Henry Cavendish (politician)

The Right Honourable Sir Henry Hardwick Cavendish
Unknown Tudor Gentleman, possibly Sir Henry Cavendish
Member of Parliament for Derbyshire
In office 1572–1596
Preceded by	Robert Wennersley
Succeeded by	John Harpur
Personal details
Born	1550 Derbyshire
Died	12 October 1616 Chatsworth, Derbyshire
Parent(s)	William Cavendish, Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury

Sir Henry Hardwick Cavendish (1550–1616) was the eldest son of the Tudor courtier William Cavendish, and Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsbury (c. 1527–1608), known as "Bess of Hardwick". A Knight of the Shire for Derbyshire, he served in the Netherlands as a Captain in 1578; conducted several trade expeditions across Europe and the Near East (Constantinople); and was elected as MP for Derbyshire five times.

Cavendish was disinherited by his mother (who held his wardship after his father's death) after a complete breakdown in their relationship due to his friendship with Mary Queen of Scots and support for his niece, Arabella Stuart. After his mothers death in 1608 Cavendish inherited Chatsworth from his fathers estate, though not its contents. He sold the house intact to his brother William, who later that year became the 1st Earl of Devonshire.

Sir Henry and his wife, Lady Grace Talbot Cavendish, daughter of the 6th Earl of Shrewsbury, had no surviving legitimate heir. Sir Henry was the father of over 8 illegitimate children. His eldest son, Henry (born 1576, of mother unknown) was educated and married to Bridget Willoughby, daughter of Sir Percival and Lady Bridget Willoughby. Among their direct descendants are the Barons Cavendish of Dove; later the Barons of Waterpark.

Later, his descendant William Hunter Henderson Cavendish ( born 1734), second son of Sir Henry John Cavendish, 1st Baronet Cavendish of Dove, migrated to Warm Springs, West Virginia, USA in pursuit of freedom of religion.

Early life

Henry Cavendish's father, William Cavendish, possibly painted by John Bettes the Elder.

Henry Cavendish was born 27th December 1550, the eldest son of the politician and courtier Sir William Cavendish and Lady Bess of Hardwick. Henry was christened in December 1550 and his godparents included Lady Elizabeth Tudor, half-sister to the King (she became Queen Elizabeth the I). Also his godparents: Dorset (soon Duke of Suffolk) and John Dudley, Earl of Warwick, Duke of Northumberland. His father died 25th October 1557, when he was young. Henry was only 6 years old. Henry was raised with his younger brother William at Chatsworth House, which was completed by his mother in the 1560s, where she lived with her fourth husband, George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury.

On 9 February 1568, at the age of 17, Cavendish was married to Grace Talbot, the eight-year-old daughter of his stepfather. It was more of a merger than a marriage; part of the prenuptial agreement and condition upon which Lady Bess would agree to marry George Talbot, the Earl of Shrewsbury, Grace's widowed father. The marriage took place at The Cathedral of Saint Peter, Sheffield, York, England.

Henry was immediately sent abroad with his brother-in-law and lifelong friend, Gilbert Talbot.

He returned to England, entered politics, and resumed family life by 1575.

Upon attaining his majority, Cavendish received the income from lands settled upon him by his father, income which had, until then, gone to his mother who was formerly granted his wardship. This income would not prove sufficient to cover Henry's lifestyle or debts.

Henry and Grace's marriage is said to have been an unhappy one. Grace's letters to Lady Bess, however, seem to indicate an affection for her husband, though she is frank to admit the suffering of their perpetual state of financial insecurity. The couple had no surviving children.

Education

At 10 years old, Henry Cavendish attended Eton in 1560, four years after his father death.

He also received private tutoring and entered Gray's Inn by 1566-67.

To complete his education Cavendish was sent abroad in 1567, (immediately following his marriage to his stepfather’s eight year-old daughter, until they were both of age). He travelled to Germany, Padua, and Venice with his brother-in-law Gilbert Talbot, later 7th Earl of Shrewsbury.

The diary of his journey still survives among the Hardwick manuscripts. Among other colourful descriptions he described the city of Venice as "a most foul stinking sink".

Career

The Cavendish Memorial in St Peter's Church, Edensor

Military service

As a young man Cavendish "won repute as a soldier", serving his country as a Captain in the Netherlands in 1578, during the Dutch Revolt. Cavendish led a force of around 500 men, mostly from his family estates, successfully fighting off an attack by Spanish tercios led by Don Juan of Austria during the Battle of Rijmenam. War, however, was costly, and the expense of campaigning in the Netherlands was likely the initial cause of his considerable debts, which amounted to £3,000 by 1584.

