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See also: English soldier and statesman, was See also: born about 1658
.
His See also: father, See also: John Mordaunt, was created Viscount Mordaunt of Avalon and Baron Mordaunt of
See also: Reigate, Surrey, in 1659;1 his See also: mother was See also: Elizabeth, the daughter and
See also: sole heiress of See also: Thomas Carey, the second son of Robert Carey, 1st
See also: earl of See also: Monmouth
?
He matriculated at Christ See also: Church,
See also: Oxford, on the nth of See also: April 1674
.
When about sixteen years of age he joined See also: Sir John See also: Narborough's See also: fleet in the Mediterranean, and won his first distinction in arms in the destruction of the dey's fleet under the very guns of See also: Tripoli
.
His father died on the 5th of See also: June 1675, and See also: Charles Mordaunt succeeded to the
See also: peerage as Viscount Mordaunt
.
On his return from the second expedition to See also: Tangier he plunged into active See also: political See also: life as a zealous Whig and an unswerving opponent of the duke of See also: York
.
But his continued hostility to See also: James II. forced him to repair to
See also: Holland in 1686, when he proposed to
See also: William of Orange to invade
See also: England
.
The disposition of the cold and cautious William had little in See also: common with the fierce and turbulent Mordaunt
.
His See also: plan was rejected, though the prudent See also: prince of Orange deemed it judicious to retain his services
.
When William sailed to Torbay his friend accompanied him, and when the Dutch prince was safely established on the See also: throne of England honours without stint were showered upon See also: Lord Mordaunt
.
He was sworn of the privy council on the 14th of See also: February 1689, on the 8th of April of the same See also: year appointed first lord of the See also: treasury, and a See also: day later advanced in the peerage by creation as earl of Monmouth
.
In less than a year he was out of the treasury, but he still remained by the See also: person of his monarch and was with him in his dangerous passage to Holland in See also: January 1691
.
He was one of the eighteen peers who signed the protest against the rejection, on the 7th of See also: December 1692, of the motion for the See also: appointment of a committee to inquire into the conduct of the war, and although William had refused his consent to a See also: bill for triennial parliaments in the previous session, Lord Monmouth did not shrink from reintroducing it in December 1693
.
This led to a disagreement with the See also: court, though the final breach did not take place until January 1697, when Monmouth was accused of complicity in Sir John See also: Fenwick's conspiracy and of the use of " undutiful words " towards the See also: king
.
He was committed to the Tower, staying in confinement until the 3oth of
See also: March 1697, and deprived of his employments
.
Some
See also: consolation for these troubles came to him on the 19th of June of the same year, when he succeeded to the earldom of See also: Peter-See also: borough, by the See also: death of his See also: uncle See also: Henry Mordaunt, 2nd earl
.
The four years after his
See also: release from the Tower were mainly passed in retirement, but on the accession of See also: Anne he plunged into political life again with avidity
.
His first See also: act was to draw down on himself in February 1702 the censure of the See also: House of See also: Commons for the See also: part which he took in the attempt to secure the return of his nominee for the borough of See also: Malmesbury
.
Through the fear of the See also: ministry that his restless spirit would drive him into opposition to its See also: measures if he stayed at home, he was appointed early in 1705 to command an expedition of
' A See also: barony of Mordaunt by writ had existed in the See also: family since 1529, and the viscount was the second son of the fifth of these barons, who in 1628 was created earl of See also: Peterborough, the elder son Henry being second earl
.
2 Cr
.
1626
.
This peerage became See also: extinct in 1661 on the death of the 2nd earl
.
English and Dutch troops in See also: Spain
.
He was created the sole See also: commander of the See also: land forces in April 1705 and joint-commander with Sir Cloudesley See also: Shovel of the fleet on the 1st of May, after he had been reinstated a member of the privy council on the 29th of March
.
He arrived at See also: Lisbon on the loth of June 1705, sailed for See also: Barcelona (Aug
.
1705) on an expedition for the See also: conquest of See also: Catalonia, and began to besiege that See also: town
.
