Charles Langdale

The Honourable Charles Langdale
Langdale depicted in Salvage from the Wreck
Personal details
Born	Charles Stourton 19 September 1787(1787-09-19)
Died	1 December 1868(1868-12-01) (aged 81) Mayfair, London, England
Resting place	Houghton, Yorkshire, England
Nationality	British
Political party	Whig
Occupation	Politician, layman
Religion	Roman Catholic

Charles Langdale (formally Stourton; 19 September 1787 – 1 December 1868) was a British politician, Roman Catholic layman, and biographer. He served as Whig Member of Parliament, wrote the memoirs of Maria Fitzherbert, and was a leading Roman Catholic figure during the 19th century.

Early and personal life

Langdale was born Charles Stourton in 1787, the fourth son of Charles Stourton, 17th Baron Stourton and his wife, Mary, daughter and co-heir of Marmaduke Langdale, 5th Baron Langdale. He was educated at Oscott College and Stonyhurst College,^[1] and took his mother's maiden name in 1815 by royal licence to comply with the will of Philip Langdale of Houghton, Yorkshire.^[2]

He married Charlotte Mary (died 1819), fifth daughter of Charles Clifford, 6th Baron Clifford of Chudleigh, in 1817 and they had two daughters. In 1821 he married May (died 1857), eldest daughter of Marmaduke William Haggerstone Constable-Maxwell; together they had at least five sons and six daughters.

Politics and public life

Langdale campaigned for Catholic Emancipation, and after the passing of the Catholic Relief Act 1829 he became Member of Parliament for Beverley following the 1832 general election, becoming one of the first Roman Catholics in the House of Commons.^[1] He represented Beverly until 1835, and represented Knaresborough between 1837 and 1841.

Throughout his life, Langdale took a leading part in all matters relating to the interests of Roman Catholics. He supported the foundation and became the chairman of the Catholic Poor Schools Committee, serving until his death. During his tenure, he played an important role in the negotiations for public funds for Roman Catholic schools.^[1]

Shortly before his death, he was admitted as a lay brother of the Society of Jesus. At his funeral, Peter Gallwey described him as "the acknowledged father and patriarch of the oppressed Catholic community in England" and as "a father to us all".^[3] Henry Edward Manning, Archbishop of Westminster, in a funeral sermon in London, described him as having been for fifty years the foremost man among the Roman Catholic laity in England.

Maria Fitzherbert

Langdale had been a close friend of Maria Fitzherbert during their youth. In the publication Memoirs of Lord Holland, it was claimed that Fitzherbert, a Roman Catholic, never believed her marriage vows to George, Prince of Wales, to be in any way binding (the marriage was considered invalid under the Royal Marriages Act 1772 because it had not been approved by King George III and the Privy Council). With a view to the vindication of her character, he published Memoirs of Mrs. Fitzherbert: with an account of her marriage with H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, afterwards King George IV at the request of his brother, Lord Stourton, one of the trustees named in Fitzherbert's will. He was refused access to her papers by the other trustees, but he was able to use the narrative drawn up by Lord Stourton. The memoirs showed that Fitzherbert believed herself to be George's wife.^[1]

He died in Mayfair in 1868 and is buried at the family seat in Houghton, Yorkshire.

Bibliography

• Langdale, Charles (1856). Memoirs of Mrs. Fitzherbert: with an account of her marriage with H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, afterwards King George IV. London: Richard Bentley. OCLC 1044173. http://www.archive.org/details/memoirsofmrsfitz00languoft. Retrieved 2009-10-08. 

Footnotes

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Mitchell, Rosemary (2004). "Langdale, Charles (1787–1868)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/16009. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/16009. Retrieved 2009-10-03.  Subscription or UK public library membership required
2. ^ London Gazette: no. 16973. p. 23. 7 January 1815. Retrieved 2009-10-03.
3. ^ Gallwey, Peter (1890). Salvage from the Wreck: a few memories of friends departed, preserved in funeral discourses. London: Burns & Oates. pp. 20–21. OCLC 25523766. http://www.archive.org/details/salvagefromwreck00galluoft. Retrieved 2009-10-08. 

References

Attribution

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: "Langdale, Charles". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900. 

External references

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Charles Langdale

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Henry Burton William Marshall	Member of Parliament for Beverley 1832–1835 With: Henry Burton	Succeeded by Henry Burton James Hogg
Preceded by John Richards Andrew Lawson	Member of Parliament for Knaresborough 1837–1841 With: Henry Rich	Succeeded by Andrew Lawson William Busfeild Ferrand

Persondata
Name	Langdale, Charles
Alternative names	Stourton, Charles (birth name)
Short description	Politician
Date of birth	19 September 1787
Place of birth
Date of death	1 December 1868
Place of death	Mayfair, London, England