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 Sandwich, John
Montagu, 4th Earl
b. Nov. 13,
1718
d. April 30, 1792, London, Eng.
Having succeeded his grandfather, Edward Montagu, the 3rd Earl, in
1729, he studied at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge, and traveled abroad
and then took his seat in the House of Lords in 1739. He served as postmaster
general (1768-70) and secretary of state for the northern department (1763-65,
1770-71). In the latter capacity he took a leading part in the prosecution
(1763) of John Wilkes, the British politician and agitator, whose friend he
once had been, thereby earning the sobriquet of "Jemmy Twitcher," after a
treacherous character in John Gay's Beggar's Opera. He also was first lord of
the Admiralty (1748-51, 1771-82). During the latter period his critics accused
him of using the office to obtain bribes and to distribute political jobs.
Although he was frequently attacked for corruption, his administrative ability
has been recognized. However, during the American Revolutionary War he insisted
upon keeping much of the British fleet in European waters because of the
possibility of French attack, and he was subjected to considerable criticism
for insufficient naval preparedness.
His interest in naval affairs and
his promotion of exploration led the English explorer Captain James Cook to
name the Sandwich Islands (Hawaii) after him in 1778. His Voyage Round the
Mediterranean was published in 1799. In his private life Sandwich was a
profligate gambler and rake. The sandwich was named after him in 1762
when he spent 24 hours at a gaming table without other food.
RAKE
:
fashionable or wealthy man of dissolute or promiscuous habits. As : a
rake's progress a progressive deterioration, especially through
self-indulgence. |
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