Politics

Cavendish entered politics in his early twenties, becoming the Member of Parliament for the County of Derbyshire for almost 20 years. He was returned to office over five successive elections, in 1575, 1584, 1586, 1589 and 1593. This remarkable record of success may have been supported by the influence of his stepfather, the Earl of Shrewsbury. Record of his contribution in the Parliamentary journals is limited, raising the question of his actual interest in politics and government. However, as a Member of the British Parliament- Knight of the Shire- he did sit on a committee of the house in March 1575 (Journals of the House of Commons, i. 110), and again in Dec. 1584. (Simonds D'Ewes, Journals of all the parliaments during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, p. 340.) He was subsequently appointed to subsidy committees on 24 Feb. 1585, 11 Feb. 1589 and 26 Feb. 1593, and to a legal committee 9 Mar. 1593.

Mary Queen of Scots

In about 1585, Cavendish was living at Tutbury Castle when the Tudor courtier [[Amias Paulet] made arrangements for Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots to be sent there. Cavendish, knowing the formidable cost to his father in laws estate during his tenure as keeper of Mary, Queen of Scots between 1568 and 1585, was reluctant to make way for the royal prisoner without reimbursement. He asked £100 a year for the use of the house, or as an alternative, that Queen Elizabeth I should lend him £2,000 towards the repayment of his debts. Paulet reported to the Queen that "this is his final answer....and within reason" but added that "It may be, although he doth not say it, that he will be content with the loan of £1,500". Both Henry, and Grace his wife, befriended the Scottish Queen.

Travels in the East and European Trade Expeditions

Inspired by the travels of his youth, as well as recognising the potential for trade, Henry embarked on a journey to Portugal in 1579.

In 1589, he was commissioned by his mother and father in law, to conduct a trade expedition to Constantinople.

His servant-companion Mr. Fox, kept an account of this journey now published as Mr. Harrie Cavendish, his Journey To and From Constantinople, 1589 Fox, His Servant

These trips proved successful to forward the Earl of Shrewsbury's extensive mineral trade interests and his mother's investments in the glass industry. They also supplied his Lady Mother, "Building Bess", with some of the finest furnishings in England for the magnificent homes she designed. Henry is said to have had an eye for high quality design himself and returned with many Chinese silks, Persian and Anatolian carpets, and Gujarati embroidered bed-covers.

Personal life

Despite being the eldest son, Cavendish was later disinherited by his mother, from whom he had become estranged. Her marriage to her fourth husband, the 6th Earl of Shrewsbury, had fallen into difficulties, and Cavendish sided with his stepfather against his mother. Also, she objected to Henry's developing friendship with Mary Queen of Scots (Bess's nemesis. She accused Mary of seducing her husband and possibly bearing him two children). The subsequent failed attempt Henry made to help his niece, Arabella Stuart, escape from his mothers abusive "care" infuriated Bess of Hardwick who referred to her eldest as "my bad son Henry". His collaboration with Stapleton, a Yorkshire catholic during the botched rescue attempt was the last straw. His mother maintained her tight control over her granddaughter, Arabella, keeping her under house guard, as she was a potential contender to the throne.

Both Henry and Arabella were entirely written out of Lady Bess's will from this time. Instead, his younger brother William who was amenable to his mothers guidance was favoured, later becoming the First Earl of Devonshire, inheriting those vast estates his mother controlled.

It is interesting to note that after their mother, Lady Bess died, Henrys sister, Mary Talbot the wife of his friend and twice brother-in-law Gilbert Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury would also offer dramatic assistance to their niece, Arabella. She went so far as to arrange her escape from the Tower of London to France. Arabella was apprehended before Calais and subsequently died from a hunger strike in the tower. Her Lady Aunt Mary was incarcerated in the Tower for 6 years (1611-1618) for her participation in what was deemed a Catholic plot and only released after paying an enormous ransom.

Henry was suspected of Catholic sympathies, communication and interest in Scottish and Continental politics, and later of involvement in the Bye and Main Plot, which led James I to arrest H. Brooke, Lord Cobham and Walter Raleigh. Nothing was proven, however, and his complicity deemed unlikely (as he had campaigned years before against the Spanish and Hapsburgs.) Henry Cavendish remained free.

It may be, rather, that this family were simply intent to support the freedom of their loved ones to pursue a life of their own choosing.

Hot headed Henry did receive an order on 30th of May 1592 to desist from hostility in a private armed feud that ensued between himself and William Agard. Both had engaged in pitched battle via their private armies until Henry's brother in law, Gilbert Talbot, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury intervened, asking the privy council that 'all matters of quarrell and pyke betwyxt them and theyrs' should be adjudicated by Robert Devereux earl of Essex, and himself." Peace was restored.

