Genealogy research by Mark Humphrys.
Genealogy research by Mark Humphrys.
Rev. George Augustus Montgomery,
George was
educ at Winchester College.
Entered 1805 (apparently in April, age 11).
Paid for by 11th Earl.
Account books show 11th Earl frequently visited George at Winchester and gave him money.
Account books show 11th Earl taking Robert Herbert
and George to London, entry 7 February 1809.
George stayed at Winchester College until 1811.
He was
educ Oriel College, Oxford.
Matric 28 May 1813.
See entry
on
p.971
of
vol.3
of
Alumni Oxonienses 1715-1886.
He is
described as "George Augustus Montgomery of
Oriel College in the University of Oxford"
in sister's marriage contract 1815.
BA 1817.
He was ordained 1818.
He became a Curate on 2 Apr 1818
for Hungerford,
Berkshire.
See [Thomas, 2009].
Meanwhile, his widowed mother
had gone to live in Paris, where she had an affair and a natural child born on 5 Apr 1818.
George baptised his niece Elizabeth Gibbon
at Aberdeen 1819.
MA 1821.
Rector of Bishopstone, Wiltshire, 1821-1842:
He was Rector of
Bishopstone,
Wiltshire
(near Salisbury and Wilton)
from 1821 [plaque at church]
until his death 1842.
His uncle the 11th Earl of Pembroke
gave him this position.
(The Earls of Pembroke had the gift of the living
for this parish.)
He is listed at Bishopstone at
Deed of gift
from
Sir Alured Clarke
in June 1822.
See Aug 1822 letter
from his uncle the 11th Earl of Pembroke:
"I must say that George has a great deal of merit and promises to make a very good parish priest.
He has an unhappy flock to deal with,
an ill-built house,
and like everybody else
a diminishing income, but I perceive in him qualities which I think will enable him
to cope with all difficulties and to enjoy all advantages."
He mar 26 June 1827
to Cecilia Markham
[born 27 Oct 1792, descendant of Edward I].
No issue.
His uncle the 11th Earl of Pembroke
died at the Pembroke town house, Pembroke House, London,
on 26 Oct 1827.
See
Letter of 7 Nov 1827
that George wrote
to his sister Elizabeth
from
Pembroke House.
He says
he is going to Wilton:
"before I leave this place for Wilton
...
The Dowager is beginning to recover from her severe shock. Cecilia and myself go there
next week for some time".
The 11th Earl left him £9,000 in his will.
See extract.
From Gibbon papers.
Prebendary of Ruscombe Southbury, 1828-1842:
From 3 Feb 1828
[Fasti Ecclesiae Anglicanae]
until his death in 1842 he held the
ancient title of
"Prebendary of Ruscombe Southbury"
at nearby
Salisbury Cathedral
(sometimes referred to as
"the Cathedral Church of Sarum").
For definition of "Prebendary"
see
here
and
here.
His
gravestone at Bishopstone church
also lists him as
"Rural Dean of Wilton"
[this means he was a
supervisor
of the
clergy in Wilton parish].
George and Cecilia were wealthy and childless.
They travelled extensively abroad,
in the Mediterranean region.
Cecilia was a skilled artist.
On her travels she painted and drew scenes and buildings.
See art by Cecilia Montgomery.
As at 1834 they were living at
Nunton House,
S of Salisbury, Wiltshire.
Maybe they were rebuilding the rectory at Bishopstone.
In Jan 1834 Cecilia's brother George Markham died at Cecilia's house at Nunton.
Rev. George built the
new rectory at Bishopstone,
possibly in 1834-1842.
He also built the church porch.
Rev. George's will dated 13 June 1835.
[Sorowka, 2021, p.20]
says he restored Bishopstone church in 1836 to 1839.
Two codicils to his will, 4 Apr 1837.
He left money to build a
school in Bishopstone,
and money to repair the church.
The school was actually built during his life,
i.e. 1837-1842.
Travel in Portugal and Spain, 1838:
They travelled in May and June 1838 in Portugal and Spain.
Cecilia's sister Henrietta
went with them.
See
[Sorowka, 2021].
Cecilia made drawings in
Andalusia and
in Portugal, predominantly of religious
architecture.
These drawings survive.
[Sorowka, 2021]
says these
works "arguably make her the first female artist-traveller in the south of Spain.
...
Some drawings are the earliest known representations of certain views, while others are unique records
of lost buildings."
At time of his death in 1842,
Rev. George is
Rector of Bishopstone,
living at Bishopstone.
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Rev. George dies in accident, 1842:
He died in an accident at 1.30 pm, Thur 1 Dec 1842, age 49 yrs, at East Grafton, Wiltshire (confusingly next to another place called Wilton, some distance to the N of Salisbury, see map). He was inspecting the construction of the new church at East Grafton when there was a collapse and he was hit by (an estimated 3 tons of) falling masonry. See report in Salisbury and Wiltshire Herald, 2 Dec 1842. This says: "The loss of so good, so truly pious, so exemplary a man, even under the ordinary circumstances incidental to our common nature must have been deeply and severely felt by all around him; but there is something inscrutable to mortal comprehension in that awful - nay, appalling - dispensation of Providence, by which a life so thoroughly devoted to the service of God, and to the good of his fellow-creatures, was in an instant terminated, - even whilst he was engaged in the pious duty of inspecting the progress made in the erection of a new Church". See report in Salisbury and Winchester Journal, Sat 3 Dec 1842. Letter of 10 Dec 1842 refers to "his late unfortunate decease". In his will he had asked to be buried in tomb inside Bishopstone church.
He left nothing to his sister
Elizabeth Gibbon.
He had no children, but his wife and mother were alive.
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Cecilia lived on for decades.
[Letter from 16th Earl]
says Cecilia was a great friend of
Lady Herbert of Lea
(Elizabeth à Court-Repington, who married into the Herbert family in 1846)
and also of
Florence Nightingale
(friend of the Herbert family after 1847).
Letter of 13 Nov 1851
says Cecilia is again at
Nunton House.
Cecilia writes
letter of 13 Jan 1855
from Northerwood, Lyndhurst, Hampshire.
This was her late stepfather
John Pulteney's house.
She wrote
letter of 15 May 1856
from Nunton House
to her nephew
Arthur Augustus Gibbon.
Cecilia's will dated 14 Apr 1866, codicil 20 Nov 1868.
Cecilia dies, 1879:
She died at Nunton House, 9 Dec 1879, age 87 yrs.
Buried 15 Dec 1879 with husband at Bishopstone.
See index.
Arthur Augustus Gibbon
travelled to Bishopstone on 15 Dec 1879.
Her will proved 6 January 1880.
Label "Revd. G. Augustus Montgomery"
and signature
on a book.
See full size.
See close-up.
The book is a life of
Porteus, Bishop of London,
pub 1810.
See title page.
George and Cecilia visiting the Alhambra, Granada, Spain, in 1838.
From p.18
of 1829-1839 volume
of the Alhambra visitors' book.
Signed:
"George Augustus Montgomery, Cecilia Montgomery, Henrietta Alicia Markham. 15 June 1838."
 
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