George Villiers, 4th Earl of Jersey

George Bussy Villiers, 4th Earl of Jersey PC (9 June 1735 22 August 1805, Tunbridge Wells) was a member of the Villiers family. He was a courtier in the court of George III.

Parliament

Between 1756 and his father's death in 1769 which took him into the House of Lords he served continuously in the House of Commons as MP for, in turn, Tamworth in Staffordshire, Aldborough in the West Riding of Yorkshire and Dover in Kent. He followed the political lead of the duke of Grafton in both the Commons and Lords. He was a lord of the Admiralty from 1761 to 1763 and was sworn of the privy council 11 July 1765. Lord chamberlain from 1765 to 1769, on his elevation to the peerage he was made a gentleman of the bedchamber to George III and thereafter held various court posts until 1800.

He was elected a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in 1787.

Family

The 4th Earl of Jersey was the son of William Villiers, 3rd Earl of Jersey and Lady Anne Egerton, the daughter of Scroop Egerton, 1st Duke of Bridgewater and his first wife, Lady Elizabeth Churchill, a daughter of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and his wife Sarah Jennings.

Lord Jersey married Frances Twysden, at her stepfather's house in the parish of St Martin's-in-the-Fields on 26 March 1770. Lady Jersey, who was seventeen years younger than her husband, became in 1793 after she had turned 40 and was more than once a grandmother, one of the more notorious mistresses of George IV when he was still Prince of Wales.

Lord and Lady Jersey had ten children:

References

Political offices
Preceded by
Lord William Finch
Vice-Chamberlain of the Household
1765–1769
Succeeded by
Hon. Thomas Robinson
Preceded by
The Viscount Bateman
Master of the Buckhounds
1782–1783
Succeeded by
Viscount Hinchingbrooke
Preceded by
Lord Townshend
Captain of the Gentlemen Pensioners
1783
Succeeded by
Lord Townshend
Parliament of Great Britain
Preceded by
Thomas Villiers
Sir Robert Burdett, Bt
Member of Parliament for Tamworth
1756–1765
With: Sir Robert Burdett, Bt
Succeeded by
Sir Robert Burdett, Bt
Edward Thurlow
Preceded by
Andrew Wilkinson
Nathaniel Cholmley
Member of Parliament for Aldborough
1765–1768
With: Nathaniel Cholmley
Succeeded by
Andrew Wilkinson
Hon. Aubrey Beauclerk
Preceded by
Sir Joseph Yorke
John Bindley
Member of Parliament for Dover
1768–1769
With: Sir Joseph Yorke
Succeeded by
Sir Joseph Yorke
Sir Thomas Pym Hales
Peerage of England
Preceded by
William Villiers
Earl of Jersey
1769–1805
Succeeded by
George Child Villiers
Peerage of Ireland
Preceded by
George Villiers
Viscount Grandison
1805–1859
Succeeded by
George Child Villiers