Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies English MPs 1705–1707