Henry Wellesley, 3rd Duke of Wellington

His Grace The Duke of Wellington
The Duke of Wellington by Carlo Pellegrini, 1885.
Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal
In office 13 August 1884 – 8 June 1900 Hereditary Peerage
Preceded by	The 2nd Duke of Wellington
Succeeded by	The 4th Duke of Wellington
Member of Parliament for Andover
In office 31 January 1874 – 24 March 1880
Preceded by	Hon. Dudley Fortescue
Succeeded by	Francis Buxton
Personal details
Born	(1846-04-05)5 April 1846 Apsley House, London
Died	8 June 1900(1900-06-08) (aged 54) Stratfield Saye, Hampshire
Political party	Conservative
Spouse(s)	Evelyn Williams ​ (m. 1882)​
Parents	Lord Charles Wellesley Lady Augusta Pierrepont

Henry Wellesley, 3rd Duke of Wellington (5 April 1846 – 8 June 1900) was a British peer and Conservative Party politician. He was a son of Lord Charles Wellesley and grandson of the 1st Duke of Wellington. He was born with no title but inherited the dukedom when in 1884 his uncle died childless.

Between 1859 and 1865 he attended Eton. He joined the 2nd Battalion, Grenadier Guards as an ensign on 16 May 1865, was promoted to major on 1 July 1881, and retired from the service on 28 June 1882. He unsuccessfully contested the Parliamentary constituency of Andover in 1868. He won the seat in 1874 and held it until the next election, 1880.

He succeeded his uncle as Duke of Wellington on 13 August 1884. Subsequently, his sisters Victoria and Mary were granted the rank of daughters of a Duke. He was appointed honorary colonel of the 22 November 1884, and the on 10 April 1886. He held both honours until his death. He was special ambassador to Spain for the funeral of Alfonso XII in 1885, and chairman of the .

Wellington died at the family home of Strathfield Saye in 1900 and was buried there. He married Evelyn Katrine Gwenfra Williams (1855 – 11 March 1939) on 7 March 1882; they had no issue. He was succeeded by his brother, Arthur Charles.

Evelyn, Duchess of Wellington.

In her memoirs, Lady Angela Forbes comments that "The Duke was the fattest man I have ever seen, and went by the nickname of "Spurgeon".^[1]

References[]

• Leigh Rayment's Peerage Pages ^{[self-published source][better source needed]}
• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs

External links[]

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Duke of Wellington