Lord Arthur Lennox

Lord Arthur Lennox was a British politician. He was the youngest son of the 4th Duke of Richmond.

Early life

Lennox was born on 2 October 1806 as the seventh and youngest son of fourteen children born to Lady Charlotte Gordon and Charles Lennox, 4th Duke of Richmond, the Governor General of British North America and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. In 1836, his mother inherited the vast Gordon estates on the death of her brother, George Gordon, 5th Duke of Gordon. Among his siblings were Charles Gordon-Lennox, 5th Duke of Richmond, Lord John Lennox, Lord William Lennox, and Lord Sussex Lennox.
His paternal grandparents were General Lord George Lennox and Lady Louisa Kerr. Among his extended family was nephew, Lord Henry Lennox, who succeeded him as MP for Chichester in 1846. His mother was the eldest child of Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon, and Jane Maxwell.

Career

Upon his elder brother, the 5th Duke of Richmond, joining Lord Grey's ministry in 1831, Lennox was returned for Chichester in 1831. He eventually succeeded John Young as a Junior Lord of the Treasury in Peel's second ministry, but he was obliged to resign his seat in 1846 owing to his support for repeal of the Corn Laws and was succeeded in the treasury by William Cripps. He was elected in 1847 for Great Yarmouth, but was unseated the following year for bribery.

Military career

Lennox was commissioned as an Ensign into the 71st Foot in 1823. He was promoted lieutenant in 1825, captain in 1826, major in 1838 and lieutenant-colonel in 1842. He transferred to the 72nd Foot in 1843, to the 6th Foot in 1845, and to the 68th Foot in 1852 before retiring in 1854. He was made Lieutenant-colonel of the Royal Sussex Light Infantry Militia in 1854 and Lieutenant-colonel-commandant in 1860.
He served as Clerk of the Ordnance, replacing Henry George Boldero in 1845. In 1846, he was replaced by George Anson.

Personal life

On 1 July 1835 he married Adelaide Constance Campbell, daughter of Col. John Campbell of Shawfield and the writer Lady Charlotte Bury. Among her siblings were Walter Frederick Campbell, Eliza Maria Eleanora, and Harriet Charlotte Beaujolois. Together, they were the parents of three daughters and one son:

Constance Charlotte Elisa Lennox, who married Sir George Russell, 4th Baronet of Swallowfield Park, in 1871.
Ada Fanny Susan Lennox, who died unmarried.
Arthur Charles Wriothesley Lennox, who died unmarried.
Ethel Lennox, who died unmarried.

Lennox died at his residence, Ovington Square, Brompton, on 15 January 1864, and was buried in Brompton Cemetery, London. In his will, he left "the whole of his property, both real and personal" to his widow, who died on 14 August 1888 at their daughter's residence, Swallowfield Park.

Descendants

Through his daughter Constance, he was a grandfather of Marie Clothilde Russell, Sir George Russell, 5th Baronet, and mineralogist Sir Arthur Russell, 6th Baronet.