| His Grace The Duke of Buckingham and Chandos GCSI, PC |
|
|---|---|
| The 3rd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos at the time of his appointment as Governor General of Madras in 1875. | |
| Governor of Madras Presidency | |
| In office November 23, 1875 – December 20, 1880 |
|
| Governor General | Thomas Baring, 1st Earl of Northbrook, Robert Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Earl of Lytton, George Robinson, 1st Marquess of Ripon |
| Preceded by | William Rose Robinson (acting) |
| Succeeded by | William Patrick Adam |
| Secretary of State for the Colonies | |
| In office 8 March 1867 – 1 December 1868 |
|
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Prime Minister | The Earl of Derby Benjamin Disraeli |
| Preceded by | The Earl of Carnarvon |
| Succeeded by | The Earl Granville |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 10 September 1823 |
| Died | 26 March 1889 Chandos House, Marylebone, London |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse(s) | (1) Caroline Harvey (d. 1874) (2) Alice Graham-Montgomery (1847-1931) |
| Alma mater | Christ Church, Oxford |
Richard Plantagenet Campbell Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 3rd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos GCSI, PC (10 September 1823–26 March 1889), styled Earl Temple until 1839 and Marquess of Chandos from 1839 to 1861, was a British soldier, politician and administrator of the 19th century. He was a close friend and subordinate of Benjamin Disraeli and served as the Secretary of State for the Colonies from 1867 to 1868 and Governor of Madras from 1875 to 1880.
Buckingham was the only son of Richard Temple-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos and was educated at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford. He joined the British army eventually rising to become a Colonel. Buckingham entered politics in 1846 when he was elected unopposed from Buckinghamshire as a candidate of the Conservative Party. Buckingham served as Member of Parliament from 1846 to 1857, when he resigned. He contested a re-election in 1859, but lost. Buckingham served in various political offices during his tenure. In March 1867, he was appointed Secretary of State for the Colonies and served till December 1868. He also served as Governor of Madras from 1875 to 1880. As Governor, he handled the relief measures for the victims of the Great Famine of 1876-78. Buckingham also served as Lord of the Treasury, Keeper of the Privy Seal of the Prince of Wales, Deputy Warden of the Stannaries, Deputy Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire, Chairman of the London and North-Western Railway, member of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, Lord President of the Council and chairman of the committees in the House of Lords. Buckingham died on March 26, 1889 at the age of 65.
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Buckingham was the born the only son of Richard Temple-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos and his wife Lady Mary, younger daughter of the 4th Earl of Breadalbane and Holland (later the 1st Marquess of Breadalbane). As his father's son and heir apparent, he was styled Earl Temple from birth. He was 15 years of age when his paternal grandfather died and his father became the 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos. From this time onwards, he was styled Marquess of Chandos until he succeeded his father as Duke.
Buckingham attended Eton until 1841 and matriculated from Christ Church, Oxford. Two years after matriculation, he was commissioned a Lieutenant in the Royal Buckinghamshire Yeomanry and he would eventually become an honorary Colonel of that regiment.
In 1846, Buckingham entered Parliament as Conservative MP for Buckinghamshire, and remained as an unopposed MP until 1857. He was appointed a deputy lieutenant for Oxfordshire on 3 February 1846,[1] Hampshire on 17 February,[2] and Northamptonshire on 29 May.[3] In 1852, he entered Lord Derby's administration as a Lord of the Treasury, a position he held for exactly ten months. That year, he was also appointed Keeper of the Privy Seal of the Prince of Wales,[4] Deputy Warden of the Stannaries, deputy lieutenant of Buckinghamshire,[5] and chairman of the London and North-Western Railway. In 1857, he resigned as MP for Buckinghamshire and did not stand for re-election due to the deteriorating family fortunes and his father's bankruptcy. In 1859, Buckingham contested against William Ewart Gladstone for the constituency of Oxford University, but lost by 859 to 1050 votes. In 1861, he succeeded his father as Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (and in various other titles across four Peerages) and took his seat on the House of Lords; he also resigned as chairman of the London and North-Western Railway. In the 1860s he was chairman of the London Pneumatic Despatch Company.
