John Conroy, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death
TweetJohn Conroy
British army officer who served as comptroller to the Duchess of Kent
Date of Birth: 21-Oct-1786
Place of Birth: Caerhun, Wales, United Kingdom
Date of Death: 02-Mar-1854
Profession: military personnel
Zodiac Sign: Libra 
About John Conroy
- Sir John Ponsonby Conroy, 1st Baronet, KCH (21 October 1786 – 2 March 1854) was a British army officer who served as comptroller to the Duchess of Kent and her young daughter, Princess Victoria, the future Queen of the United Kingdom. Conroy was born in Wales to Anglo-Irish parents.
- In 1817, after holding several ranks in the army, he became the equerry of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn.
- Edward died two years later, leaving a widow and infant daughter.
- Holding the position of comptroller of the Duchess of Kent's household for the next nineteen years, Conroy also acted as her confidant and political agent, among other roles.
- Together, they designed the Kensington System, an elaborate and strict system of rules for the upbringing of young Victoria, designed to render her weak-willed and utterly dependent upon them in the hope of allowing them one day to wield power through her. Princess Victoria grew to hate Conroy, thanks to the oppressive system, and he was also unpopular among the rest of the British royal family.
- His efforts to place the Duchess in the role of regent were ultimately unsuccessful, as Victoria ascended the throne after reaching her majority in 1837.
- Conroy was immediately expelled from Victoria's household, though he remained in the Duchess of Kent's service for several more years.
- Given a pension and a baronetcy, Conroy retired to his estate near Reading, Berkshire, in 1842 and died heavily in debt twelve years later. Historians have often referred to Conroy as someone with strong ambition, with varying degrees of positive or negative opinion.
- Rumours circulated during and after his lifetime that he was perhaps the Duchess of Kent's lover.
- Queen Victoria was shocked to hear this, stating that her mother's piety would have prevented it.
Read more at Wikipedia
Image Author, Source and License
Author:
Source:
License: CC-PD-Mark
PD-Art (PD-old-100)
More Details
Henry William Pickersgill
(1782–1875)   |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
|||
| Alternative names | Henry Pickersgill; R.A. Pickersgill; Pickersgill | ||
| Description | British painter and librarian | ||
| Date of birth/death | 3 December 1782 | 21 April 1875 | |
| Location of birth/death | London | London | |
| Work location | London | ||
| Authority control | |||
Source:
National Portrait Gallery: NPG 5315
|
While Commons policy accepts the use of this media, one or more third parties have made copyright claims against Wikimedia Commons in relation to the work from which this is sourced or a purely mechanical reproduction thereof. This may be due to recognition of the "sweat of the brow" doctrine, allowing works to be eligible for protection through skill and labour, and not purely by originality as is the case in the United States (where this website is hosted). These claims may or may not be valid in all jurisdictions.
As such, use of this image in the jurisdiction of the claimant or other countries may be regarded as copyright infringement. Please see Commons:When to use the PD-Art tag for more information. See User:Dcoetzee/NPG legal threat for original threat and National Portrait Gallery and Wikimedia Foundation copyright dispute for more information. This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing. |
License: CC-PD-Mark
PD-Art (PD-old-100)
More Details