For some See also: weeks the operations were not prosecuted with vigour and Peterborough urged that the fleet should transport the troops to See also: Italy, but the energetic counsels of the Archduke Charles at last prevailed and by the 14th of See also: October the city See also: fell into his hands
.
On the 24th of January 1706 he entered See also: Valencia in See also: triumph, but these movements had weakened the garrison at Barcelona, which was now besieged by a See also: superior French force under Tesse
.
The garrison, commanded by the archduke, defended their positions with See also: great bravery, but would have been obliged to surrender had not the fleet of Sir John See also: Leake, answering the appeals of Charles but contrary to the See also: original orders of Peterborough, come to their assistance on the 8th of May, whereupon the French raised the siege on the 11th of May
.
It is difficult to understand the See also: action of Peterborough during this See also: campaign, unless on the supposition that he was out of sympathy with the See also: movement for placing an See also: Austrian prince on the throne of Spain
.
When Charles deter-See also: mined upon uniting with Lord See also: Galway's troops and marching to See also: Madrid, the advice of Peterborough again hindered his progress
.
At first he urged an advance by Valencia as supplies had there been collected, then he withdrew this statement; afterwards he delayed for some weeks to join Galway, who was in need of succour, but ultimately reached the See also: camp on the 6th of See also: August
.
The leaders of the army differed in their views, and Lord Peterborough was recalled to England to explain his conduct (March 1707)
.
On his return to England in August he allied himself with the Tories, and received his See also: reward in being contrasted, much to his See also: advantage, with the Whig victor of See also: Blenheim and See also: Malplaquet: The differences between the three peers, Peterborough, Galway and Tyrawley, who had served in Spain, formed the subject of angry debates in the Lords, when the majority declared for Peterborough; after some fiery speeches the See also: resolution that he had performed many great and eminent services was carried, and votes of thanks were passed to him without any division (January and February 1708)
.
His new See also: friends were not desirous of detaining him long on English See also: soil, and they sent him on a See also: mission to Vienna, where he characteristically engaged the ministry in pledges of which they disapproved
.
His resentment at this disagreement was softened by the command of a cavalry regiment, and by his appointment as a Knight of the Garter (Aug
.
3 and 4, 1713) . With the accession of See also: George I
.
Lord Peterborough's influence was gone
.
Worn out with suffering, he died at Lisbon on the 25th of October
1735
.
His remains were brought to England, and buried at Turvey in See also: Bedfordshire on the 21st of See also: November
.
Lord Peterborough was See also: short in stature and spare in habit of See also: body
.
His activity knew no See also: bounds
.
He was said to have seen more See also: kings and postilions than any See also: man in See also: Europe, and the whole point of See also: Swift's lines on " Mordauto " consisted in a description of the See also: speed with which he hastened from capital to capital
.
He was eloquent in debate and intrepid in war, but his influence in the senate was ruined through his inconsistency, and his vigour in the See also: field was wasted through his want of union with his colleagues
.
His first wife, Carey, daughter of Sir
See also: Alexander
See also: Fraser of Dores, See also: Kincardineshire, died on the 13th of May 1709, and was buried at Turvey
.
Some years later (1722) he secretly married Anastasia See also: Robinson (c
.
1695-1755), a famous dramatic See also: singer (from 1714) of great beauty and sweetness of disposition, daughter of Thomas Robinson (d
.
1722), a portrait painter; but she was at first unrecognized as his wife, and lived apart from him (regarded merely as his See also: mistress) with her two sisters at See also: Parson's See also: Green
.
She remained on the operatic stage, till 1724
.
It was only a few months before his death that (after a second See also: marriage ceremony) she
was introduced to society as the countess of Peterborough
.
He had a son John (1681–171o) who predeceased him, and was therefore succeeded in the title by his See also: grandson Charles (1710–1779), whose son Charles Henry (1758–1814), 5th earl, died unmarried, the honours becoming extinct, except for the barony of Mordaunt, which passed to a collateral branch and fell into See also: abeyance in 1836
.
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