Charles Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer

Charles Robert Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer, KG, GCVO, VD, PC (30 October 1857 – 26 September 1922), styled The Honourable Charles Spencer until 1905 and known as Viscount Althorp between 1905 and 1910, was a British courtier and Liberal politician from the Spencer family. An MP from 1880 to 1895 and again from 1900 to 1905, he served as Vice-Chamberlain of the Household from 1892 to 1895. Raised to peerage as Viscount Althorp in 1905, he was Lord Chamberlain from 1905 to 1912 in the Liberal administrations headed by Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman and H. H. Asquith. In 1910, he succeeded his half-brother as Earl Spencer. He was married to Margaret Baring, a member of the Baring family.

The Right Honourable The Earl Spencer KG GCVO VD PC
Lord Chamberlain of the Household
In office 18 December 1905 – 14 February 1912
Monarchs	Edward VII George V
Prime Minister	Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman H. H. Asquith
Preceded by	The Earl of Clarendon
Succeeded by	The Lord Sandhurst
Personal details
Born	(1857-10-30)30 October 1857 St James's, Westminster, London, England
Died	26 September 1922(1922-09-26) (aged 64) St James Place, Westminster, London, England
Political party	Liberal
Spouse	Hon. Margaret Baring ​ ​ (m. 1887; died 1906)​
Children	Lady Adelaide Peel Albert Spencer, 7th Earl Spencer Hon. Cecil Spencer Lady Lavinia Annaly Hon. George Spencer Lady Margaret Douglas-Home
Parents	Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer Adelaide Seymour
Alma mater	Trinity College, Cambridge

Background and education

Known as "Bobby", Spencer was born in St. James's, Westminster,^[1] the son of Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer, by his second wife Adelaide Seymour, daughter of Horace Beauchamp Seymour and granddaughter of Lord Hugh Seymour. John Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer, was his elder half-brother. He was educated at Harrow and Trinity College, Cambridge.^[2]

Political career

Spencer represented Northamptonshire North in parliament from 1880 to 1885 and Northamptonshire Mid from 1885 to 1895 and again from 1900 to 1905, from his home at Dallington Hall. In 1898, he contested Hertford.^[3] He was a Groom in Waiting to Queen Victoria between February and June 1886. In 1892, he was sworn of the Privy Council^[4] and appointed Vice-Chamberlain of the Household under William Ewart Gladstone,^[5] a post he held until 1895, the last year under the premiership of Lord Rosebery.^[6] Between 1900 and 1905, he was a Liberal whip.^[7]

On 19 December 1905, Spencer was created Viscount Althorp, of Great Brington in the County of Northampton,^[8] to allow him to become Lord Chamberlain in Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman's new Liberal administration. (His older brother was still Earl Spencer at that time, but was 70 years old and childless, and so it was clear that his younger brother would inherit.)^[9] On 13 August 1910, he inherited the earldom on the death of his childless elder brother, John Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer. He remained Lord Chamberlain until 1912.^[10] From 1908 to 1922, he was Lord Lieutenant of Northamptonshire.^[11] He was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order^{[citation needed]} in 1911 and a Knight Companion of the Garter in 1913.^[12] He was also awarded the Volunteer Reserve Decoration.

Lord Spencer held a large number of foreign decorations: the Grand Crosses of Order of the Dannebrog of Denmark, Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav, Order of the Polar Star of Sweden, Order of the Rising Sun of Japan, the White Eagle of Serbia, Order of the Red Eagle of Prussia and Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Carlos III. He was also an honorary major in^[7] and later honorary colonel of the 4th Volunteer Battalion, Northamptonshire Regiment.^[11]

Family

Lord Spencer married the Hon. Margaret Baring (14 December 1868 – 4 July 1906), daughter of Edward Baring, 1st Baron Revelstoke and Louisa Emily Charlotte Bulteel, at St James's Church, Piccadilly, on 23 July 1887. They had six children:

• Lady Adelaide Margaret "Delia" Spencer (1889–1981), married Sir Sidney Peel, 1st Baronet
• Albert Edward John Spencer, 7th Earl Spencer (1892–1975), who married in 1919 Lady Cynthia Elinor Beatrix Hamilton (1897-1972). They had a son and two daughters. By their son they became grandparents of Diana, Princess of Wales.
• Lieutenant commander Hon. Cecil Edward Robert Spencer RN DSC Croix de Guerre (1894–1928), died unmarried in a riding accident.
• Lady Lavinia Emily Spencer^[13] (1899–1955), married the 4th Baron Annaly and had issue. Lady Annaly was an extra Lady-in-Waiting to Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother when she was Duchess of York.
• Captain Hon. George Charles Spencer (1903–1982), married (1) Barbara Blumenthal and had issue, married (2) Kathleen Henderson; no issue.
• Lady Alexandra Margaret Elizabeth Spencer (1906–1996), married Hon. Henry Douglas-Home (son of the 13th Earl of Home) and had issue. She was the author of A Spencer Childhood, published in 1994.^[14]

