Early Life
George Gordon was born in London, England, third and youngest son of Cosmo George Gordon, 3rd Duke of Gordon, and the brother of Alexander Gordon, 4th Duke of Gordon. After completing his education at Eton, he entered the Royal Navy in 1763 at the age of 12. He received promotion to the rank of Lieutenant, but his career stagnated and he received no further promotions. His behaviour in raising the poor living conditions of his sailors led to him being mistrusted by his fellow officers, although it contributed to his popularity amongst ordinary seamen.
Lord Sandwich, then at the head of the Admiralty, would not promise him the immediate command of a ship however, and he resigned his commission shortly before the beginning of the American War of Independence. In 1774 the pocket borough of Ludgershall was bought for him by General Fraser, whom he was opposing in Inverness-shire, in order to bribe him not to contest the county. He was considered flighty, and was not looked upon as being of any importance. From the moment he entered parliament he was a strong critic of the government's colonial policy in regard to America. He became a supporter of American independence and often spoke out in favour of the colonies.
His chances of building a political following in parliament were damaged by his inconsistency and his tendency to criticise all the major political factions. He was just as likely to attack the radical opposition spokesman Charles James Fox in a speech as he was to challenge Lord North, the Tory Prime Minister.
Read more about this topic: Lord George Gordon
Famous quotes containing the words early and/or life:
“For the writer, there is nothing quite like having someone say that he or she understands, that you have reached them and affected them with what you have written. It is the feeling early humans must have experienced when the firelight first overcame the darkness of the cave. It is the communal cooking pot, the Street, all over again. It is our need to know we are not alone.”
—Virginia Hamilton (b. 1936)
“All conservatives are such from personal defects. They have been effeminated by position or nature, born halt and blind, through luxury of their parents, and can only, like invalids, act on the defensive. But strong natures, backwoodsmen, New Hampshire giants, Napoleons, Burkes, Broughams, Websters, Kossuths, are inevitable patriots, until their life ebbs, and their defects and gout, palsy and money, warp them.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)