| Honorific-Prefix: | The Right Honourable |
| The Earl of Jersey | |
| Honorific-Suffix: | GCH PC |
| Order1: | Lord Chamberlain of the Household |
| Term Start1: | 24 July 1830 |
| Term End1: | 24 November 1830 |
| Monarch1: | William IV |
| Primeminister1: | The Duke of Wellington |
| Predecessor1: | The Duke of Montrose |
| Successor1: | The Duke of Devonshire |
| Term Start2: | 15 December 1834 |
| Term End2: | 8 April 1835 |
| Monarch2: | William IV |
| Primeminister2: | Sir Robert Peel, Bt |
| Predecessor2: | The Duke of Devonshire |
| Successor2: | The Marquess Wellesley |
| Order3: | Master of the Horse |
| Term Start3: | 4 September 1841 |
| Term End3: | 29 June 1846 |
| Monarch3: | Victoria |
| Primeminister3: | Sir Robert Peel, Bt |
| Predecessor3: | The Earl of Albemarle |
| Successor3: | The Duke of Norfolk |
| Term Start4: | 1 March 1852 |
| Term End4: | 17 December 1852 |
| Monarch4: | Victoria |
| Primeminister4: | The Earl of Derby |
| Predecessor4: | The Duke of Norfolk |
| Successor4: | The Duke of Wellington |
| Birth Date: | 19 August 1773 |
| Nationality: | British |
| Party: | Conservative |
| Alma Mater: | St John's College, Cambridge |
| Spouse: | Lady Sarah Fane (1785–1867) |
| Children: | 7 |
| Parents: | George Villiers, 4th Earl of Jersey Frances Twysden |
George Child Villiers, 5th Earl of Jersey, GCH, PC (19 August 1773 – 3 October 1859), previously George Villiers and styled Viscount Villiers until 1805, was a British courtier and Conservative politician from the Villiers family.
He added the name of Child to his own by royal licence in 1819.
Styled Viscount Villiers from birth, he was the son of George Villiers, 4th Earl of Jersey, by his wife Frances Twysden, daughter of the Right Reverend Philip Twysden, Bishop of Raphoe. He attended Harrow and obtained a Master of Arts degree from St John's College, Cambridge. He was a Gentleman of the Bedchamber to the Prince of Wales in 1795.[1]
Lord Jersey succeeded in the earldom on the death of his father in 1805 and took his seat in the House of Lords. He served as Lord Chamberlain of the Household under the Duke of Wellington between July and November 1830 and was sworn of the Privy Council in July 1830. He was Lord Chamberlain for a second time under Sir Robert Peel from 1834 to 1835. He again held office under Peel as Master of the Horse from 1841 to 1846, and again briefly under Lord Derby in 1852. He was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Civil Law by the University of Oxford.
Lord Jersey married Lady Sarah Sophia Fane, daughter of John Fane, 10th Earl of Westmorland, on 23 May 1804. She was the eldest grandchild and heiress of Robert Child, the principal shareholder of the banking firm Child & Co. Lord Jersey added the surname Child to the Villiers surname by royal licence in 1819.
Lady Jersey was one of the great hostesses of English society, a leader of the ton during the Regency era and the reign of George IV, and a patroness of Almack's. Lord Jersey was an ardent fox hunter and a breeder and trainer of horses, owning two Epsom Derby winners, in Mameluke (1827) and Bay Middleton (1836) as well as other notable thoroughbreds such as Glencoe.[2] His wife's numerous love affairs did not trouble him: asked why he had never fought a duel to protect her honour, he replied that he could hardly fight every man in London.[3] Lord and Lady Jersey had seven children:
Lord Jersey died on 3 October 1859, aged 86, and was succeeded by his eldest son, George, who died only weeks later. The Countess of Jersey died in January 1867, aged 81.