Background
Earl of Chesterfield was born Philip Dormer Stanhope in London, England, on September 22, 1694 to Philip Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Chesterfield, and Lady Elizabeth Savile.
Earl of Chesterfield was born Philip Dormer Stanhope in London, England, on September 22, 1694 to Philip Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Chesterfield, and Lady Elizabeth Savile.
Educated at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, he subsequently embarked on the Grand Tour of the Continent, to complete his education as a nobleman, by exposure to the cultural legacies of Classical antiquity and the Renaissance, and to become acquainted with his aristocratic counterparts and the polite society of Continental Europe.
In 1726 succeeded to the earldom. He performed valuable service as ambassador at The Hague from 1728 to 1732. As lord-lieutenant of Ireland he provided a strong and efficient, yet tolerant, administration. He served as secretary of state from 1746 to 1748, and upon his resignation declined a dukedom. Thereafter, because of ill health, he withdrew from practical affairs except for a few occasional undertakings, among them his sponsorship in 1751 of the bill for reform of the calendar. He died March 24, 1773. His essay in The World in 1754 in praise of Dr. Johnson's Dictionary elicited from the lexicographer his famous, though hardly just, letter of rebuke for earlier neglect. Chesterfield's reputation as a literary man derives primarily from his posthumously printed letters written to his natural son, Philip Stanhope, from 1737 to 1768, and to his godson and successor, also named Philip Stanhope, from 1761 to 1770. In a neat and graceful style Chesterfield gives counsel for achieving success in the beau monde and in public affairs. The letters emphasize the plain moral virtues and the cultivation of the graces and the art of pleasing. For their good sense, worldly wisdom, and ease of style they are still admired as masterpieces of epistolary art.
As an orator Chesterfield acquired considerable reputation for his wit, clarity, and good sense, his most praiseworthy effort being his speech in 1737 against the bill to license theatres.
In the U. K. , the 4th Earl of Chesterfield gave his name to Chesterfield Street, Mayfair, London, which runs from Curzon Street, site of the former Chesterfield House; in the U. S. , his name has been given to Chesterfield County, Virginia and Chesterfield County, South Carolina.
Quotations:
"The world is a country which nobody ever yet knew by description; one must travel through it one's self to be acquainted with it. "
"An able man shows his spirit by gentle words and resolute actions. "
"I recommend you to take care of the minutes, for the hours will take care of themselves. "
"Sex: the pleasure is momentary, the position ridiculous and the expense damnable"
"Firmness of purpose is one of the most necessary sinews of character, and one of the best instruments of success. Without it, genius wastes its efforts in a maze of inconsistencies. "
"The scholar, without good breeding, is a pedant; the philosopher, a cynic; the soldier, a brute; and every man disagreeable. "
"It is preferable to take people as they are, rather than as they really are. "
He was a friend and patron of many prominent literary men at home and abroad.
He was a selfish, calculating and contemptuous man, not naturally generous, and he practised dissimulation ’til it became part of his nature; despite brilliant talents and admirable training, the life of Chesterfield cannot be pronounced a success. His social anxiety and the pains he took to become an orator already had been noticed.
