George North, 3rd Earl Of Guilford

George Augustus North, 3rd Earl of Guilford, FRS (11 September 1757 – 20 April 1802), was a British politician. He was known as The Honourable George North until 1790 and as Lord North from 1790 to 1792.

**Early life**

Guilford was the eldest son of Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford, and his wife Anne (née Speke). His father, commonly known as Lord North, served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1770 to 1782. His maternal grandmother was a daughter and heiress of George Speke of White Lackington, with her mother being Anne Peer-Williams, a daughter of William Peer-Williams. Guilford's paternal grandfather was Francis North, 1st Earl of Guilford.

He had several siblings, including Francis North, who later became the 4th Earl; Lady Catherine Anne North, wife of Sylvester Douglas, 1st Baron Glenbervie; Lady Charlotte North, wife of Lt.-Col. John Lindsay; Frederick North, who became the 5th Earl; and Lady Anne North, wife of John Baker-Holroyd, 1st Earl of Sheffield.

Guilford was educated at Trinity College, Oxford, where he matriculated in 1774 and graduated with an M.A. in 1777.

**Career**

He was elected to the House of Commons in 1778 representing Harwich until 1784. Subsequently, he represented Wootton Bassett from 1784 to 1790, Petersfield in 1790, and Banbury from 1790 to 1792. In 1792, he inherited his father's titles, becoming the 3rd Earl of Guilford and entering the House of Lords. During the American War of Independence, he was a supporter of his father's policies.

He was appointed Captain of Deal Castle in 1786, a position he held until his death. In 1782, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.

**Personal life**

Guilford married Lady Maria Frances Mary Hobart, daughter of George Hobart, 3rd Earl of Buckinghamshire, on 24 September 1785. They had one child, a daughter named Lady Maria North (1793–1841), who married John Crichton-Stuart, 2nd Marquess of Bute, in 1818. Lady Maria died on 23 April 1794.

He remarried on 28 February 1796 to Susan Coutts, daughter of Thomas Coutts, founder of the banking house of Coutts & Co., and sister of James Coutts, MP for Edinburgh. They had three children: Lady Susan North (1797–1884), Lady Georgiana North (d. 1835), who died unmarried, and another daughter whose details are not provided.

While courting his second wife, Guilford sustained a spinal injury from a fall from his horse, which contributed to a lingering illness leading to his death in April 1802 at the age of 44. He was buried at Wroxton in Oxfordshire.

Upon his death, his younger brother Francis succeeded to the earldom. The courtesy title of Baron North fell into abeyance between his daughters, and his son-in-law, the Marquess of Bute, petitioned to resolve the estate's partition. This process was enacted by King William IV in October 1831.

The Countess of Guilford died in 1837.