George Osborn Bt (1742 - 1818)

Ancestors

Husband of Heneage (Finch) Osborn — married 4 Aug 1778 in Waltham, Essex, England

Descendants

Biography

Sir George was born 8 May 1742^[1] and baptized 30 May 1742 at Westminister, London.^[2] He was the son of Danvers Osborn and Mary Montagu. Sir George's mother died seven days after giving birth to his brother, John, on 16 Jul 1743.^[3][4]

Sir George was educated at Westminister and then went on to Trinity, Cambridge.^[5][6]

Six days after arriving in New York to become Governor of the New York province, Sir Danvers committed suicide.^{[7] [8]} Sir George succeeded his father, Sir Danvers Osborn, as Baronet of Chicksand in 1753 at the age of 11.^[9] Sir Danvers Osborn left a will dated 12 June 1753 in which he appointed George Earl of Halifax , to be the tutor, guardian, and curator of his two sons, Sir George and John. The Earl of Halifax was the maternal grandfather of Sir George and John. Sir Danver appointed George, Earl of Halifax and Francis Earl of Guilford to administer the estate until Sir George reached the age of twenty-one at which time, he would inherit it. This included Chicksand and other estates in Bedford owned by Sir Danvers. If Sir George died and did not leave any male heirs, than John, his brother, would inherit the estates. Francis North was Sir George's maternal uncle.^[10] Sir George's full title was Sir George Osborn 4th Baronet.

The Osborn Baronetcy of Chicksands in the County of Bedford is a title created in 1622 for John Osborne (c.1615-1699) in recognition of the support the family gave to Charles I.^{[11] [12]} As early as 1082 the area was known as Chicesane.^[13] Chiche is still used in Norfolk to signify a piece of land separated or cut off.^[14] Sane or sand refers to the soil being primarily composed of sand.

Sir George was encouraged by his uncle, Lord Halifax, to stand for the seat of Bedfordshire in Parliament in 1766. He approached the Duke of Bedford but was told that the Duke would continue to support Robert Ongley.^[15] Sir George again offered to sit for the seat when Lord Tavistock, the other county Member died in 1767 but other leading families would not give him their support so Sir George withdrew.^[16] In 1768 Sir George served as a member of Parliament for Northampton Town. ^[17] However, in February, 1769, as part of a compromise, he vacated his seat. The Administration on Lord Edgcumbe's interest brought Sir George in for Bossiney two months later. Sir George was transferred to Penryn in 1774 but in 1780 he sought a quieter borough. Eventually, a seat in Horsham was found for him on Lady Irwin's interest. Sir George voted with his cousin, Lord North, until Pitt took office in 1783 when he deserted his cousin. He did not stand again in 1784.^[18]

Sir George married Elizabeth Bannister in 1771 at St. George's Anglican Church in Hanover Square, Westminister, London.^[19][20] They had one child, John, born 3 December 1772 in London.^{[21] [22]} Elizabeth died in 1773. ^[23]

Sir George fought in the American Revolutionary War as a British officer. He led a detachment of the Guards Brigade at the battles of Brandywine and Germantown in 1777. He returned to England in 1777. ^[24] Sir George was appointed Major-General in the army of the 3d Foot Guards by His Majesty in March 1779. ^[25]

Sir George married Lady Heneage Finch 4 August 1778 at Waltham -Holy Cross in Essex.^[26]

In 1794 Sir George published a letter in the Cambridge Chronical and Journal asking for support for his son, John, to become a representative for the county of Bedford in Parliament.^[27] John won the election and Sir George wrote a letter to the Times thanking the "Gentlemen, Clergy and Freeholders" for supporting his son's election.^[28][29]

In 1785 a huge fire destroyed a large proportion of buildings in Biggleswade amounting to £22,500 of damage of which only £15,500 was insured. In response to this catastrophe, Sir George joined in with several other citizens to organize a collection of donations to support the recovery from the fire. ^[30][31]George became a Trustee of the Life Office Institution to raise surplus Capital of five hundred thousand pounds to support damage sustained by fires in the future in 1817.^[32][33]

Sir George's son, John, married Miss Davers 18 September, 1809 in Salisbury, Wiltshire. The marriage was also performed in Scotland 14 October, 1809 in Edinburgh.^[34]

Sir George passed away in 1818. ^[35][36] He was buried in All Saints Churchyard cemetery in Bedfordshire.^[37] Sir George wrote his will 21 September 1816 and added a codicil on 14 August 1817. The will was proved with two codicils on 23 October 1818. In Sir George's will ^[38] he left his estates, property, money and/or annuities to

