Lord George Bentinck
The subject of this head-and-shoulders sculpture is Lord William George Frederick Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck (1802-1848), better known as Lord George Bentinck, the second son of the 4th Duke of Portland. He served in the army before entering the House of Commons in 1828. Initially a moderate Whig, he voted for the emancipation of Roman Catholics in 1829 and for the Reform Bill of 1832, but subsequently he became more conservative.
In 1846, when Peel declared in favour of free trade and against the Corn Laws, Bentinck devoted himself completely and effectively to the leadership of the protectionists. Apart from the tariff question, Bentinck’s views proved too independent for the comfort of most of his colleagues. In opposition to the rest of his party, he supported a bill for removing Jewish political disabilities. The result was that in December 1847 he resigned his leadership of the protectionist opposition.
Edward Hodges Baily was a prolific British sculptor responsible for numerous public monuments, portrait busts, statues and exhibition pieces as well as works in silver. He carved friezes for both the Marble Arch and Buckingham Palace in London. His numerous statues of public figures include that of Horatio Nelson on top of Nelson’s Column and Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey on Grey’s Monument in Newcastle upon Tyne. Throughout his career Baily was responsible for creating a number of monuments and memorials for British churches and cathedrals, including several in St Paul’s Cathedral.
