HERVEY, Lord Augustus Henry Charles (1837-1875), of 5 Chesham Street, London and Ickworth, Suffolk

Hervey’s father and grandfather had both been Members of Parliament, and, in contrast to their colourful ancestors, pursued quiet and uncontroversial careers in public life.1M. De-la-Noy, House of Hervey: tainted talent (2001); G. O’Brien, ‘Hervey, Frederick Augustus, fourth earl of Bristol (1730-1803)’, Oxf. DNB, www.oxforddnb.com; R. Browning, ‘Hervey, John, second Baron Hervey of Ickworth (1696-1743)’, Oxf. DNB, www.oxforddnb.com. His grandfather, Frederick William Hervey, had sat for Bury St. Edmunds as a silent supporter of Pitt’s ministry from 1796 until 1803, when he succeeded as fifth earl of Bristol. In the Lords he had remained close to his brother-in-law Lord Liverpool, who, as premier, secured him a marquessate in June 1826.2HP Commons, 1790-1820, iv. 191-2. Hervey’s father, also Frederick William, represented Bury St. Edmunds in the Conservative interest from 1826 until his succession as second marquess in February 1859.3HP Commons, 1820-1832, v. 608-11. Hervey’s older brother, Frederick, styled Earl Jermyn following their father’s succession, came in for Suffolk West, home to the family’s Ickworth estate, at the 1859 general election and voted with Disraeli on the major issues of the day. After following his brother through Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge, Hervey had a perfunctory career in the diplomatic service, serving as attaché to the British minister at St. Petersburg, then at Dresden.4The Times, 29 May 1875.

In December 1864 Hervey was brought forward in the Conservative interest for Suffolk West in place of his elder brother, who had succeeded their father as third marquess of Bristol. Although his return was never in doubt, Hervey’s refusal to pledge his support for the complete abolition of the malt tax, calling only for its reduction, upset a portion of the West Suffolk Association for the Repeal or Reduction of the Malt Tax, some of whom called for another candidate to enter the field.5Morning Post, 10 Nov. 1864; Bury and Norwich Post, 15, 29 Nov. 1864. Hervey, though, weathered the storm and was supported vociferously by the prominent land agent William Biddell, who, in his position as a leading member of the association, insisted that Hervey was right to endorse only a reduction, as repeal was impossible in the first instance.6Bury and Norwich Post, 9 Dec. 1864. At the nomination Hervey declared that he would support ‘Conservative principles rather than political leaders’ and was elected without opposition.7Ibid.

Hervey, who was susceptible to health problems owing to a weak heart, was an infrequent attender in his first Parliament, though at the 1865 general election, Biddell explained, a little unconvincingly, that Hervey preferred to remain in Suffolk, giving his constituents ‘every opportunity of asking him questions’.8Ibid., 4, 18 July 1865. At the nomination Hervey described his opinions as those of ‘progressive Conservatism’, which used ‘care and vigilance’ to ‘renovate what is amiss’, but he strenuously opposed a far-reaching extension of the franchise, arguing that it would place ‘the chief legislative power in the hands of the mob’. He also attacked any measure that would weaken the bond between church and state. He was returned unopposed for a second time.9Ibid., 18 July 1865.

Reflecting his experience of working in the diplomatic service, he questioned the under-secretary of state for foreign affairs as to the travel advice given by the Greek authorities to three English travellers who had subsequently been seized by brigands during their journey across the country, 23 Feb. 1866. He is not known to have made any further contributions to debate in his second Parliament, mirroring the generally silent Commons behaviour of his family members. He is also not known to have sat on any select committees.

In addition to opposing church rate abolition, 7 Mar. 1866, and supporting a reduction of malt duty, 17 Apr. 1866, Hervey’s voting record reflected his unease concerning an extension of the franchise. He was against the Liberal government’s reform bill, 27 Apr. 1866, and backed Stanley’s amendment to postpone the county franchise clause, 7 June 1866, and the Adullamite amendment in favour of a rating rather than rental clause, 18 June 1866. He followed Disraeli into the division lobby on the major clauses of the Derby ministry’s reform bill, save for his vote against the Lords’ amendment to the minority clause, when he was one of fourteen Conservatives who voted against the government, 8 Aug. 1867.10Daily News, 10 Aug. 1867. He opposed Gladstone’s resolutions on the Irish church, 3 Apr. 1868.

Hervey was returned in second place at the 1868 general election and re-elected without opposition in 1874. He died, in harness, at the family’s town residence, 6 St. James’s Square, in May 1875. The cause of death was typhoid fever, which his doctors believed he had contracted at his residence in Tunbridge Wells, where the drainage had been found to be ‘defective’.11Bury and Norwich Post, 1 June 1875. He left effects valued at under £800.12England and Wales, National Probate Calendar, 10 Aug. 1875. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Frederick William Fane (1863-1951), a rear admiral in the royal navy, who sat as a Conservative for Bury St. Edmunds from 1906 until he succeeded his uncle, this Member’s elder brother, as fourth marquess of Bristol in 1907. In 1896 Frederick had married the heiress Alice Frances Theofora Wythes, granddaughter of the Victorian railway contractor George Wythes, who played a major role in restoring Ickworth to a prosperous state.13http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/wra-1356316741039/419225/ In 1951 Hervey’s youngest son, Herbert Arthur Robert (1870-1960), succeeded as the fifth marquess. Hervey’s correspondence is held by the Suffolk Record Office.14Suff. RO 941/66