Henry Sydney, 1st Earl of Romney
PC | |
---|---|
Master-General of the Ordnance | |
In office 1693–1702 | |
Lord Lieutenant of Ireland | |
In office March 1692 – May 1693 | |
Secretary of State for the Northern Department | |
In office 1690–1692 | |
Lord Lieutenant of Kent | |
In office 1689–1704 | |
Member of Parliament for Tamworth | |
In office January 1689 – April 1689 | |
Envoy to the United Provinces | |
In office June 1679 – 1681 | |
Member of Parliament for Bramber | |
In office July 1679 – January 1681 | |
Personal details | |
Born | 1641 Lieutenant General |
Unit | Colonel, First Foot Guards |
Battles/wars | Williamite War in Ireland The Boyne; Waterford; First Limerick |
Henry Sydney, 1st Earl of Romney (March 1641 – 8 April 1704) was an English Army officer, Whig politician and peer who served as Master-General of the Ordnance from 1693 to 1702. He is best known as one of the Immortal Seven, a group of seven Englishmen who drafted an invitation to William of Orange, which led to the November 1688 Glorious Revolution and subsequent deposition of James II of England.
Personal details
Henry Sydney was born in
His eldest sister
Although Sydney had an illegitimate son, Henry Worthley, he never married; on 8 April 1704, he died of smallpox at his house in London and was buried a few days later in St James's Church, Piccadilly. His titles became extinct.[5]
Career
Sydney was brought up at Penshurst Place, the family home in Kent and spent much of the period from 1658 to 1664 travelling in Europe with his nephew and contemporary, the Earl of Sunderland. On his return, he held a number of positions at court and in 1667 was commissioned as captain in the Holland Regiment, commanded by his brother Robert. He carried out a number of minor diplomatic missions in the 1670s and received his first significant office in 1678 when Charles appointed him Master of the Robes.[6]
In early 1678, England re-entered the Franco-Dutch War as an ally of the Dutch Republic and Sydney was given command of a new regiment raised to fight in it. Although the war ended before he saw active service, he became friends with William of Orange; with the support of Sunderland, then Secretary of State for the Northern Department, in June 1679 he was appointed Envoy to the United Provinces, a position he held with marked success until 1681.[5]
In October 1679, he was also elected as
In 1683, Algernon Sydney was executed for his part in the Rye House Plot, an alleged conspiracy to assassinate Charles II along with his brother James, and place Monmouth on the throne.
In August, he journeyed to
Sydney accompanied William in 1690 when he took personal charge of the
At the same time, he purchased the office of Chief Ranger of Greenwich Park, allowing him to use the Queen's House as a personal residence. He undertook a series of improvements, one of which was to alter the course of the main road between Woolwich and Deptford, part of which is now called "Romney Road".[11] He remained a close advisor to William and accompanied him to The Hague for the negotiations that led to the signing of the Second Grand Alliance in September 1701. However, when William died and Queen Anne came to the throne in March 1702, he lost most of his offices and retired from active political life; he died of smallpox at his house in London on 8 April 1704, and was buried a few days later at St James's Church, Piccadilly.[5]
Legacy
Sydney's reputation has been subject to a variety of views; some contemporaries considered him lazy and superficial, while Tory satirist Jonathan Swift dismissed him as 'an idle, drunken, ignorant rake, without sense or honour'. [12] Other perspectives are more charitable and in general present him as "an individual with flaws, but also remarkable for his even temper, straight dealing, good judgement, and a knack for gaining the trust of others".[6]
It has been suggested the use of the pheon, or broad arrow, on government property dates from Sydney's period as Master General of the Ordnance.[13] However, the Oxford English Dictionary argues "this is not supported by the evidence", as the use of the device predates his association with the Board.[14]
References
- ^ Scott 2004.
- ^ Luscombe, Stephen. "Robert Sidney". British Empire. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
- ^ Speck 2008.
- ^ Crook 1983.
- ^ a b c Mimardière 1983.
- ^ a b c d e f Hosford 2004.
- ^ Harris 1993, p. 92.
- ^ Jones 1988, p. 222.
- ^ Harris 2006, p. 282.
- ^ Jackson 2021, p. 493.
- ^ Weinreb & Hibbert 1992, p. 651.
- ^ Swift 1962, p. 288.
- ^ Spence 2000, p. 204.
- ^ "broad arrow, n.". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
Sources
- Crook, B.M (1983). PELHAM, Sir John, 3rd Bt. (c.1623-1703), of Halland, Laughton, Suss in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1660–1690. CUP. ISBN 978-1107002258.
- Harris, Tim (1993). Politics under the later Stuarts. Longman. ISBN 0-58204082-5.
- Harris, Tim (2006). Revolution: The Great Crisis of the British Monarchy, 1685–1720. Allen Lane. ISBN 978-0-7139-9759-0.
- Hosford, Stuart (2004). "Sidney, Henry, first earl of Romney (1641–1704)". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/25521. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- Jackson, Clare (2021). Devil-Land; England under siege 1588-1688. Allen Lane. ISBN 978-0-241-285817.
- Jones, J. R. (1988). The Revolution of 1688 in England. Weidenfeld and Nicolson. ISBN 978-0-297-99569-2.
- Mimardière, A.M (1983). SIDNEY (SYDNEY), Hon. Henry (1641–1704), of Jermyn Street, Westminster and Elverton, Stone, Kent in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1660–1690. CUP. ISBN 978-1107002258.
- Scott, Jonathan (2004). "Sidney [Sydney], Algernon". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/25519. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- Speck, W. A. (2008). "Spencer, Robert, second earl of Sunderland (1641–1702)". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/26135. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- Spence, Keith (2000). The companion guide to Kent and Sussex. Companion Guides. ISBN 978-1900639262.
- * Swift, Jonathan (1962). Davis, H (ed.). The Prose Works of Jonathan Swift; Volume V. Blackwell.
- Weinreb, Ben; Hibbert, Christopher (1992). The London Encyclopaedia (2008 ed.). Macmillan. ISBN 978-1405049245.