Political Recollections, Part I: Lord Palmerston
Barrington’s admiration for the humanity, wit and decisiveness of his chief are affectionately apparent in this portrait of the great Whig Prime Minister at the height of his powers.
Charles George Barrington was a grandson of the Prime Minister, Earl Grey, and a descendant of the family that had produced Lord Barrington, Secretary at War, during the early years of the American War of Independence. Through his many connections with the leading political families of the day, Charles Barrington in 1856, at the age of twenty-nine, was appointed Private Secretary to Henry John Temple, third Viscount Palmerston, then Prime Minister. He served Palmerston until the Prime Minister died in office in 1865. As a confidential assistant, Barrington enjoyed an intimate point of view at No. 10 Downing Street.
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