British politician (1824–1905)
William Henry Leigh, 2nd Baron Leigh
Born (1824-01-17 ) 17 January 1824Died 21 October 1905(1905-10-21) (aged 81) Nationality British Occupation politician Spouse
Lady Caroline Amelia Grosvenor
(
m. 1848)
Children 3 sons, 4 daughters Parents
Inscription to him at St Alban's Church
William Henry Leigh, 2nd Baron Leigh , PC , JP (17 January 1824 – 21 October 1905) was a British politician.
Life
He was the eldest of three sons born to Chandos Leigh, 1st Baron Leigh and his wife Margarette Willes. He was Lord of the Manor of Hunningham .[ 1] Educated at Harrow School and Trinity College, Cambridge (the university later also awarded him an honorary Doctor of Law degree), he married Lady Caroline Amelia Grosvenor (1828-1906), daughter of Richard Grosvenor, 2nd Marquess of Westminster , on 22 August 1848 and they had seven children:
William succeeded his father as Baron Leigh on his death on 27 September 1850. He was Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire from 1856 until his death and was also made a colonel in the 3rd Battalion of the local regiment, the Warwickshire Regiment . He was High Steward of Sutton Coldfield from 1859 until 1892, when the stewardship lapsed after a new charter was issued for the borough, but was reappointed in September 1902.[ 2] He also held office as a Justice of the Peace for Gloucestershire . He donated the land for the construction of St Alban's Church, Holborn in central London. He was a Privy Councillor from 1895 onwards, the same year as he unsuccessfully stood as MP for the constituency of North Warwickshire in the general election that year . William was succeeded by his second son Francis, after his eldest son Gilbert's early death.
Lord Leigh was the first Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons , serving from 1856 to 1860. He was for more than 50 years (1852–1905) Provincial Grand Master for the Freemasons of Warwickshire.[ 2]
References
^ Hunningham, in A History of the County of Warwick: Vol. 6, Knightlow Hundred, ed. L F Salzman (London, 1951), pp. 117-120.
^ a b "Lord Leigh and Warwickshire". The Times . No. 36886. London. 30 September 1902. p. 4.
Sources