Buckingham's political career was stagnant until 1866, when he was appointed to the Privy Council and became Lord Derby's Lord President of the Council. During the interregnum, Buckingham served as chairman of the executive committee of the royal commission for the Great Exhibition of 1862. He served as Lord President of the Council until 8 March 1867, when he succeeded Lord Carnarvon as Secretary of State for the Colonies.
Buckingham was appointed Secretary of State for the Colonies when Lord Caernarvon resigned in March 1867 over the Reform Bill and served from 8 March 1867 to 1 December 1868. During this period, he was also appointed Lord Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire. As Secretary of State for the Colonies. Buckingham had to deal with the British North America Act. He also attracted controversy over his dispute with Bishop Colenso of Natal. Buckingham's tenure ended in December 1868 when the Conservative Party ministry of Benjamin Disraeli resigned. He was succeeded as Colonial Secretary by Lord Granville.
In 1868, in the House of Lords, he established his right to the title of Lord Kinloss in the peerage of Scotland, which had been dormant.
When the Conservative Party was re-elected to power in the United Kingdom in 1874 and Disraeli became the Prime Minister once again, Buckingham was appointed Governor of the Madras Presidency, British India. Buckingham moved to Madras and took his seat on November 23, 1875.
Buckingham served as the Governor of Madras from 1875 to 1880. His tenure was plagued by deteriorating socio-economic and health conditions. In 1876, the Great Famine of 1876–78 broke out in Madras Presidency. By August 1877, the famine had spread all over the Presidency and over 18 million people were affected.[6] To make matters worse, the rains failed in parts of Madras and Mysore.[6] Large quantities of grain were shipped from Bengal to Madras port.[6] The Governor appealed to the principal cities of England, Scotland, Ireland and India for assistance.[6] At Buckingham's suggestion, the Lord Mayor of London collected relief funds of up to £475,000. Though the famine eventually came to an end in 1878, the issue had far-reaching effects.
As a part of the famine relief work, Buckingham had commenced the construction of a navigation channel between Madras city and the northern part of the Madras Presidency so that transportation of supplies to the interior in cases of emergency would be easy. Opened in 1878, this canal was named after Buckingham as Buckingham Canal.
Displeasure of the tribes of the northern part of the Presidency over the stringent taxation schemes of the British government erupted in the form of the a major rebellion in 1879. The rebellion was eventually suppressed through a joint operation of the Madras police and army and the Hyderabad army and the captured prisoners sent to the Andamans. Many of the stringent taxation laws were repealed.
On August 30, 1880, William Patrick Adam was appointed Governor of Madras[7] and he succeeded Buckingham in December 1880.
In May 1886, Buckingham succeeded Lord Redesdale as Chairman of Committees in the House of Lords. He made few speeches in the House of Lords and succeeded in paying off most of his father's debts. Gradually, towards the later part of his life his financial situation improved and by 1883, he owned 10,482 acres of land with a total value of £18,080.
Buckingham died in March 1889, aged 65, from an unknown illness (possibly diabetes, prostatitis, or cystitis), at Chandos House, London. With no male issue, the dukedom of Buckingham and Chandos became extinct, although several of his lesser titles survived due to special remainders; by example, his eldest daughter Lady Mary succeeded him in the Scottish lordship of Kinloss.
Buckingham married firstly Caroline Harvey, daughter of Robert Harvey, in 1851. They had three daughters:
Caroline, Lady Buckingham died in February 1874. Buckingham married, secondly, to Alice Graham-Montgomery, daughter of Sir Graham Graham-Montgomery, 3rd Baronet, in 1885. There were no children from this marriage. Widowed in 1889, Lady Alice, Dowager Duchess of Buckingham and Chandos, remarried to the 1st Earl Egerton in 1894. She died in 1931, aged 83.