George Boscawen, 3rd Viscount Falmouth

George Boscawen, 3rd Viscount Falmouth, PC (6 May 1758 – 11 February 1808), was a British army officer and statesman of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His career included service as Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms during the reign of George III.

Life and career

Boscawen was the third and youngest, but only surviving son of Admiral Edward Boscawen (1711–1761) by his marriage to Frances Glanville (1719–1805). In 1774 he joined in the British Army as a cornet before being promoted to colonel in 1795. Whilst serving as an officer he succeeded his uncle as Viscount Falmouth in 1782 and took his place in the House of Lords. From 1789–1790 he was the chief justice in the Eyre North of Trent, and in 1790 he was elevated to the position of captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms serving from 1790–1806 and 1807 until his death in 1808. Upon his appointment as captain of the Corps he was also made a privy councillor.

Family

On 29 June 1784, Falmouth married Elizabeth Anne Crew by special licence, as she was a minor at the time. They had three children:

• Edward Boscawen, 1st Earl of Falmouth (10 May 1787 – 29 December 1841)
• John Evelyn Boscawen (1790 – 12 April 1851), canon of Canterbury Cathedral
• Anne Evelyn Boscawen (23 November 1791 – 5 March 1871)

Falmouth's wife died on 10 August 1793, and upon his own death in 1808, his estate and titles passed to his eldest son.

In fiction

He is a recurring character in the Poldark novels by Winston Graham, where he is presented as the dominant political figure in Cornwall in his time, due to his unashamed use of patronage and his influence over Parliamentary elections; he appears personally a somewhat distant and arrogant man, but capable of kindness and friendship.

Ancestry