George Cavendish, 1st Earl of Burlington


George Cavendish, 1st Earl of Burlington, styled Lord George Cavendish before 1831, was a British nobleman and politician. He built Burlington Arcade.

Background

Cavendish was the third son of William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire and the former Lady Charlotte Boyle, daughter of Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington of the first creation, whose title had become extinct upon his death in 1753.
In 1783 his elder brother as Lord Lieutenant of Derbyshire commissioned him as colonel of the Derbyshire Militia, a position he held until he was succeeded by Lord Waterpark in 1832.

Political career

Cavendish sat as Member of Parliament for Knaresborough from 1775 to 1780, for Derby from 1780 to 1797 and for Derbyshire from 1797 to 1831. On 10 September 1831 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Cavendish of Keighley, in the County of York, and Earl of Burlington, a revival of the title held by his maternal grandfather.

Horseracing

He had horseracing interests. His racing silks were straw colour with a black cap.

Family

In 1815, Lord Burlington bought Burlington House in Piccadilly from his nephew, the 6th Duke of Devonshire. With the architect Samuel Ware, he made a number of significant modifications to the house, including the building of Burlington Arcade along the west side. He died at Burlington House in 1834 and was buried in All Saints' Church, Derby. The property passed to his widow and on her death in 1835 to their son Charles.
He married Lady Elizabeth Compton, only child of Charles Compton, 7th Earl of Northampton, on 27 February 1782 in London. They had at least 11 children, of whom six children survived to adulthood, although his two eldest sons predeceased him:
The Earl was succeeded in his earldom by William, the son of his own eldest son William, who had been killed in a carriage accident in 1812.