| Lord Richard Cavendish | |
| Office1: | Member of Parliament for North Lonsdale |
| Term1: | 1895-1906 |
| Party: | Liberal Unionist (before 1904) Liberal Party (after 1904) |
| Birth Date: | 31 January 1871 |
| Birth Place: | Mayfair, London |
| Death Place: | Cartmel, Lancashire |
| Education: | Trinity College, Cambridge |
| Father: | Lord Edward Cavendish |
| Relatives: | Cavendish family Victor Cavendish (brother) William Cavendish (grandfather) Blanche Howard (grandmother) William Lascelles (grandfather) Hugh Cavendish (grandson) |
| Children: | 7 |
Lt.-Col. Lord Richard Frederick Cavendish, (31 January 1871 – 7 January 1946) was a British aristocrat, author, magistrate, and politician from the Cavendish family.[1] He took a prominent role in public life in Lancashire, particularly in agricultural development.[2]
Richard was born at Devonshire House in Mayfair,[3] the second of three sons of Lord Edward Cavendish (1838–1891), third son of the 7th Duke of Devonshire. His mother was Emma Lascelles (1838–1920), daughter of the Hon. William Lascelles, and granddaughter of the Earl of Harewood and the Earl of Carlisle.
He was educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he was a member of the Pitt Club.[4]
In 1908, his elder brother, Victor succeeded his father's elder brother, the 8th Duke of Devonshire. He was raised to the rank of a duke's son in honour of his late father and styled as Lord Richard Cavendish.[1] In 1914, his younger brother, Lord John Spencer Cavendish, was killed in action in World War I.
Cavendish was elected in the 1895 general election as the member of parliament (MP) for North Lonsdale. He crossed the floor from being a supporter of the Liberal Unionists to being a member of the Liberal Party in 1904. Therefore, he was one of the few Liberal MPs who lost their seat in the 1906 election. In December 1908 he was appointed chairman of the Royal Commission on Systems of Election, with the mandate "to secure a fully representative character for popularly elected legislative bodies" and "to consider whether, and how far, they, or any of them, are capable of application in this country in regard to the existing electorate". The commission reported in 1910, recommending the abolition of two member constituencies "as soon as possible"; this was implemented. The commission also recommended the adoption of an alternative vote system, which was not implemented.[1]
In 1911, Cavendish was on Prime Minister Asquith's list of peers in case the Parliament Act 1911 was not passed by the House of Lords. He was admitted to the Privy Council in 1912.
During the First World War, he served abroad and was wounded and mentioned in dispatches. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in 1918 and a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1919. As a lieutenant-colonel, he commanded a battalion of The King's Own Royal Regiment (Lancaster). During the Second World War, he was honorary colonel of the 56th (King's Own) Anti-Tank Regiment, Royal Artillery.[1]
Cavendish was President of the Royal Lancashire Agricultural Society.
Lord Richard was the Lord of the Manor, residing at Holker Hall (where his descendants remain to this day) and owned the Swan Hotel at Newby Bridge. He was an active freemason and a keen golfer.
Cavendish married Lady Moyra de Vere Beauclerk, daughter of the Duke of St Albans, in 1895. They had two sons and five daughters. His grandson Lord Cavendish of Furness is third in line to succeed his cousin Peregrine Cavendish, 12th Duke of Devonshire as Duke of Devonshire after William Cavendish, Earl of Burlington and his son.[1]
He died at Holker Hall.[1]