4th Earl of Southampton (1624-1667)
Born 1607 Died 1667
When the dispute began between the king and the parliament he took the side of the latter, but soon the violence of its leaders drove him into the arms of Charles, one of whose most loyal advisers he remained thenceforward. He was however very anxious for peace, and treated on behalf of the king with the representatives of the parliament in 1643, and again at Uxbridge in 1645. Having paid over £6,000 to the state, Southampton was allowed to live unmolested in England during the Commonwealth period, and on the restoration of Charles II he was made Lord High Treasurer. As treasurer he was remarkable for his freedom from any taint of corruption and for his efforts in the interests of economy and financial order. He died without sons on the 26th of May 1667, when his titles became extinct.
Much of his property passed to his eldest daughter Elizabeth (d. 1693), wife of Edward Noel, 1st Earl of Gainsborough (1641 1689). The name of the earl is perpetuated in London in Southampton Row and Southampton Street, Holborn, where his London residence stood. After the death of Lady Gainsborough the London property of the earl passed to her sister Rachel, wife of William, Lord Russell, the patriot, and later to the dukes of Bedford.
Extracted from the entry for SOUTHAMPTON, EARL OF in the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica, the text of which lies within the public domain.