Dundas, Henry, 1st Viscount Melville (1742-1811). Scottish politician, son of Robert, Lord Arniston, president of the Court of Session. Dundas followed his family tradition and in 1766 was appointed solicitor-general for Scotland. He was MP for Midlothian 1774-90 and for Edinburgh 1790-1802 when he was created Viscount Melville. A burly figure and a forthright speaker with a broad Scots accent, he became successively lord advocate [S] 1775, joint keeper of the signet [S] 1777, privy counsellor, treasurer of the navy 1782-3 and 1784-1800, home secretary 1791-4, president of the India Board of Control 1793-1801, secretary of state for war 1794-1801, keeper of the privy seal of Scotland 1800, and 1st lord of the Admiralty 1804-5. The list testifies to his indispensable value to Pitt, and Dundas became his right-hand man as well as his friend and drinking companion. His influence extended far beyond his official duties, for after 1774 he acted as government manager of Scottish affairs.
Dundas resigned with Pitt in 1801 but offered support to Addington. On Pitt's return in 1804 he became 1st lord of the Admiralty but was forced to resign when an inquiry into financial irregularities in the navy pay office implicated him. He was impeached in 1806 and although acquitted was censured for financial laxity .
Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville
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| The Right Honourable The Viscount Melville PC |
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| In office 8 June 1791 – 11 July 1794 |
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| Monarch | George III |
| Prime Minister | Hon. William Pitt the Younger |
| Preceded by | The Lord Grenville |
| Succeeded by | The Duke of Portland |
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| Born | 28 April 1742 Dalkeith |
| Died | 28 May 1811 |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Tory |
| Spouse(s) | (1) Elizabeth Rennie (2) Lady Jane Hope (d. 1829) |
| Alma mater | University of Edinburgh |
Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville PC (28 April 1742 – 28 May 1811) was a Scottish lawyer and politician. He was the last person to be impeached in the United Kingdom.
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Background and education
Dundas was the fourth son of Robert Dundas, Lord Arniston, the elder (1685–1753), Lord President of the Court of Session, and was born at Dalkeith in 1742. He was educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh, and the University of Edinburgh.
Legal career
Becoming a member of the Faculty of Advocates in 1763, he soon acquired a leading position in the Scottish legal system; and he had the advantage of the success of his half-brother Robert (1713–1787), who had become Lord President of the Court of Session in 1760. He became Solicitor General for Scotland in 1766; but after his appointment as Lord Advocate in 1775, he gradually relinquished his legal practice to devote his attention more exclusively to public affairs.
Political career
In 1774 he was returned to the Parliament of Great Britain for Midlothian, and joined the party of Frederick North, Lord North; he was a proud Scots speaker and he soon distinguished himself by his clear and argumentative speeches. His name appears in the 1776 minute book of the Poker Club. After holding subordinate offices under William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne and William Pitt the Younger, he entered the cabinet in 1791 as secretary of state for the Home Department. It was during this period that Dundas was influential in frustrating the cause of the abolition of the Slave Trade[1]
From 1794 to 1801 he was War Secretary under Pitt, his great friend. In 1802 he was elevated to the Peerage of the United Kingdom as Viscount Melville and Baron Dunira. Under Pitt in 1804 he again entered office as First Lord of the Admiralty, when he introduced numerous improvements in the details of the department. Suspicion had arisen, however, as to the financial management of the Admiralty, of which Dundas had been treasurer between 1782 and 1800; in 1802 a commission of inquiry was appointed, which reported in 1805. The result was the impeachment of Dundas in 1806, on the initiative of Samuel Whitbread, for the misappropriation of public money; and though it ended in an acquittal, and nothing more than formal negligence lay against him, he never again held office. This was the last impeachment trial ever held in the House of Lords. Another reason for his retreat could have been Pitt's death in 1806. An earldom was offered in 1809 but declined.
Family
Lord Melville married firstly Elizabeth, daughter of David Rennie, of Melville Castle, in 1765. After her death he married secondly Lady Jane, daughter of John Hope, 2nd Earl of Hopetoun, in 1793. He died in May 1811, aged 69, and was succeeded in his titles by his son from his first marriage, Robert. The Viscountess Melville later remarried and died in June 1829.