1. Sir John Osborn, his son
2. George Robert Osborn, his grandson
3. Lady Heneage, his wife
4. potential future grandchildren
5. Edward Finch Hatton, his executor and Trustee, of Lincoln's Inn in the County of Middlesex
6. Esquire George William Finch Hatton, his executor and Trustee, of Kirby in the County of Northampshire
7. Thomas Metcalf, his Trustee, of Lincoln's Inn
8. The heirs of the Trustees
9. Lady Batton Finch
10. George's servants living with him at the time of his death
11. Robert Scott, his servant
12. John Cotes, his servant
13. Robert Banks, Earl of Liverpool
14. Francis North, his heirs and his assigns
15. Thomas Barclay, his gardener
16. Thomas Barclay's wife if she survives her husband

Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. Purportedly, Lincoln's Inn is named after Henry de Lacy, 3rd Earl of Lincoln.^[39]

Sources

1. ↑ Sir George's Birth HathiTrust
2. ↑ Sir George's Baptism Ancestry sharing accessed 1 Nov 2023
3. ↑ "Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:7359-193Z : 10 May 2023), Mary Montagu Osborn, ; Burial, Campton, Central Bedfordshire Unitary Authority, Bedfordshire, England, All Saints Churchyard; citing record ID 193019911, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.
4. ↑ John Osborn's Birth Ancestry sharing
5. ↑ Sir George University Ancestry sharing
6. ↑ Sir George University History of Parliament
7. ↑ Sir Danver Osborn's Death. History of Parliament
8. ↑ Sir Danver's Death History of Parliament
9. ↑ Sir George's Succession to Baronetcy. Newspapers.com
10. ↑ Danver's Will National Archives
11. ↑ Wikipedia biography wikipedia
12. ↑ Survey of English Place-Names [1]
13. ↑ Chicksands History [https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D7307180
14. ↑ John Murray (Firm) Handbook for Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, And Huntingdonshire ... London: J. Murray. 1895 HathiTrust
15. ↑ History of Parliament
16. ↑ History of Parliament
17. ↑ Sir George Parliament Newspapers.com
18. ↑ History of Parliament
19. ↑ Sir George's Marriage [https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/7595208?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a224a38504657333643626a4b475a4b58777966566b5347494934364c4935544d6b79466d494b4f69353572493d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d Ancestry share
20. ↑ Sir George's Marriage HathiTrust
21. ↑ John Osborn's Birth Wikipedia
22. ↑ George Osborn Birth of Son Newspapers.com
23. ↑ "Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:7359-L32M : 10 May 2023), Elizabeth Bannister Osborn, ; Burial, Campton, Central Bedfordshire Unitary Authority, Bedfordshire, England, All Saints Churchyard; citing record ID 193018823, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.
24. ↑ Wikipedia biography Wikipedia
25. ↑ George Appointed Major-General Newspapers.com
26. ↑ "England, Essex Parish Registers, 1538-1997," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XK8V-1YF : 12 February 2018), Sir George and Heneage Finch, 04 Aug 1778; citing Marriage, Waltham-Holy Cross, Essex, England, Essex Record Office, England.
27. ↑ Sir George's Requesting Support for His Son Newspapers.com
28. ↑ Sir George Thanking Supporters Newspapers.com
29. ↑ John Osborn's Career in Parliament History of Parliament
30. ↑ Fire Page 1. Newspapers.com
31. ↑ Fire Page 2. Newspapers.com
32. ↑ "British Newspaper Archive, Family Notices", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPCV-8XZY : Fri Oct 27 17:55:36 UTC 2023), Entry for John Osborn, Esq and George Osborn, Sir, 18 Sep 1809.
33. ↑ Sir George Trustee Newspaper.com
34. ↑ "British Newspaper Archive, Family Notices", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPCJ-JT45 : Fri Oct 27 19:27:15 UTC 2023), Entry for John Osborn, Esq and George Osborn, Sir Bart, 1 Oct 1809.
35. ↑ "British Newspaper Archive, Family Notices," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPCN-J27R : 17 April 2019), George Osborn, Sir, Norwich, Norfolk, England, United Kingdom; records extracted FamilySearch and images digitized by FindMyPast; citing Norwich, Norfolk, England, United Kingdom, 11 Jul 1818, The British Newspaper Archive, Ireland; FHL microfilm .
36. ↑ "British Newspaper Archive, Family Notices", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QLS3-L72Y : Fri Oct 27 20:19:04 UTC 2023), Entry for Osborn, Sir, 11 Jul 1818.
37. ↑ "Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:735S-HW6Z : 10 May 2023), George Osborn, ; Burial, Campton, Central Bedfordshire Unitary Authority, Bedfordshire, England, All Saints Churchyard; citing record ID 193020004, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.
38. ↑ Sir George's Will National Archives
39. ↑ Lincoln Inn Wikipedia

Acknowledgments

This profile was developed by a member of the England Project's Orphan Trail Team