The Sun.
London, England, 1862-09-20 00:00:00

ELLESMERE

It is w 'ith regret that we announce the death of
the Earl of Ellesmere, whose sudden demise will be
a severe 'shock to his family. The lamented earl
and his countess had left Worley Hall, Lancashire,
to make a series of visits to their relatives in Scot-
land, and arrived only a few days ago at Balbirnie
on a visit to Mr. John and Lady Georgians Bal-
four. The earl died at half-past 11 a.m. yesterday
at Balbirnie. Viscount Brackley left last evening
to join his bereaved mother in Scotland.
The deceased George Granville Francis Egerton,
Earl of Ellesmere, of Ellesmere, county Salop, and
Viscount Brackley of Brackley, Northamptonshire,
in the peerage of the United Kingdom, was the
eldest of the eight children of Francis, the first ear],
and Harriet, the present countess dowager. He was
born June 15, 1823, so that he had only recently
entered his 40th year. The late peer married April
29, 1846, Lady Louisa Campbell, fourth and young-
est daughter of the late Earl Cawdor, by whom the
deceased earl leaves issue two sons Francis, Charles
Granville, Viscount Brackley, born April 5, 184.7,
and the Hon. Alfred John Francis, born Feb. 6,
1854.
On the death of his father, in February, 1857,
1
the late nobleman succeeded to the earldom and
extensive family estates in Lancashire and Surrey
From 1847, up to his rernrval to the House of.
Lords in February, 1857, Ile had a seat in the House
of Commons as one of the representatives for the
northern division of Staffordshire. During the
few years he was in the Lower House of Parlia-
ment he professed strong attachment to our Na-
tional Church Establishment, and gave his inde-
pendent support to Lord J. Russell's administration
although a liberal Conservative in politics, for he
publicly avowed that he would give a fair trial to
free trade. He was strongly opposed to the en-
dowment of the Roman Catholic clergy. At the
opening of the session of 1851 he thought proper
to resign his seat from inability to pay that atten-
tion to his Parliamentary duties which he consi-
dered necessary, on account of shattered health.
In 1857 he was appointed lieut. colonel commandant
of the Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry Militia.
One of the latest acts of his benevolence was the
gift of £l,OOO at the meeting presided over by the
Earl of Derby, at his residence, Bridgwater House,
in St. James's, for the relief of the prevailing dis-
tress in Lancashire and Cheshire owing to " the
cotton famine." As far as his health would allow
he was an active and diligent member of the com-
mittee of noblemen and gentlemen who came for-
ward to endeavour to mitigate the sufferings of the
unemployed and starving multitudes in Lancashire.
He will not only be missed by his sorrowing rela-
tions, but also by many of the poor on the large
family estates, to whom he was a generous and con-
siderate benefactor. The earldom devolves on the
eldest of his two sons, Viscount Brackley.
The peerage of Ellesmere and Brackley was first
acquired by Lord Chancellor Egerton, whose de-
scendant received the dukedom of Bridgwater.
The estates of the last duke were inherited by the
deceased earl's father, Lord Francis Egerton, se-
cond son of George Granville, twelfth Duke
of Sutherland, and Elizabeth Countess of
Sutherland, daughter and heir of William'
eighteenth earl. On inheriting his uncle's
property he, in 1833, assumed the sur-
name and arms of Egerton only. Just before Sir
Robert Peel resigned office in 1816 Lord Francis
Egerton obtained a revival of those titles in his
own person.

By the decease of this estimable nobleman the
families of Lord and Lady Cawdor, the Duchess
(Dowager) of Norfolk, the Duke and Duchess of
Sutherland, Viscount and Viscountess Enfield, the
Marquis and Marchioness of Westminster, the Earl
and Countess of Macclesfield, the Duchess of North-
umberland, the Earl and Lady Constance Grosve-
nor, Lord Edward Howard, and many others are
placed in mourning.

The late earl's brother, the Hon. Algernon Eger-
ton, M.P., is in th© north of Scotland, and Captain
the Hon. Francis Egerton is in command of H.M.S.
St. George.