| Earl of Bessborough | |
|---|---|
 The 6th Earl of Bessborough | |
| Born | (1815-09-11)11 September 1815 |
| Died | 11 March 1895(1895-03-11) (aged 79) |
| Father | John Ponsonby, 4th Earl of Bessborough |
| Mother | Lady Maria Fane |
Frederick George Brabazon Ponsonby, 6th Earl of Bessborough (11 September 1815 – 11 March 1895), was an Anglo-Irish peer who played first-class cricket 1834–56 for Surrey, Cambridge Town Club (aka Cambridgeshire), Cambridge University (CUCC) and Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC).
Background and education
Ponsonby was born in Marylebone, the third son of John Ponsonby, 4th Earl of Bessborough, and his wife Lady Maria Fane. He was educated at Harrow and Trinity College, Cambridge. In 1837 he was admitted to Lincoln's Inn, and was called to the Bar in 1840. He inherited the earldom on 28 January 1880 when his elder brother died without a male heir.
Cricket
Throughout his cricket career, Bessborough was known as the Hon. Frederic Ponsonby. He played at both Harrow and Cambridge University, batting right-handed. He was an active player until about 1845, after which, due to an arm injury, he could only play sporadically. Ponsonby was a founder of Surrey County Cricket Club and was elected its first vice-president. He was also a founder of I Zingari, and of the Old Stagers amateur theatre company.
Government
He chaired the Bessborough commission on the working of the 1870 Irish Land Act, set up by the second Gladstone administration in June 1880. The commission made radical proposals for increasing the rights of tenants in Ireland.
Personal life
Lord Bessborough died at Westminster on 11 March 1895. He never married, and was succeeded in the earldom by his younger brother, Walter.
He owned 35,000 acres, mostly in Kilkenny and Carlow.
References
- "Ponsonby, the Hon. Frederick George Brabazon (PNSY834FG)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
- "Obituaries in 1895". Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. 1896. Retrieved 13 September 2024 – via ESPNcricinfo.
- "No. 24869". The London Gazette. 30 July 1880. pp. 4210–4211.
- The great landowners of Great Britain and Ireland
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Earl of Bessborough
- Frederick Ponsonby at ESPNcricinfo
| Peerage of Ireland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded byJohn Ponsonby | Earl of Bessborough 1880–1895 |
Succeeded byWalter Ponsonby |
| Viscount Duncannon 1880–1895 | ||
| Baron Bessborough 1880–1895 | ||
| Peerage of Great Britain | ||
| Preceded byJohn Ponsonby | Baron Ponsonby of Sysonby 1880–1895 |
Succeeded byWalter Ponsonby |
| Peerage of the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded byJohn Ponsonby | Baron Duncannon 1880–1895 |
Succeeded byWalter Ponsonby |
| I Zingari | |
|---|---|
| The club | |
| Founders | |
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- 1815 births
- 1895 deaths
- English cricketers
- Cambridge University cricketers
- Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers
- North v South cricketers
- Surrey cricketers
- Cambridge Town Club cricketers
- Non-international England cricketers
- Fast v Slow cricketers
- Ponsonby family
- Directors of the Great Western Railway
- Gentlemen cricketers
- Gentlemen of England cricketers
- People educated at Harrow School
- Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge
- Earls of Bessborough
- Younger sons of earls
- Peerage of the United Kingdom earl stubs
- English cricket biography, 1810s birth stubs
- Peerage of Ireland earl stubs