Ralph Montagu, 1st Duke of Montagu
Ralph Montagu, 1st Duke of Montagu (ca.
1638 –
March 9,
1709),
English diplomatist, was the second son of
Edward Montagu, 2nd Baron Montagu of Boughton (
1616–
1684) and Anne Winwood. The peerage of his father was one of several granted in the
17th century to different members of the Montagu family.
Sir Edward Montagu, Chief Justice of the King's Bench in the time of
Henry VIII, was grandfather of the
1st Earl of Manchester, and of the
1st Baron Montagu of Boughton (
1562–
1644), who was imprisoned in the Tower by the
Parliament on account of his loyalty to
Charles I. The eldest son of the latter, Edward, who succeeded him as the 2nd Baron, took the side of the Parliament in the
Civil War, and was one of the lords who conducted the king from
Newark-on-Trent to
Holmby House after his surrender by the Scots in January
1647.
He had two sons, of whom Ralph was the younger. The eldest son, Edward, was
Master of the Horse to
Queen Catherine, wife of
Charles II, a post from which he is said to have been dismissed by the king for 'showing attention to the queen of too ardent a nature'. Catherine immediately appointed the younger brother, Ralph, to the vacant situation, and the latter soon acquired a reputation for
gallantry at the court of Charles II. He took an active part in the negotiations in which
Louis XIV purchased the
neutrality of England in the war between
France and the
Netherlands.
Having quarrelled with
Danby and the
Duchess of Cleveland, who denounced him to the king, Montagu was elected member of Parliament for
Northampton in
1678, with the intention of bringing about the fall of Danby; but, having produced letters seriously compromising the minister, the dissolution of Parliament placed him in such danger of arrest that he attempted to fly to France. Foiled in this design, he continued to intrigue against the government, supporting the movement for excluding the
Duke of York from the succession and for recognizing the
Duke of Monmouth as heir to the crown. His elder brother having predeceased his father, Ralph became Baron Montagu of Boughton on the death of the latter in
1684.
Notwithstanding his former intrigues he gained the favour of
James II on his accession to the throne; but this did not deter him from welcoming
William of Orange, who created him
Viscount Monthermer and
Earl of Montagu in
1689. Montagu was no less avaricious than unscrupulous. In
1673 he had married the wealthy widow of the
11th Earl of Northumberland,
Elizabeth Wriothesley, daughter of the
4th Earl of Southampton, who brought him a large fortune; and after her death in 1690 he married the still more wealthy
Elizabeth Monck, daughter of the
2nd Duke of Newcastle, and widow of the
2nd Duke of Albemarle.
Montagu's position was further strengthened in
1705 by the marriage of his son and heir to Mary, daughter of
John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and
Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough. In the same year he was created Duke of Montagu and
Marquess of Monthermer. His London residence,
Montagu House,
Bloomsbury, was bought by the government in
1753 to hold the national collection of
antiquities, and on its site was built the
British Museum.
See Abel Boyer,
History of the Reign of Queen Anne, vol. viii. (11 vols., London, 1703-1713);
Sir JB Burke,
Genealogical History of Dormant (etc.) Peerages (London, 1883).
Montagu and his first wife Elizabeth Wriothesley were parents to two children:
*
John Montagu, 2nd Duke of Montagu (c.
1690 –
5 July,
1749).
*Anne Montagu. Married Alexander Popham.
Montagu and his second wife
Elizabeth Monck, Duchess of Albemarle had no known children.
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