Viscountess Althorp died in 1906 giving birth to their sixth child.^[15] Lord Spencer died in September 1922 at his home in St James Place, London, aged 64. He had been ill for four months after contracting a "chill" at a public event in his home county, Northamptonshire.^[16] His eldest son Albert succeeded in the earldom. Lord Spencer was buried next to his wife in Saint Mary the Virgin with St John Churchyard, Great Brington, Northamptonshire.

Coat of arms

Coat of arms of Charles Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer

Coronet A Coronet of an Earl Crest Out of a Ducal Coronet Or a Griffin's Head Azure gorged with a Bar Gemelle Gules between two Wings expanded of the second Escutcheon Quarterly Argent and Gules in the 2nd and 3rd quarters a Fret Or over all on a Bend Sable three Escallops of the first Supporters Dexter: A Griffin per fess Ermine and Erminois gorged with a Collar Sable the edges flory-counterflory and chained of the last and on the Collar three Escallops Argent; Sinister: A Wyvern Erect on his tail Ermine similarly collared and chained Motto Dieu Defend Le Droit (God defend the right)

Ancestry

Ancestors of Charles Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer

8. John Spencer, 1st Earl Spencer 4. George Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer 9. Georgiana Poyntz 2. Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer 10. Charles Bingham, 1st Earl of Lucan 5. Lady Lavinia Bingham 11. Margaret Smith 1. Charles Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer 12. Lord Hugh Seymour 6. Col. Sir Horace Beauchamp Seymour 13. Lady Anne Horatia Waldegrave 3. Adelaide Seymour 14. Sir Lawrence Palk, 2nd Baronet of Haldon House 7. Elizabeth Malet Palk 15. Lady Dorothy Elizabeth Vaughan

References

1. Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901 PRO RG13 Piece 74 Folio 12, p. 16.
2. "Spencer, the Hon. Charles Robert, Viscount Althorp (SPNR877CR)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
3. F. W. S. Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1885 – 1918 (Macmillan Press Ltd., London, 1974) p. 295.
4. "No. 26320". The London Gazette. 26 August 1892. p. 4881.
5. "No. 26321". The London Gazette. 30 August 1892. p. 4958.
6. "No. 26643". The London Gazette. 12 July 1895. p. 3945.
7. Michael Stenton and Stephen Lees, Who's Who of British Members of Parliament (Harvester Press, Sussex, 1978) vol. II, p. 334.
8. "No. 27868". The London Gazette. 29 December 1905. p. 9319.
9. "No. 27866". The London Gazette. 22 December 1905. p. 9171.
10. "No. 28581". The London Gazette. 16 February 1912. p. 1169.
11. George Edward Cokayne, H A Doubleday and Lord Howard de Walden, The Complete Peerage (St Catherine's, London, 1940) vol. XIII, p. 39.
12. "No. 28736". The London Gazette. 11 July 1913. p. 4966.
13. "Lavinia Emily White (née Spencer), Lady Annaly". National Portrait Gallery, London.
14. Charles Mosley (ed.), Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, 107th edition (Burke's Peerage and Gentry LLC, 2003) vol. III, p. 3695.
15. "Obituary: Lady Althorp". The Times. 5 July 1906. p. 12.
16. The Times (London), Wednesday, 27 September 1922, p. 10, col. D.

External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Charles Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Sackville Stopford-Sackville Lord Burghley	Member of Parliament for North Northamptonshire 1880–1885 With: Lord Burghley	Succeeded by Edward Monckton
New constituency	Member of Parliament for Mid Northamptonshire 1885–1895	Succeeded by Sir James Pender, Bt
Preceded by Sir James Pender, Bt	Member of Parliament for Mid Northamptonshire 1900–1905	Succeeded by Harry Manfield
Court offices
Preceded by Lord Burghley	Vice-Chamberlain of the Household 1892–1895	Succeeded by Ailwyn Fellowes
Preceded by The Earl of Clarendon	Lord Chamberlain 1905–1912	Succeeded by The Lord Sandhurst
Honorary titles
Preceded by The Earl Spencer	Lord Lieutenant of Northamptonshire 1908–1922	Succeeded by The Marquess of Exeter
Peerage of Great Britain
Preceded by John Spencer	Earl Spencer 1910–1922	Succeeded by Albert Spencer
Peerage of the United Kingdom
New creation	Viscount Althorp 1905–1922	Succeeded by Albert Spencer