Admiral Charles William de la Poer Beresford, 1st Baron Beresford, (10 February 1846 – 6 September 1919), styled Lord Charles Beresford between 1859 and 1916, was a British admiral and Member of Parliament.
Beresford was the second son of John Beresford, 4th Marquess of Waterford, thus despite his courtesy title as the younger son of a Marquess, he was still eligible to enter the House of Commons. He combined the two careers of the navy and a member of parliament, making a reputation as a hero in battle and champion of the navy in the House of Commons. He was a well-known and popular figure who courted publicity, widely known to the British public as "Charlie B". He was considered by many to be a personification of John Bull, indeed was normally accompanied by his trademark, a bulldog.
His later career was marked by a longstanding dispute with Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Fisher, over reforms championed by Fisher introducing new technology and sweeping away traditional practices. Fisher, slightly senior to Beresford and more successful, became a barrier to Beresford's rise to the highest office in the navy. Beresford rose to occupy the most senior sea commands, the Mediterranean and Channel fleets, but failed in his ambition to become First Sea Lord.
Family life and character Beresford was born in Philipstown (Daingean), King's County (now known as County Offaly), and grew up in Curraghmore, Ireland, the second of five brothers. His older brother John joined the Life Guards, succeeding to the family estate and titles in 1866 on the death of their father. William joined the 9th Queen's Royal Lancers, was awarded the VC in the Anglo-Zulu War and became military secretary to several viceroys of India. Marcus joined the 7th Queen's Own Hussars, became an equerry to King George V and in charge of the King's racehorses. The youngest brother, Delaval, became a rancher in Canada.Beresford, p. xiii
The Beresfords traced their ancestry to an English officer serving in Ireland during the reign of James I. They subsequently married into the de la Poer family (Lady Catharine Power) who were of Norman origin and owned Curraghmore, hence their surname de la Poer Beresford. Their estate covered at Curraghmore near Waterford in south east Ireland, had stables for 100 horses and employed 600 people.Morris, p. 156 The family enjoyed hunting, to the extent that his uncle was killed in a riding accident, his brother was crippled in another, and he himself managed ten broken bones at various times.
Beresford had a reputation for kindness to his men, saying "Any smart action performed by an officer or man should be appreciated publicly by signal ... Everyone is grateful for appreciation".Massie, p. 502 At 46 and as captain, he took part in inter-ship rowing competitions.
He married Ellen Jeromina (Mina) Gardner, daughter of Richard Gardner and Lucy Mandesloh, on 25 June 1878 at London, England. They had two daughters, Kathleen Mary de la Poer Beresford (1879–1939) and Eileen Theresa Lucy de la Poer Beresford (1889–1939).
Naval and political career Beresford had been captivated by the sight of the Channel Fleet at age twelve,Massie, pp. 502–503 and joined the Royal Navy in 1859 aged 13, following preparatory education at Stubbington House School. He started his training as a cadet at the naval training academy , successfully completing his passing-out examination in March 1861.Bennett, p. 21 He was immediately appointed a midshipman on the flagship of the Mediterranean fleet, the steam three-decker . Beresford described Marlborough as "the smartest and happiest ship that ever floated".Bennett, p. 26 Beresford left Marlborough in early 1863, and was appointed to in the summer of 1863. Defence was one of four new ironclads serving in the Channel Squadron; Beresford was unhappy in Defence, which he described as "a slovenly, unhandy tin kettle, which could not sail without steam...and which took minutes instead of seconds to cross topgallant yards".Bennett, p. 27 Beresford got into debt, his father consulted Admiral Eden, who arranged for Beresford's transfer in mid-1864 to the steam-corvette , where Beresford would be the senior midshipman, which it was hoped would develop his sense of responsibility.Bennett, p. 30
On 9 April 1865 Clio visited the Kingdom of Hawaii (then known as the Sandwich Islands) to escort Dowager Queen Emma to Panama for her visit to London. On the evening of 21 April Beresford and two other midshipmen pulled a prank and stole a wooden American eagle sign from the gate of the legation of United States Minister to Hawaii James McBride. Following the sign's discovery by their superior officer Captain Nicolas Edward Brook Turnour and a formal diplomatic demand to return the sign by the American legation, they were ordered to apologize to the Americans, return and reinstall the sign the next day. The event was negatively reported in American newspapers including Harper's Weekly. Beresford later claimed he did it because of a bet from a fair lady in Honolulu. It was in Honolulu where Beresford first met Nancy Wahinekapu Sumner, one of Queen Emma's court ladies. Beresford and Sumner became friends, and continued their friendship through correspondence. Later in 1865, Beresford was transferred to the steam-corvette , which was commanded by Lord Gilford and was one of the smartest ships in the navy at the time.Bennett, pp. 33–34 Beresford was promoted to acting sub-lieutenant in January 1866. A month later Beresford was transferred to the steam-frigate , the flagship of the Pacific Squadron.Bennett, p. 35 Beresford passed his seamanship examination to qualify for lieutenant on board Sutlej, which he left later in 1866.Bennett, p. 37 Beresford did a gunnery course on , a hulk in Portsmouth Harbour. Beresford broke a bone in his foot whilst dismounting a gun on Excellent, an injury that caused him pain for the rest of his life. Beresford joined still as a sub-lieutenant in 1867,Bennett, p. 38 and then in the summer of 1868 was one of the sub-lieutenants on the royal yacht Victoria and Albert. Beresford joined the steam-frigate ,Bennett, p. 39 commanded by Queen Victoria's son the Duke of Edinburgh, and toured the world, witnessed executions in Japan and got tattooed.Massie, p. 503 On a visit to the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1869, Beresford met Nancy Sumner again. He proposed to her, but she refused likely due to their social and racial differences.
