Background
Pakenham was the son of Thomas Pakenham, 1st Baron Longford and Elizabeth Cuffe, 1st Countess of Longford.
Pakenham was the son of Thomas Pakenham, 1st Baron Longford and Elizabeth Cuffe, 1st Countess of Longford.
Longford was educated at Kilkenny College and joined the Royal Navy at the age of sixteen.
He served during the Seven Years" War taking part in naval engagements off the coasts of West Africa and North America. He was captured by the Spanish near the end of the war and held for over a year. After he returned home following the Treaty of Paris he briefly represented County Longford in the Irish House of Commons between 1765 and 1766.
In 1776 he inherited his father"s title and seat in the Irish House of Lords.
In January 1778 he returned to active service during the American War of Independence, serving in the English Channel and Mediterranean Sea. He returned home in 1782 having earned around £5,000 in prize money.
Lord Langford married Catherine Rowley, daughter of Hercules Langford Rowley, in 1768. They had a number of children including General Sir Edward Pakenham.
Their daughter Catherine married the Duke of Wellington.
He was the owner of Pakenham Hall Castle in County Westmeath which he systematically improved during his lifetime.
