Jane Wilson

Jane Perceval (née Wilson), born in 1769 and deceased in 1844, was a British woman notable for her marriage to Spencer Perceval, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1809 until his assassination in 1812. Following her second marriage, she was known as Lady Carr.

Early Life

Jane was the daughter of Sir Thomas Spencer Wilson, a British Army officer and politician, and his wife, Jane (née Weller). She had one brother and two sisters, one of whom, Margaretta, married Charles Perceval, the 2nd Baron Arden. During her courtship, Jane met Spencer Perceval, the younger brother of Margaretta, who was residing with his brother in Charlton. Both Spencer and Margaretta fell in love with their respective sisters. Sir Thomas Wilson approved of Margaretta's engagement to Lord Arden but disapproved of Jane's relationship with Spencer due to Spencer's limited financial means at that time and his career status as a barrister on the Midland Circuit. Despite being advised to wait until Jane reached the age of majority, Sir Thomas continued to oppose the match because of Spencer's lack of substantial prosperity.

Marriage to Spencer Perceval

Jane and Spencer Perceval married by special license in East Grinstead, eloping due to her father's opposition. Their initial residence was over a carpet shop in Bedford Row, which they later moved from to Lindsey House in Lincoln's Inn Fields. As Spencer established his legal practice, his income eventually enabled him to lease Belsize House in Hampstead, indicating a rise in their financial stability. The couple had thirteen children, of whom twelve survived to adulthood.

Their children included Jane (1791–1824), who married her cousin Edward Perceval and died shortly after her marriage, and Frances (1792–1877), who lived with her unmarried sisters. Maria (1794–1877) was another daughter who remained with her sisters. Their son Spencer (1795–1859) was educated at Harrow and Trinity College, Cambridge; after Perceval's assassination, he was granted an annuity and legal training and became a Member of Parliament at age 22. He married Anna, daughter of the clan Macleod, and they had eleven children. Spencer Jr. became a member of the Catholic Apostolic Church and served as a metropolitan lunacy commissioner.

Other children included Charles (born and died in 1796), Frederick James (1797–1861), who was not educated at Harrow due to health issues, and Rev. Henry (1799–1885), who became rector of Elmley Lovett. Dudley Montague (1800–1856) was an administrator at the Cape of Good Hope, married the daughter of General Sir Richard Bourke, and later attempted to enter Parliament. Isabella (1801–1886) married Spencer Horatio Walpole, MP and Home Secretary, and was their only child to have offspring.

Additional children were John Thomas (1803–1876), a veteran and reform advocate; Louisa (1804–1891) and Frederica (1805–1900), both unmarried and living with their sisters; and Ernest Augustus (1807–1896), who served as a captain in the 15th Hussars and married Beatrice Trevelyan.

Later Life

Jane's husband Spencer Perceval was assassinated on 11 May 1812 when John Bellingham shot him in the lobby of the House of Commons. Following the death, Parliament provided financial support to Perceval's children and widow, including a settlement of £50,000 and annuities. After his death, Jane and her children moved into Elm Grove, a house in Ealing purchased in 1808.

In 1815, Jane married Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Henry William Carr, brother of Reverend Robert James Carr. She was widowed for a second time in 1821. Jane Wilson Perceval, later Lady Carr, died in 1844 at the age of 74 while residing with her unmarried daughters in Elm Grove and was buried beside her first husband in the Egmont vault at St Luke's Church, Charlton, London.