Legacy
He was friends with John Graves Simcoe, Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada. Simcoe named the town of Dundas, Ontario, in southern Ontario after him. Owing to the town's shortlived prominence in Upper Canada, many important streets which align with historically important highways leading to Dundas are called "Dundas Street"; these include Dundas Street, Toronto (now Highway 5), and many other streets along Highway 2 and Highway 8. Dundas Street, Hong Kong, was also named for him. In 1792 Dundas County, Ontario, was named in his honour.
Dundas Island was named by Captain George Vancouver in Dundas' honour. Vancouver originally believed it to be one island, Dundas's Island, but it was later determined that it was in fact a small archipelago. Other islands in the group, known as the Dundas Islands, were given the names Melville Island, Baron Island and Dunira Island in respect of Dundas' titles.[2]
A monument to him, modelled loosely on Trajan's Column in Rome, stands in the centre of St Andrew Square, Edinburgh. Raised "by the voluntary contributions of the officers, petty officers, seamen and marines of these united kingdoms",[citation needed] it was designed in 1821 by William Burn, who was advised by Robert Stephenson after residents of the square expressed concern about the adequacy of the foundations to support a column of such height. A statue of Dundas, sculpted by Robert Forrest from a model by Francis Chantrey,[3] was added to the top in 1828.
The District of Dundas in New South Wales was named after the Colonial Secretary, Henry Dundas. The District of Dundas was abolished in 1889 although the name still survives in the Sydney suburb of Dundas.[4]
In 1848, John Septimus Roe, the government surveyor (in the then colony of Western Australia), was searching for pastoral land and discovered the area around Norseman which he named Dundas Hills, after the colonial secretary. Gold was discovered there in 1893, the Dundas Field was proclaimed, and the town of Dundas established (ca. 40 km south of Norseman, later abandoned), which eventually led to the present Shire of Dundas. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shire_of_Dundas[5]
There is also Dundas an outer suburb of Brisbane in Qld.
Fictional references
Lord Melville, as First Lord of the Admiralty, is present or a background character in several of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin novels. As a major official favourably disposed to Jack Aubrey, Lord Melville's political interest is often helpful to the captain. O'Brian casts Melville's impeachment for malversation of public monies as a political attack using naval intelligence spending, the details of which cannot be disclosed for security and the safety of intelligence agents—such as Stephen Maturin. Melville's son Robert Dundas also appears in a similar role as distant patron, while the 1st Viscount Melville's son Heneage Dundas is a frequent secondary character, being Jack Aubrey's close friend. Also, a fictional reference was made to the former Lord Dundas in L.A. Meyer's sixth book in the Jacky Faber series, which was titled, "My Bonny Light Horseman". He was portrayed as 'bookish', although a sweet and sincere man otherwise. A reference was made to Henry Dundas and his role in the frustration of the abolition of the Slave Trade in the motion picture 'Amazing Grace' (2006) where he was played by Bill Paterson.[6]
See also
- Edward Southwell Russell, 26th Baron de Clifford, the last peer ever tried in the House of Lords.
Notes
- ^ The Overthrow of Colonial Slavery 1776 - 1848, Robin Blackburn (Verso)
- ^ Template:BCNIGS
- ^ "Melville Monument, Listed Building Report". Historic Scotland. http://hsewsf.sedsh.gov.uk/hslive/portal.hsstart?P_HBNUM=27816. Retrieved 2008-07-18.
- ^ http://hillstory.com.au/hillstory/articles/Castle_Hill_Coffee.html
- ^ http://www.goldfieldskey.com.au/index.php?id=55
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0454776/
References
- Fortescue, J. W., Sir (1906) A history of the British Army: Vol 4, From the fall of the Bastille to the Peace of Amiens 1789-1801, 3 pts, London : Macmillan
- This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
- www.thepeerage.com
External links
- Archival material relating to Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville listed at the UK National Register of Archives
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Mentioned in
- John Kay (caricaturist)
- Division of Dundas
- Melville Castle
- Samuel Whitbread
