Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough 1675-1732

Paternal Family Tree: Sherard

In 1675 Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough was born to Bennet Sherard 2nd Baron Sherard [aged 53].

In 1675 Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Rutland and Deputy Lieutenant Lincolnshire.

On 15th January 1700 [his father] Bennet Sherard 2nd Baron Sherard [aged 78] died. His son Bennet [aged 25] succeeded 3rd Baron Sherard of Leitrim.

In 1701 Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough [aged 26] was elected MP Leicestershire.

In 1713 Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough [aged 38] was elected MP Rutland.

On 1st January 1713 [his brother-in-law] John Manners 2nd Duke Rutland [aged 36] and [his sister] Lucy Sherard Duchess Rutland [aged 28] were married. She by marriage Duchess Rutland. He the son of John Manners 1st Duke Rutland and Catherine Noel Duchess Rutland [aged 56].

On 19th October 1714 Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough [aged 39] was created 1st Baron Sherard of Harborough.

In 1715 Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough [aged 40] was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Rutland.

On 31st October 1718 Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough [aged 43] was created 1st Viscount Sherard.

On 8th May 1719 Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough [aged 44] was created 1st Earl Harborough.

Memoires of Jacques du Clercq

This is a translation of the 'Memoires of Jacques du Clercq', published in 1823 in two volumes, edited by Frederic, Baron de Reissenberg. In his introduction Reissenberg writes: 'Jacques du Clercq tells us that he was born in 1424, and that he was a licentiate in law and a counsellor to Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in the castellany of Douai, Lille, and Orchies. It appears that he established his residence at Arras. In 1446, he married the daughter of Baldwin de la Lacherie, a gentleman who lived in Lille. We read in the fifth book of his Memoirs that his father, also named Jacques du Clercq, had married a lady of the Le Camelin family, from Compiègne. His ancestors, always attached to the counts of Flanders, had constantly served them, whether in their councils or in their armies.' The Memoires cover a period of nineteen years beginning in in 1448, ending in in 1467. It appears that the author had intended to extend the Memoirs beyond that date; no doubt illness or death prevented him from carrying out this plan. As Reissenberg writes the 'merit of this work lies in the simplicity of its narrative, in its tone of good faith, and in a certain air of frankness which naturally wins the reader’s confidence.' Du Clercq ranges from events of national and international importance, including events of the Wars of the Roses in England, to simple, everyday local events such as marriages, robberies, murders, trials and deaths, including that of his own father in Book 5; one of his last entries.

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On 16th October 1732 Bennet Sherard 1st Earl Harborough [aged 57] died. His first cousin once removed Philip [aged 52] succeeded 2nd Earl Harborough, 2nd Viscount Sherard, 4th Baron Sherard of Leitrim, 2nd Baron Sherard of Harborough. Anne Pedley Countess Harborough [aged 57] by marriage Countess Harborough.

St Mary Magalene's Church Stapleford, Leicestershire [Map]. Most of the memorials were moved from the earlier church. The oldest, dated 1490, is a brass to Geoffrey Sherard and his wife. There is a black and white marble tomb chest dated 1640. The chest bears two life-size reclining effigies and is carved with images of eleven children. There are a number of busts of members of the Sherard family. The finest memorial is that of the 1st Earl by John Michael Rysbrack. It is dated 1732 and consists of a seated woman with a child, and a half-reclining man, all in Roman clothing. There is also a memorial tablet and a hatchment to the 6th Earl, dated 1859.