Hugh Percy, 2nd Duke of Northumberland
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
Hugh Percy, 2nd Duke of Northumberland (14 August 1742 - 10 July 1817) entered the British Army in 1759, and married Lady Anne Crichton-Stuart, daughter of Lord Bute, in 1764. He served with distinction as a Brigadier General in the Battle of Lexington and Concord in 1775, skillfully using limited artillery rounds against a larger force to prevent a failed expedition from becoming a major defeat. He achieved the rank of Lieutenant General but grew so disgusted with the conduct of the war by General Howe that he resigned his command and left America in 1777 after a dispute over a quantity of hay. He continued to serve in largely ceremonial positions.
He divorced Lady Anne in 1779 and married Frances Julia Burrell with whom he had three daughters and two sons. His tenants erected a monument in his honour after he reduced rents by 25% after corn prices fell in 1815. He suffered from gout and became notorious for a bad temper as well as for being one of the richest men in England.
External links
- Percy family papers at Yale University (http://webtext.library.yale.edu/xml2html/beinecke.perfam.con.html)
- Life and military career (http://www.usm.maine.edu/~maps/percy/percy.html)
References
- Fischer, David Hackett. Paul Revere's Ride. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994. ISBN 0195088476.
- Bowler, R. Arthur. Logistics and the Failure of the British Army in America, 1775-1783. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1975. ISBN: 0691046301.
| Preceded by: Hugh Percy | Duke of Northumberland | Succeeded by: Hugh Percy |
Categories: European nobility stubs | British Army generals | Dukes in the Peerage of Great Britain | Knights of the Garter | Fellows of the Royal Society | 1742 births | 1817 deaths
