George Edgcumbe , 1st Earl of Mount Edgcumbe George Edgcumbe , 1st Earl of Mount Edgcumbe , PC ( 3 March 1720 – 4 February 1795 ) was a British peer , naval officer and politician . Life . Edgcumbe was the second surviving son of Richard Edgcumbe , 1st Baron Edgcumbe and his wife Matilda , the only child of Sir Henry Furnese . He is thought to have been educated at Eton . He was commissioned a lieutenant in the Royal Navy in 1739 and in 1742 was promoted to be commander of the bomb vessel . In the course of 1743 he was appointed acting captain of the 20 - gun , and was officially confirmed on 19 August 1744 . He commanded her in the Mediterranean until 1745 , when he was advanced to the 50 - gun . This ship , as part of the Western Fleet under Edward Hawke and Edward Boscawen , initially patrolled the Bay of Biscay during the War of the Austrian Succession . Her ship ' s surgeon was James Lind , who conducted his experiments on scurvy during such a patrol in 1747 . The war ended in 1748 . About this time Edgcumbe was painted by Sir Joshua Reynolds and the " Salisbury " appears in the background . In 1746 , Edgcumbe was returned as Member of Parliament for Fowey at a by - election , on his father ' s interest . He was considered a government Whig , but rarely attended Parliament as he was at sea . In 1747 , he was appointed Clerk of the Council of the Duchy of Lancaster , an office he retained until 1762 . In 1751 , he went to the Mediterranean as senior officer in , and the following year in the 50 - gun . He was still in her and with his small squadron at Minorca , when the French invaded the island on 19 April 1756 . He hastily landed the marines and as many of the seamen as could be spared , and sailed the next day for Gibraltar , before the French had taken any measures to block the harbour . At Gibraltar he was joined by Admiral John Byng , by whom he was ordered to move into the 66 - gun . In the Battle of Minorca , on 20 May the " Lancaster " was one of the ships in the van , under Rear - Admiral Temple West , which did get into action , and being unsupported suffered severely . In 1758 , still in the Lancaster , he was in the fleet under Edward Boscawen at the reduction of Louisbourg . On his return to England , with the despatches announcing this success , he was appointed to the 74 - gun , in which he took part in the blockade of Brest during the long summer of 1759 , and in the crowning Battle of Quiberon Bay on 20 November 1759 . He continued in the " Hero " , attached to the grand fleet under Hawke or Boscawen , until the death of his brother Richard on 10 May 1761 , when he inherited his brother ' s barony , and succeeded him as Lord Lieutenant of Cornwall in June . He was promoted to rear - admiral on 21 October 1762 . He was appointed Treasurer of the Household in 1765 , serving until 1766 , and made a Privy Councillor on 26 July . He became Commander - in - Chief , Plymouth the same year , retaining the command until 1771 . In 1770 , he was promoted vice - admiral and was appointed joint Vice - Treasurer of Ireland . He remained Vice - Treasurer until 1772 , when he was appointed Captain of the Gentlemen Pensioners . Promoted to admiral in 1778 , he was created Viscount Mount Edgcumbe and Valletort in 1781 , and remained Captain of the Honourable Band of Gentlemen Pensioners until resigning in 1782 , when he was appointed Vice - Admiral of Cornwall . In 1784 , he was again appointed joint Vice - Treasurer of Ireland , holding office until 1793 . In 1784 , he was also elected a fellow of the Royal Society In 1789 , he was granted the further title of Earl of Mount Edgcumbe , and died on 4 February 1795 . On 16 August 1761 , he had married Emma Gilbert ( the only daughter of John Gilbert , Archbishop of York ) and they had one child , Richard who succeeded to his titles . In English folklore , Emma has been identified as the subject of the story of the " Lady with the Ring " . " Lady Emma ' s Cottage " on the Mount Edgcumbe estate is named after her . A manuscript journal , kept by Edgcumbe and Captain William Marsh , from 30 April 1742 to 1 June 1744 , is in the Bodleian Library . A letter from Edgcumbe to Garrick is printed in the latter ' s ‘ Private Correspondence ’ .