The Lord Churchill | |
|---|---|
,_after_William_Owen.jpg) Francis Spencer, later 1st Baron Churchill (1779–1845) (after William Owen) | |
| Member of Parliament for Oxfordshire | |
| In office 1801–1815 Serving with John Fane | |
| Preceded by | Lord Charles Spencer John Fane |
| Succeeded by | John Fane William Ashurst |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Lord Francis Almeric Spencer 26 December 1779 |
| Died | 10 March 1845 (aged 65) |
| Political party | Whig |
| Spouse |
Lady Frances FitzRoy
(after 1800) |
| Parent(s) | George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough Lady Caroline Russell |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | British Army |
| Rank | Lieutenant-Colonel |
| Battles/wars | Napoleonic Wars |
Francis Almeric Spencer, 1st Baron Churchill DCL FRS (26 December 1779 – 10 March 1845) was a British peer and Whig politician from the Spencer family.
Born Lord Francis Almeric Spencer, he was the second youngest of the 4th Duke of Marlborough,[1] and his wife, Lady Caroline Russell. Among his siblings were Lady Caroline Spencer (wife of Henry Agar-Ellis, 2nd Viscount Clifden), Lady Elizabeth Spencer (who married their cousin John Spencer, a grandson of the 3rd Duke of Marlborough), George Spencer-Churchill, 5th Duke of Marlborough, Lady Charlotte Spencer (wife of Rev. Edward Nares), Lord Henry John Spencer, Lady Anne Spencer (wife of Cropley Ashley-Cooper, 6th Earl of Shaftesbury), and Lady Amelia Spencer (wife of Henry Pytches Boyce).[1]
His paternal grandparents were Charles Spencer, 3rd Duke of Marlborough, and the former Hon. Elizabeth Trevor (a daughter of Thomas Trevor, 2nd Baron Trevor). Among his paternal family were aunts Lady Diana Beauclerk and Lady Elizabeth Spencer. His maternal grandparents were John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford (the British Ambassador to France), and, his second wife, the former Gertrude Leveson-Gower (eldest daughter of John Leveson-Gower, 1st Earl Gower). Among his maternal family was uncle Francis Russell, Marquess of Tavistock and his first cousins, Francis Russell, 5th Duke of Bedford, and John Russell, 6th Duke of Bedford.[1]
From 1801 to 1815, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Oxfordshire and on his retirement from the Commons, was raised to the peerage as Baron Churchill, of Wychwood in the County of Oxford.[2]
During the Napoleonic Wars he raised a Troop of volunteer cavalry in Oxford and was appointed its Captain on 3 November 1803[3] After the wars the independent troops in the county were consolidated into the North Western Oxfordshire Regiment of Yeomanry, with Spencer (now Lord Churchill) as Lieutenant-Colonel.[1]
Lord Churchill married Lady Frances FitzRoy, daughter of Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton, on 25 November 1800.[1] Together, they were the parents of:
He died in 1845 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Francis.[1]
His fourth son, Hon. Rev. William Henry Spencer, married Elizabeth Rose Thornhill in January 1838. Their daughter, Isabella Elizabeth Spencer (later Griffin), married Barrister-at-law Marten Harcourt Griffin Esq (Grandson of Captain William Sandey, Royal Navy (Trafalgar)).
Mount Churchill in British Columbia, Canada, was named in his honor in 1860 by Sir George Henry Richards.[4]
