Lord Augustus FitzClarence


Lord Augustus FitzClarence, was the youngest illegitimate son of William IV of the United Kingdom and his long-time mistress Dorothea Jordan. Like his siblings, he had little contact with his mother after his parents separated in 1811.

Life

In 1829 Augustus was appointed a Chaplain of his father and later that year he was presented with the vicarage of Mapledurham in Oxfordshire, succeeding John Sumner. King William IV was a lavish benefactor of the church and the parish and, among his gifts was the clock in the tower which bears his initials, ″W R.″; he also made generous contributions to extend the vicarage and to enclose its adjacent grounds with substantial provisions for the foundation of a new school in the village. The marvellous collection of silver gilt communion plate presented to the church by Lord Augustus shortly after his appointment was probably in turn a gift from his father.
In 1830 he was appointed Chaplain in ordinary to his father, and on 24 May 1831 was granted the rank of a marquess' younger son, being appointed Chaplain to Queen Adelaide after his father’s accession to the throne in 1832. Following his studies at Trinity College, Cambridge, he received the degrees of LL.B. and LL.D..
On 2 January 1845 Augustus married Sarah Elizabeth Catharine Gordon, daughter of Major Lord Henry Gordon and Louisa Payne. They had six children: