Holland, Henry Richard Vassall Fox, 3rd Baron

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Holland, Henry Richard Vassall Fox, 3rd Baron (1773–1840). The nephew of Charles James Fox, whom he idolized and who formed his literary tastes and political principles, Holland travelled extensively in Europe, spoke several languages, and cherished wide connections in European ‘liberal’ circles. He ran away with the formidable Elizabeth, wife of Sir Godfrey Webster, and after her divorce they established at Holland House in Kensington a salon which became the centre of early 19th-cent. Whig society. He held office in 1806–7 as lord privy seal and 1830–4 as lord president of the council but was unfitted for a departmental post. He was a man of leisure, a noted bon viveur, and suffered badly from gout. Holland did much to smooth relationships in Whig society by his urbanity, and devoted himself to preserving the memory of his uncle, the defence of whose principles and reputation was the cornerstone of his life.

E. A. Smith