Lord Augustus FitzClarence explained

Honorific Prefix:The Reverend
Lord Augustus FitzClarence
Birth Date:1 March 1805
Burial Place:St Margaret's Church, Mapledurham, Oxfordshire
Noble Family:FitzClarence
Issue:Dorothea FitzClarence
Eva FitzClarence
Beatrice FitzClarence
Augustus FitzClarence
Henry Edward FitzClarence
Mary FitzClarence
Father:William IV
Mother:Dorothea Jordan
Occupation:Chaplain

Lord Augustus FitzClarence (1 March 1805 – 14 June 1854), was the youngest illegitimate son of William IV of the United Kingdom and his long-time mistress Dorothea Jordan. Like his siblings, he had little contact with his mother after his parents separated in 1811.

Career

In 1829 Augustus was appointed a Chaplain of his father (then Duke of Clarence and St Andrews)[1] and later that year he was presented with the vicarage of Mapledurham in Oxfordshire, succeeding John Sumner (later Bishop of Chester and Archbishop of Canterbury).[2] King William IV was a lavish benefactor of the church and the parish and, among his gifts was the clock in the tower which bears his initials, ″W R.″; he also made generous contributions to extend the vicarage and to enclose its adjacent grounds with substantial provisions for the foundation of a new school in the village. The marvellous collection of silver gilt communion plate presented to the church by Lord Augustus shortly after his appointment was probably in turn a gift from his father.[3]

In 1830 he was appointed Chaplain in ordinary to his father (now King William IV), and on 24 May 1831 was granted the rank of a marquess' younger son, being appointed Chaplain to Queen Adelaide after his father's accession to the throne in 1832. Following his studies at Trinity College, Cambridge, he received the degrees of LL.B. (2 June 1832) and LL.D. (6 July 1835).

Marriage and issue

On 2 January 1845 he married Sarah Elizabeth Catharine Gordon, a daughter of Maj. Lord Henry Gordon (a younger brother of Charles Gordon, 10th Marquess of Huntly and a relative of the husband of his sister Lady Augusta Gordon) by his wife Louisa Payne. By his wife he had six children:[4]

Death

FitzClarence died on 14 June 1854. He was buried at St Margaret's Church, Mapledurham.[7] His widow lived until 23 March 1901.

Notes and References

  1. Book: The Life and Reign of William the Fourth. George. Newenham Wright. John. Watkins. 2. Appendix IV. 854.
  2. Lord Augustus FitzClarence Obituary. The Gentleman's Magazine. 1854. 312.
  3. Web site: St. Margaret - Mapledurham: Brief History. 5 December 2014.
  4. Web site: Marek . Miroslav . Complete Genealogy of the House of Welf . genealogy.euweb.cz . 5 December 2014.
  5. Web site: FitzClarence, Dorothea 1845 - 1870. genealogy.richardremme.com. 5 December 2014.
  6. Web site: Bradford People: Clarence Goff. Bradford on Avon Museum. 5 December 2014.
  7. Web site: Lord Augustus FitzClarence . History Today . 9 Sep 1974 . 11 May 2024.