Reportedly unhappy in his marriage and free spirited, Cavendish pursued extra-marital liaisons. So, perhaps did Grace ( or so he accused her). He was popularly known as "the common bull of Derbyshire and Staffordshire". It is believed he fathered at least 8 illegitimate children, including:

• Henry Cavendish, Esquire (1576-1624). Henry married Bridget Willoughby 14th October, 1610. She was the daughter of Sir Percival and Lady Bridget Willoughby of Wollaton Hall, Nottingham. From this couple descend the Barons Cavendish of Doveridge (Later the Barons of Waterpark), and the American family branch of William Hunter Henderson Cavendish, who migrated to Warm Springs, Virginia, USA, second son of Sir Henry John Cavendish, Baronet Cavendish of Dove.
• Anne (Cavendish) Lowe. Anne married Vincent Lowe, Esq., of Denby, Derbyshire, sometime before 1614, and had a large family. Her grandson Colonel Henry Lowe emigrated to Maryland and became a planter and politician.

Bess of Hardwick died on 13 February 1608, and it appears that Cavendish did not attend his mother's funeral. Long estranged, he received nothing from her in her will. However, he did inherit Chatsworth from his fathers estate after his mother's death, but without its contents; a hard blow for one who had chosen and supplied so much of it. As a result, and in order to pay off his debts, he sold the estate intact to his brother William the following year. William allowed he and Grace to live at Chatsworth until the time of Henry's death in 1616. Henry is buried at his brothers side in St. Peter's Church, Edensor, Derbyshire.

Death and legacy

Cavendish died on 12 October 1616 at Chatsworth, Derbyshire, England. The Cavendish Memorial, a magnificent early-17th-century church monument to Henry and his brother William, may have been designed by their mother prior to her death. It can be seen in St Peter's Church, Edensor, Derbyshire, where he is buried. Henry is symbolically depicted by his armour, which hangs on the wall, as well as the startlingly realistic bare bones of his effigy indicating his disavowal of his mothers values and resistance to participate in her dynastic agenda. It may be that Lady Bess attempted to shame him beyond the grave by this design....or it may well refer to Henry's own sense of humour; a final act of defiance to conformity.

The Latin inscription for the two brothers on the church monument provides fascinating insight into their lives indicating both a stark contrast and strong fraternal bond:

SACRED to the Memory of Henry,

eldest son of William Cavendish,

Knight of Chatsworth, in the County of Derby, and of the much celebrated

Elizabeth Hardwick of Hardwick, in the same County, who afterwards

married her fourth husband, George Earl of Shrewsbury.

He was a strenuous and brave man, and particularly distinguished himself

among the English Volunteer Commanders in the campaign in the Netherlands,

in the year 1578, in which he displayed perseverance, skill, diligence,

activity, and fortitude.

When however his military engagements gave place to the enjoyment of ease,

he indulged in the liberal and sumptuous use of his fortune

in such a manner as to retain the character of splendour and festivity

and to avoid the reproach of luxurious indolence.

His Arms and Armour being deposited in this County,

and fixed in the wall, his Body lies here awaiting instead of the Clarion of Fame

the Trumpet of the Resurrection.

He died the 12th day of October in the year of our Lord 1616.

SACRED to the Memory of William Cavendish

the second son of the same parents, who also here put off his earthly dress.

He was a man born to fill every honourable Station,

and in the simplicity of his virtues deserving rather than courting Glory.

Whom when James the 1st of Blessed Memory, King of Great Britain,

had honoured with the Titles first of Baron Hardwick,

and afterwards Earl of Devonshire, he appeared not so much to

do Honour to the man as to the title, with what Wisdom, Integrity, and Applause,

he sustained the Duties of his Province; Common Fame is seldom false.

He was not only the best man of his own but of every age,

nor can his character be suppressed or spoken of without difficulty.

He was capable of the utmost diligence and of unsullied faith,

with the appearance of the greatest indolence.

He claimed no Honour and yet obtained all.

To Him having ordered that he might be buried

without splendour and in a plain grave,

this Monument is erected with an affection greater than its expense.

He died the third of March in the year of our Lord 1625.

References

• D. J. B. Trim, ‘Cavendish, Henry (1550–1616)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, Jan 2008 accessed 25 Sept 2017. This is a subscription site but access is free to readers of British libraries whose library subscribes.
• Dictionary of National Biography (Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900) http://search.Ancestry.com.au/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=dictnatbiogv1&h=83215&ti=5544&indiv=try&gss=pt Death: 1616
• Cavendish, Margaret. The Life of William Cavendish, Duke of Newcastle (John Russell Smith, London, 1872) Page 196-7
• Henry Cavendish at the History of Parliament retrieved 7 August 2018