Charles Compton, 7th Earl of Northampton (1737–1763) by Pompeo Batoni (1708–1787), painted in Rome, 1758. Oil on canvas; Cambridge, Fitzwilliam Museum
Lady Ann Somerset, Countess of Northampton (attributed to Jean-Étienne Liotard)

Charles Compton, 7th Earl of Northampton, DL (22 July 1737 – 18 October 1763)[1] was a British peer and diplomat.

He was the eldest son of the Hon. Charles Compton, in turn youngest son of George Compton, 4th Earl of Northampton, and his wife Mary, only daughter of Sir Berkeley Lucy, 3rd Baronet.[2] Compton was educated at Westminster School and went then to Christ Church, Oxford.[3] In 1758, he succeeded his uncle George Compton as earl and was elected Recorder of Northampton.[4] He received a Doctor of Civil Law by the University of Oxford in the following year and was nominated a Deputy Lieutenant for the county of Northamptonshire.[3]

In 1761, during the coronation of King George III of the United Kingdom, Compton was the Bearer of the Ivory Rod with the Dove.[3] Subsequently, he was appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Venice with his introduction in May 1763, died only few months later.[3]

On 13 September 1759, he married Lady Ann Somerset, eldest daughter of Charles Somerset, 4th Duke of Beaufort.[5] Their only child, Elizabeth, married George Cavendish, 1st Earl of Burlington.[5] His wife died at Naples in May 1763, and Compton survived her until October, aged only 26. Both were buried in the family's Northamptonshire vault.[4] He was succeeded in the earldom by his younger brother Spencer.

References

  1. ^ "Leigh Rayment - Peerage". Archived from the original on 8 June 2008. Retrieved 2 November 2009.((cite web)): CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ^ Burke, John (1832). A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire. Vol. II (4th ed.). London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley. p. 237.
  3. ^ a b c d Doyle, James Edmund (1886). The Official Baronage of England. Vol. II. London: Longmans, Green & Co. p. 629.
  4. ^ a b Collins, Arthur (1812). Sir Egerton Brydges (ed.). Collin's Peerage of England. Vol. III. London: T. Bensley. pp. 262–263.
  5. ^ a b Debrett, John (1828). Debrett's Peerage of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Vol. I (17th ed.). London: G. Woodfall. p. 74.
Diplomatic posts Preceded byJohn Murrayas Minister Resident Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Venice 1762–1763 Succeeded byJames Wrightas Minister Resident Peerage of England Preceded byGeorge Compton Earl of Northampton 5th creation1758–1763 Succeeded bySpencer Compton
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