William Bentinck, 4th Duke Of Portland

William Henry Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland, was born on 24 June 1768 and died on 27 March 1854. He was initially styled Marquess of Titchfield until 1809. He was a British politician who held various governmental positions during the administrations of George Canning and Lord Goderich.

**Background and Education**

He was the eldest son of William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland, who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain, and Lady Dorothy, daughter of William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, and Charlotte Boyle, Baroness Clifford. He had younger brothers, Lord William Bentinck and Lord Charles Bentinck.

For his early education, he studied in Ealing under Samuel Goodenough, finishing in 1774. Subsequently, he attended Westminster School in 1783. He enrolled at Christ Church, Oxford, for two years but did not obtain a degree. In 1786, he was sent to The Hague to gain experience working with the crown's envoy, Sir James Harris, returning in 1789. He received an honorary Doctor of Civil Law degree from Oxford in 1793. Additionally, he served as a Family Trustee of the British Museum and loaned the famed Portland Vase to the Museum in 1810.

**Political Career**

Portland served as Member of Parliament for Petersfield from 1790 to 1791 and for Buckinghamshire from 1791 to 1809. He held the position of Lord of the Treasury briefly under his father from March to September 1807.

In April 1827, he was appointed Lord Privy Seal by his brother-in-law, King George Canning, and was sworn into the Privy Council that year. When Lord Goderich became Prime Minister in August 1827, Portland was appointed Lord President of the Council, a position he held until the fall of the government in January 1828. Throughout his career, he gradually shifted from strict Conservative views toward more liberal positions in response to Canning’s policies.

He also served as Lord Lieutenant of Middlesex from 1794 to 1841, an honorary office.

**Family**

On 4 August 1795, Portland married Henrietta Scott, the eldest daughter and heiress of Major-General John Scott of Fife and Margaret Dundas. Upon their marriage, he obtained Royal Licence to adopt the surname and arms of Scott in addition to Cavendish-Bentinck.

They had nine children:

- William Henry Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, Marquess of Titchfield (1796–1824)

- Lady Margaret Harriet Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1798–1882)

- Lady Caroline Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1799–1828)

- William John Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 5th Duke of Portland (1800–1879)

- Lord William George Frederick Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1802–1848)

- Lord Henry William Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1804–1870)

- Lady Charlotte Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1806–1889), married Evelyn Denison, 1st Viscount Ossington

- Lady Lucy Joan Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1807–1899), married Charles Ellis, 6th Baron Howard de Walden

- Lady Mary Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1809–1874), married Sir William Topham

**Death and Legacy**

The Duchess of Portland died on 24 April 1844. The Duke died at Welbeck Abbey in Nottinghamshire in March 1854 at age 85. He was predeceased by two of his sons, one dying of a brain lesion and another of a heart attack. Despite his expressed wish to be buried in the open churchyard at Bolsover, Derbyshire, he was interred in the Cavendish family vault, which had been unopened for 138 years.

He was succeeded as Duke of Portland by his second son, William John Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, the 5th Duke.

The University of Nottingham’s Manuscripts and Special Collections hold a number of his papers, including personal and political documents as part of the Portland (Welbeck) Collection, and estate-related papers in the Portland (London) Collection and Portland Estate Papers housed at Nottinghamshire Archives.

**Titles and Arms**

His full titles included Duke of Portland, Marquess of Titchfield, Earl of Portland, Viscount Woodstock, and Baron Cirencester. In formal address, he was known as The Most Honourable William Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, Marquess of Titchfield (until 1809), and as His Grace the Duke of Portland from 1809 onward.

**Ancestors**

His lineage includes prominent British noble families, notably the Cavendish-Bentincks and the Dukes of Devonshire.