ISBN: 9781156215197

Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: … Altro …

Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: John Poyntz Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer KG, PC (27 October 183513 August 1910), known as Viscount Althorp from 1845 to 1857 (and also known as the Red Earl because of his distinctive long red beard), was a British Liberal Party politician under and close friend of British prime minister William Ewart Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: John Poyntz Spencer, 5th Earl Spencer KG, PC (27 October 183513 August 1910), known as Viscount Althorp from 1845 to 1857 (and also known as the Red Earl because of his distinctive long red beard), was a British Liberal Party politician under and close friend of British prime minister William Ewart Gladstone. He was twice Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. Spencer was the son of Frederick Spencer, 4th Earl Spencer, by his first wife Georgiana, daughter of William Poyntz. The prominent Whig politician John Spencer, 3rd Earl Spencer was his uncle and Charles Spencer, 6th Earl Spencer his half-brother. He was educated at Harrow and Trinity College, Cambridge, from which he graduated in 1857. Almost immediately after leaving Cambridge Spencer was elected to parliament for South Northamptonshire as a Liberal, before departing for a tour of North America. He returned in December 1857, and within a few days his father died, leaving him as the new Earl Spencer. He was sworn of the Privy Council in 1858 and made a Knight of the Garter in 1864. Spencer split from other whiggish aristocratic Liberals in 1866 on the issue of Russell's reform bill, which he supported, and his loyalty was rewarded by his appointment as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland when Gladstone returned to power in 1868. Ireland came to be a major preoccupation of the remainder of Spencer's long political career. In this first tenure as Lord Lieutenant, he had to deal with implementation of the disestablishment of the Church of Ireland in 1869 and of the Irish Land Act of 1870, both of which measures he strongly supported. Spencer, in fact, went further than most of his ministerial colleagues, including Gladstone himself, in arguing for the setting up of government tribunals to enforce fair rents. More: Books, , Earls-Spencer~~Books-LLC, , , , , , , , , , General Books LLC<