He entered Parliament as a Conservative in 1874, representing County Waterford and retained his seat until 1880. Some difficulties arose with the Lords of the Admiralty, who objected to a junior officer debating the navy publicly in the House of Commons. Beresford's parliamentary career was saved by the intervention of the Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli, who feared the loss of the seat to an opposition party, should Beresford be forced to resign.Massie, pp. 503–504 Whilst an MP he continued to serve in the navy, becoming a commander in 1875.
In 1874, Beresford was one of thirty-two aides chosen to accompany the Prince of Wales on a tour of India. Victoria objected, on the grounds of his bad reputation, but he remained at the Prince's insistence. The tour was a lively mixture of social engagements and animal hunts. The Prince insisted on dressing for dinner, even in the jungle, but allowed the concession of cutting off the tails of their evening coats, creating the dinner jacket.Massie, p. 504 He was aide-de-camp to the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII, from 1875 until 1876.
In 1891 Beresford's affair with Daisy Greville, Countess of Warwick (i.e., Frances Brooke) resulted in a serious dispute with the Prince of Wales. A letter written by the Countess to Beresford came into the possession of Beresford's wife. She lodged the letter with solicitor George Lewis and threatened to use this to destroy the reputation of the Countess. The Prince of Wales, who had a special affection for the Countess, tried to have the letter destroyed but Lewis would not allow this. The Prince of Wales then took steps to exclude Lady Charles from his social circle. An angry Charles Beresford eventually extracted a written apology from the Prince. The Prince subsequently wrote to Lord Waterford (Beresford's brother) saying that he "can never forget, and shall never forgive, the conduct of your brother and his wife towards me".
Two of the Countess of Warwick's children were allegedly fathered by Beresford. Marjorie Blanche Greville (1884–1964), born three years after her marriage to the Earl of Warwick, was Daisy's second child. The Countess, in a 1923 conversation with Basil Dean, stated that Marjorie was fathered by Beresford. The third, Charles Algernon Brooke (1885–1887), who died aged 16 months, may also have been fathered by Beresford.Anand, Sushila (2008), Daisy: The Life and Loves of the Countess of Warwick, Piatkus, pp.38-39
Involvement in Egypt and Sudan
From 1878 until 1881 Beresford was second in command of the royal yacht . He was captain of the gunboat in 1882 when it took part in the Bombardment of Alexandria during the Egyptian war of 1882 and won admiration amongst the British public for taking his ship inshore to bombard the Egyptian batteries at close range.
In 1884 and 1885 Beresford joined the staff of the Gordon Relief Expedition under Garnet Wolseley, along with the Naval Brigade and a Gardner machinegun, to which Beresford was much attracted. During the Battle of Abu Klea, Dervishes overran his Gardner gun when it jammed at the last moment. Beresford just escaped death by diving under the trail of the gun. Henry Newbolt's Abu Klea poem "Vitaï Lampada" is often quoted, "The Gatling's jammed and the Colonel's dead...", although it was a Gardner machine gun which jammed.
Re-election to Parliament, promotion to rear admiral
In 1885 he was again elected to Parliament, this time as MP for Marylebone East, and re-elected at the 1886 general election. Beresford constantly pushed for greater expenditure on the navy, resigning his seat in protest on this issue in 1889. Meanwhile, in 1886 he had also become Junior Naval Lord. The Naval Defence Act 1889, which increased naval spending, was passed partly as a result of public pressure resulting from this action.
Beresford was a believer in promoting physical recreation beyond the armed forces, being one of the founding committee of the National Physical Recreation Society which began in 1886 under the presidency of Herbert Gladstone. In 1888 he put down a motion in Parliament proposing that the County Councils (formed in 1889) provide a gymnasium for every 100,000 inhabitants. William Penny Brookes invited him to be president of the Wenlock Olympian Society Annual Games in Shropshire for the years 1888 and 1889 but he was unable to be present at the sports, because of other commitments. In the latter year news of his affair with the Countess of Warwick broke after she threatened Lady Charles Beresford; despite this Brookes, an advocate of physical education, and Beresford had a warm correspondence from 1888 until Brookes' death in 1895, and Beresford was elected an honorary member of the Wenlock Olympian Society in 1891.Letters in archive Wenlock Olympian Society.
In July 1889, Beresford resigned from the House of Commons for the first of four times by being appointed Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Chiltern Hundreds. ( only four other MPs had resigned by becoming stewards of both the Chiltern Hundreds and the Manor of Northstead.) From 1889 until 1893 he was the captain of , which was part of the Mediterranean Fleet.