John Perceval, 2nd Earl of Egmont
historyJohn Perceval, 2nd Earl of Egmont PC (25 February 1711 – 4 December 1770) was a British politician, political pamphleteer, and genealogist. He is noted for holding the office of First Lord of the Admiralty.
The son of John Perceval, 1st Earl of Egmont and Catherine Parker (daughter of Sir Philip Parker, 2nd Baronet of Arwarton), he was baptised at Westminster Palace, London.
Career
Perceval sat in the Irish House of Commons for Dingle between 1731 and 1749. In April 1748 he was created Lord of the Bedchamber to the Prince of Wales. He served as First Lord of the Admiralty from 1763 to 1766 and sat in the House of Commons for several constituencies.
Enmore Castle
From 1751 to 1757 he designed and created Enmore Castle, Enmore, Somerset, which received 'the dismissive mockery of Horace Walpole'.Against the Time in Which the Fabric and Use of Gunpowder Shall Be Forgotten: Enmore Castle, Its Origins and Its Architect - Tim Mowl 1990
Family
He was twice married, firstly to Lady Catherine Cecil, (d. 1752), and secondly to Catherine Compton. There were eight sons and eight daughters. One of his younger sons from the second marriage was Spencer Perceval, later British Prime Minister.
Lord Perceval died 4 December 1770 at Pall Mall, London, aged 59.
Mount Egmont
Mount Egmont in New Zealand was named after him by James Cook in recognition of his encouragement of Cook's first voyage. Since the 1980s, the mountain has officially been entitled Mount Taranaki or Mount Egmont, to give equal recognition to its Māori and English names.
- Earl of Egmont
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