Arthur Stanhope, 6th Earl Stanhope

Arthur Philip Stanhope, 6th Earl Stanhope (13 September 1838 – 19 April 1905), styled Viscount Mahon from 1855–75, was a British peer and Conservative Party politician.

The Right Honourable The Earl Stanhope
Arthur Stanhope, 6th Earl Stanhope
Member of Parliament for Leominster
In office 1868–1868 Serving with Richard Arkwight
Preceded by	Arthur Walsh Richard Arkwight
Succeeded by	Richard Arkwight
Member of Parliament for Suffolk East
In office 1870–1875 Serving with F. S. Corrance (1870-74) The Lord Rendlesham (1874-75)
Preceded by	John Henniker-Major Frederick Snowdon Corrance
Succeeded by	The Lord Rendlesham Frederick St John Barne
Lord Lieutenant of Kent
In office 1890–1895
Preceded by	The Earl Sydney
Succeeded by	The Marquess Camden
Personal details
Born	Hon. Arthur Philip Stanhope (1838-09-13)13 September 1838 Mayfair, Westminster, England
Died	19 April 1905(1905-04-19) (aged 66) Mayfair, Westminster, England
Resting place	Chevening, Kent
Political party	Conservative
Spouse	Evelyn Pennefather
Children	2
Parents	Philip Stanhope, 5th Earl Stanhope (father) Emily Harriet Kerrison (mother)
Relatives	James Stanhope (son) Edward Stanhope (brother) Philip Stanhope, Lord Weardale (brother) Sir Edward Kerrison (grandfather) Sir Edward Kerrison (uncle)
Education	Harrow School

Early life and education

Stanhope was born at 41 Grosvenor Square, Mayfair,^[1] the eldest son of Philip Stanhope, Viscount Mahon by his wife Emily Harriet Kerrison, daughter of Gen. Sir Edward Kerrison, 1st Baronet. In 1855, upon the death of his grandfather Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl Stanhope, his father succeeded as the 5th Earl Stanhope.^[2]

He was educated at Harrow through December 1857.^[3]

Career

Stanhope, when styled as Viscount Mahon, purchased a commission in the Grenadier Guards in 1858.^[4] In 1862, he purchased a captaincy.^[5] He served five years as a musketry instructor.^[3]

Stanhope sat for a few months of 1868 as a Member of Parliament for Leominster and returned to the Commons as member for Suffolk East from 1870 to 1875. He was Chairman of the National Union of Conservative and Constitutional Associations in 1875.^[6]

Lord Mahon succeeded to the title of Earl Stanhope on the death of his father on 24 December 1875 and entered the House of Lords. He was appointed First Church Estates Commissioner in December 1878,^[7] and served as Lord Lieutenant of Kent from 1890 to 1905.

Marriage and issue

Stanhope married Evelyn Pennefather, daughter of Richard Pennefather of Knockeevan, County Tipperary by his wife Lady Emily Butler, daughter of Richard Butler, 1st Earl of Glengall. They had two children:

• James Richard Stanhope, 7th Earl Stanhope (1880–1967)
• Capt. Hon. Richard Philip Stanhope (16 January 1885 – 15 September 1916), married Lady Beryl le Poer Trench (d. 1957), daughter of William Trench, 5th Earl of Clancarty on 13 May 1914, without issue. He was killed at the Battle of Flers–Courcelette.

In April 1905, Stanhope underwent major surgery for cancer in London, but died the following afternoon at his Grosvenor Square home, aged 66.^[8]