Masham was born 1678/79, the eighth son of Sir Francis Masham, 3rd Baronet, and Mary Scott, in Otes in High Laver, the same house where John Locke had spent his final years. He was introduced to the Royal Household as page to Prince George of Denmark, the husband of the future Queen Anne. In 1701, he was promoted to the position of equerry. He was commissioned a captain in the 2nd Regiment of Foot Guards on 10 January 1704, and breveted a colonel of foot on 20 October.[1]
He met his future wife, Abigail Hill, in about 1704, when she was appointed Lady of the Bedchamber to Anne, who was now Queen. This was the year that the Queen confided to the Earl of Godolphin that she did not believe that she and Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough – her closest friend up until now – could ever be true friends again. The Duchess, a Whig, was frequently absent from the Court, sometimes for long periods, and had become too overbearing for the Queen. Abigail, a Tory – helped by her flattery and subservience – quickly began to supplant the Duchess in the Queen's affections.
The Tory leader, Robert Harley, probably advised Masham of the advantages of marrying a royal favourite. However, Masham himself described it as a love match. The couple were married some time in 1707, in the presence of the Queen who contributed £2,000 to Abigail's dowry. The duchess, who was not consulted, learned about the marriage several months later and her subsequent argument with the Queen included accusations of lesbianism. This turned the Queen completely against her and paved the way for Abigail's rise.
Meanwhile, Masham was enjoying the rewards of Abigail's position. He was promoted to brigadier general in the army, and in 1710 became MP for Ilchester. In 1712, Robert Harley, now Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer, requested that the Queen create twelve new peers to pass negotiations for the Treaty of Utrecht which the Whigs were firmly against. Masham was one of those suggested to the Queen; but she only consented on the condition that Abigail continued to act as her dresser (a peeress was not expected to carry out the more menial duties of the bedchamber). He became Baron Masham of Otes, one of the twelve new creations known as "Harley's Dozen".
After Queen Anne's death in 1714, the new king, George I, reinstated the Whigs – and the Marlboroughs – to favour. Abigail retired into private life, but Samuel Masham became King's Remembrancer in 1716. He died in 1758, long outliving his wife.
^"Confirmed: Joe Alwyn Is Very, Very Good in The Favourite". W magazine. Conde Nast. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
Sourcesedit
Frances Harris (2004). "Masham, Abigail, Lady Masham (1670?–1734)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/18261. Retrieved 13 June 2007. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
samuel, masham, baron, masham, brigadier, general, 1678, 1758, british, courtier, court, queen, anne, husband, favourite, abigail, lady, masham, right, honourablethe, lord, mashamking, remembrancerin, office, 1716, 1758preceded, bysimon, fanshawe, viscount, fa. Brigadier General Samuel Masham 1st Baron Masham 1678 79 1758 was a British courtier in the court of Queen Anne and the husband of her favourite Abigail Lady Masham The Right HonourableThe Lord MashamKing s RemembrancerIn office 1716 1758Preceded bySimon Fanshawe 5th Viscount FanshaweSucceeded bySamuel Masham 2nd Baron MashamCofferer of the HouseholdIn office 1711 1714Preceded byViscount RialtonSucceeded byEarl of GodolphinPersonal detailsBornSamuel Masham1678 1679High Laver Essex EnglandDied1758 aged 78 80 London EnglandPolitical partyTorySpouseAbigail Hill m 1707 died 1734 wbr Children5Parent s Sir Francis MashamMary Scott Contents 1 Biography 2 In popular culture 3 References 4 SourcesBiography editThis section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Samuel Masham 1st Baron Masham news newspapers books scholar JSTOR December 2022 Learn how and when to remove this message Masham was born 1678 79 the eighth son of Sir Francis Masham 3rd Baronet and Mary Scott in Otes in High Laver the same house where John Locke had spent his final years He was introduced to the Royal Household as page to Prince George of Denmark the husband of the future Queen Anne In 1701 he was promoted to the position of equerry He was commissioned a captain in the 2nd Regiment of Foot Guards on 10 January 1704 and breveted a colonel of foot on 20 October 1 He met his future wife Abigail Hill in about 1704 when she was appointed Lady of the Bedchamber to Anne who was now Queen This was the year that the Queen confided to the Earl of Godolphin that she did not believe that she and Sarah Churchill Duchess of Marlborough her closest friend up until now could ever be true friends again The Duchess a Whig was frequently absent from the Court sometimes for long periods and had become too overbearing for the Queen Abigail a Tory helped by her flattery and subservience quickly began to supplant the Duchess in the Queen s affections The Tory leader Robert Harley probably advised Masham of the advantages of marrying a royal favourite However Masham himself described it as a love match The couple were married some time in 1707 in the presence of the Queen who contributed 2 000 to Abigail s dowry The duchess who was not consulted learned about the marriage several months later and her subsequent argument with the Queen included accusations of lesbianism This turned the Queen completely against her and paved the way for Abigail s rise Meanwhile Masham was enjoying the rewards of Abigail s position He was promoted to brigadier general in the army and in 1710 became MP for Ilchester In 1712 Robert Harley now Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer requested that the Queen create twelve new peers to pass negotiations for the Treaty of Utrecht which the Whigs were firmly against Masham was one of those suggested to the Queen but she only consented on the condition that Abigail continued to act as her dresser a peeress was not expected to carry out the more menial duties of the bedchamber He became Baron Masham of Otes one of the twelve new creations known as Harley s Dozen After Queen Anne s death in 1714 the new king George I reinstated the Whigs and the Marlboroughs to favour Abigail retired into private life but Samuel Masham became King s Remembrancer in 1716 He died in 1758 long outliving his wife In popular culture editSamuel Masham has been portrayed by Gordon Whiting in the 1969 BBC television series The First Churchills 2 and by actor Joe Alwyn in the 2018 film The Favourite 3 References edit Mackinnon Daniel 1833 Origin and Services of the Coldstream Guards Vol II London Richard Bentley pp 470 471 https www imdb com title tt0065292 fullcredits ref tt ov st sm Retrieved 23 January 2024 Confirmed Joe Alwyn Is Very Very Good in The Favourite W magazine Conde Nast Retrieved 23 November 2018 Sources editFrances Harris 2004 Masham Abigail Lady Masham 1670 1734 Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online ed Oxford University Press doi 10 1093 ref odnb 18261 Retrieved 13 June 2007 Subscription or UK public library membership required Parliament of Great Britain Preceded byEdward PhelipsJames Johnston Member of Parliament for Ilchesterwith Edward Phelips1710 1711 Succeeded byEdward PhelipsSir James Bateman Preceded byRichard TophamWilliam Paul Member of Parliament for Windsorwith Richard Topham1711 1712 Succeeded byRichard TophamCharles Aldworth Political offices Preceded byViscount Rialton Cofferer of the Household1711 1714 Succeeded byThe Earl of Godolphin Preceded byThe Viscount Fanshawe King s Remembrancer1716 1758 Succeeded byThe Lord Masham Peerage of Great Britain New creation Baron Masham1712 1758 Succeeded bySamuel Masham Baronetage of England Preceded byFrancis Masham Baronet of High Lever 1723 1758 Succeeded bySamuel Masham Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Samuel Masham 1st Baron Masham amp oldid 1199248414, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
