General William Stanhope, 2nd Earl of Harrington (18 December 1719 – 1 April 1779) was a British politician and soldier.
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Early life
Stanhope was the son of William Stanhope, 1st Earl of Harrington and Anne Griffith. His mother died giving birth to William and his twin brother, Thomas (1719–1743).
His paternal grandparents were John Stanhope and Dorothy Agard. His uncle, Charles Stanhope, was also a politician and deeply involved in the South Sea Company financial scandal, while his father's cousin James Stanhope, was considered an alternative candidate to Robert Walpole for the title of Britain's first Prime Minister. His maternal grandparents were Col. Edward Griffith and Elizabeth (née Lawrence) Griffith.
Career
Stanhope took up a military career and joined the Foot Guards in 1741, and was also returned for Aylesbury. He was wounded at the Battle of Fontenoy and shortly thereafter, om 5 June 1745, he was appointed colonel of the Second Troop of Horse Grenadier Guards, an appointment he held for the remainder of his life.
In 1747, he became MP for Bury St Edmunds, and in 1755, was promoted Major-general. He succeeded to the earldom in 1756, and was promoted Lieutenant-general in 1758 and General in 1770.
Personal life
On 11 August 1746, he married Lady Caroline FitzRoy (1722–1784), daughter of Charles FitzRoy, 2nd Duke of Grafton, and Lady Henrietta Somerset (the daughter of Charles Somerset, Marquess of Worcester). Together, they had seven children:
Lady Caroline Stanhope (1747–1767), who married Kenneth Mackenzie, 1st Earl of Seaforth.
Lady Isabella Stanhope (c. 1748–1819), who married Charles Molyneux, 1st Earl of Sefton.
Lady Amelia Stanhope (1749–1780), who married Richard Barry, 6th Earl of Barrymore.
Charles Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Harrington (1753–1829), who married Jane Fleming, daughter of Sir John Fleming, 1st Baronet, in 1778; she was a Lady of the Bedchamber to Queen Charlotte.
Capt. Hon. Henry Fitzroy Stanhope (1754–1828), who married Elizabeth Falconer.
Lady Henrietta Stanhope (c. 1756–1781), who married Thomas Foley, 2nd Baron Foley.
Lady Anna Maria Stanhope (c. 1760–1834), who married Thomas Pelham-Clinton, 3rd Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne in 1782. After his death in 1795, she married Lt.-Gen. Sir Charles Craufurd in 1800.
Lord Harrington died on 1 April 1779.
Reputation
He was known to society as "the goat of quality" for the dissipation of his personal life: he visited the brothel of Sarah Prendergast in King's Place, St James's, London, four times a week. His wife Lady Harrington formed "The New Female Coterie", a group of demimondaines which met in the same house.