[3] John, second Marquis of Lansdowne, married, 27th May 1805, Maria Arabella, daughter of the Rev. Hinton Maddock of "Darland," Wales, and relict of Sir Duke Gifford, Bart, of Castle Jordan in Ireland, who died in 1801. In her Will, dated December 31st, 1821, Lady Lansdowne mentions five daughters by her first husband.
[4] Almach's, vol. iii., pages 201-2.
[5] Archibald John, Viscount Primrose, afterwards 4th Earl of Rosebery, married, first, on May 20th, 1808, Henrietta, second daughter of the Hon. Bartholomew Bouverie, and grandson of William, 1st Earl of Radnor. He divorced her in 1815.
[6] Emily, daughter and heiress of Gerard de Visme, Esq. Lady Shelley, her schoolfellow, describes her as "the most beautiful being I have ever beheld. Her classic-shaped head and Spanish air—her mother was a Portuguese—added to a slight and not too tall figure, attracted much attention, and she was universally admired. Her accomplishments were as remarkable as her beauty. She played the harp exquisitely, and excelled also on the piano and in singing. She spoke French and Italian fluently and with a perfect accent." Diary of Frances, Lady Shelley, pub. John Murray, 1812, page 15. Miss De Visme married, June 28th, 1810, Henry (Sir) Murray, K.C.B., a distinguished officer, born 1784, died 1860, fourth son of David, 7th Viscount Stormont and 2nd Earl of Mansfield, by his second wife Louisa, third daughter of Charles, 9th Lord Catheart, of the 14th Dragoons.
[7] Probably Miss Calcraft, who married, in 1812, Sir John Burke of Marble Hill, Bt., sister to Miss Belle Calcraft. See p. 356.
[8] The Argyle Rooms in Regent's Street were looked upon as a rival to the still more fashionable Almack's. Balls and masquerades were given there, presided over by Colonel Greville, a man of the haut ton, who ruled, however, with a less arbitrary sway than the famous Patronesses of Almack's. The facade of the building to-day remains much as it was a century ago.
[9] Henry Bankes, Esq. of Kingston Hall, M.P. for Corfe Castle from 1780 to 1826, and for Co. Dorset from that time to 1831, married Frances, daughter of William Woodey, Esq., Governor of the Leeward Islands, and, besides four sons, had two daughters, Anne Frances, married Edward 4th Viscount and 1st Earl of Falmouth, died 1864, and Maria Wynne, married the Hon. Thomas Stapleton.
[10] John Stanhope adds some years later: "I have associated with many persons engaged in that memorable retreat, and I gather from their remarks that as far as Astorga, it was admirably conducted, and that to the rapidity of their march, the army was entirely indebted for its safety. But from that period, at which there appeared to be no further occasion for so rapid a movement, its celerity was increased. The Troops were passing through a mountainous district, which at every step offered them an admirable position for attack, and they were pursued by an army which they might have defeated at any time with as much ease as they subsequently defeated it at Corunna. It appears also that they suffered more from the rapidity of the march than they could have done in any general engagement; but it is not easy to form a correct opinion on the subject without knowing the situation of the army with respect to provisions and money; and also without being able to judge whether there was danger of their retreat being cut off.
"I have been informed that Moore ought on no account to have evacuated Corunna, that he had ample facilities for defending it against all the efforts of the French….
"Undoubtedly, as a diversion, Sir John Moore's advance into Spain fully succeeded and probably saved the Peninsula; but as that was not a result upon which he calculated, I doubt whether it can be adduced as a justification for a measure undertaken against his own judgment; subsequent events have shewn how much higher his reputation would have stood had he persevered in his original intentions. What the Duke of Wellington now is, Sir John Moore would almost inevitably have been."