Robert Stewart, Lord Viscount Castlereagh is regarded as one of the greatest diplomats of his era who won the respect of the great powers of Europe. He advocated for clemency in quelling the Irish Revolt of 1798, supported the abolition of slavery as a moral imperative, and was a leading figure in the Congress of Vienna. From another perspective, he was a keen dancer, married for love, and was a devoted husband.
Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry (born June 18, 1769, Dublin—died Aug. 12, 1822, London) by Thomas Lawrence c.1810. National Portrait Gallery.
Australian connections
Lord Castlereagh was a “warm friend”1 of Lachlan Macquarie. As Secretary of State for War and the Colonies 1807-1809, Castlereagh proposed the appointment of Macquarie as fifth governor of New South Wales.
I met Lord Castlereagh by accident this afternoon in Berkeley Square – and he informed me that I was to be appointed Govr. Of New South Wales – and that His Majesty had already approved thereof! 2
Lachlan Macquarie, 27 April 1809.
Macquarie was first acquainted with Lord Castlereagh in 1803, when invited to discuss the affairs of India. Lachlan had just returned from service in India and was impressed that his Lordship seemed “already very well informed”. 3 In 1809 he “earnestly solicited Castlereagh’s patronage and protection” 4 in his desire to attain the position of Governor. Castlereagh endorsed Macquarie’s request and continued to offer support and praise for the rest of his life.
Upon arriving in the Colony, one of the earliest tasks of the Governor was to upgrade the haphazard tracks and rows of Sydney’s streets: Macquarie straightened, widened and resurfaced the streets for the “Convenience and Ornament” 5 of the town, naming them in honour of the late king, the royal Dukes of Clarence, Kent and York, and Lord Castlereagh.
In 1810, during a tour of the Hawkesbury-Nepean region, Macquarie also named the township Castlereagh, in honour of his patron. Other townships established at this time were Windsor, Richmond, Wilberforce, and Pitt Town.
Another Australian connection: John Macarthur presented a gift of emus to Lady Castlereagh, and swans and geese to Lady Camden, aunt of Lord Castlereagh. Camden in New South Wales is named in honour of Lord Camden.
In 1818, the Castlereagh River was named by explorer John Oxley, in honour of the Viscount.
Love and dancing
Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, known as Lord Castlereagh, was an Irish and British statesman, born in Dublin on 18 June 1769. While in London visiting his grandfather, Lord Camden in early 1794, Robert met Lady Amelia (Emily) Hobart and they feel deeply in love. They were married in the same year, and remained ardently in love for the rest of their lives.
Lady Amelia Anne Hobart (20 February 1772 – 12 February 1829), daughter of the 2nd Earl of Buckinghamshire, John Hobart, for whom the capital of Tasmania is named. Painted by Anne Mee in 1813.
Lady Castlereagh became an influential patroness of Almack’s, the most elite social club in Regency London. In the role of patroness, she had great influence over the ton, determining social acceptance by designating who might receive “vouchers” ( tickets) to Almack’s, thereby setting and enforcing the complex, unwritten social codes of the London social elite. Amelia was noted for having Almack’s doors closed promptly, without exception, at eleven o’clock, even once turning away the Duke of Wellington. She was at the forefront of dance fashion and is credited with helping to introduce the quadrille to London society. Lord Castlereagh, a tender and devoted husband, obviously shared Amelia’s interest in dance, as his niece attested:
“He liked the society of young people,” his favourite niece, Emma, tells us, “and far from checking their mirth and their nonsense, he enjoyed and encouraged it, with his own fun and cheerfulness …he was able to work serenely at the most important dispatches amidst the clamour of a family party, which he preferred to the isolation of his study. If an air were played that pleased him, he would go to the pianoforte and sing it; if a waltz, he would say, ‘Emma, let us take a turn,’ and after waltzing for a few minutes, he would resume his writing. His power of abstraction was indeed remarkable; our talking and laughter did not disturb him; once only do I recollect that he rose from his chair laughing, and saying, ‘You are too much.’ ”6
Lady Amelia Anne Stewart, Viscountess Castlereagh, Marchioness of Londonderry, painted by Sir Thomas Lawrence after her marriage in 1794.
“The Dancing Congress”
Lord Castlereagh attended the 1814-1815 Congress of Vienna, which was established to restore the balance of power, stabilise Europe, and prevent future wars after the defeat of Napoleon. During the Congress, dances and splendid balls were held every night, attended by many of the diplomats and their wives. The congress became famous for its lavish entertainments where the waltz dominated the ballrooms. It became known as The Dancing Congress. Despite Castlereagh being heavily overworked during his time in Vienna, he still managed to attend morning dance classes with his wife.
Prince Metternich of Austria famously remarked, “The Congress does not walk—it dances.”
The Congress of Vienna was famous for the nightly balls featuring the waltz and quadrille. ~ Autumn 1814 – 9 June 1815 ~ “Ball at Prince Metternich’s during the Congress of Vienna”. (front f. l. Freder. Will. III of Prussia with King of Bavaria, Wellington, Metternich, Talleyrand and Hardenberg).
The Congress was a remarkable event that blended diplomacy and spectacle. The human connections of conversation, charm, and dance influenced world events as much as the formal meetings. The Congress of Vienna prevented major European wars for nearly a century, until World War I in 1914. Thanks to the Congress, the waltz swept across borders and gained international popularity.
Lord Castlereagh’s Waltz
Thomas Wilson’s dance collection Le Sylph of 1815 pays homage to some of the British diplomats involved in the Congress of Vienna with the country dances Lord Castlereagh’s Waltz, and The Duke of Wellington’s Waltz. The collection also includes dances for European aristocrats in attendance: the French king Louis the XVIII, the Prince of the Netherlands with The Orange Waltz, and the sister of Tsar Alexander with The Duchess of Oldenburgh’s Favorite .7 The British Prime Minister Lord Liverpool did not attend the Congress, but is commemorated with Lord Liverpool’s Waltz.
As a couples dance, the waltz was at first regarded as risque and immodest. However, this did not apply to country dances set to waltz tunes – Lord Castlereagh’s Waltz is an excellent example of this. The dancing master, Thomas Wilson supplied two versions of this dance in Le Sylph, An Elegant Collection of Twenty Four Country Dances, 1815.8
Governor Macquarie reportedly disliked the waltz as a couples dance, (the source of the report has not yet been identified 9). Given his charter to improve the morals of the colony, it is most unlikely that the waltz, as a couples dance, would have been permitted at official functions. A country dance such as Lord Castlereagh’s Waltz would certainly have met with his approval, and perhaps it was included in balls held at Government House, Sydney during Governor Macquarie’s term of office.
Le Sylph: An Elegant Collection of Twenty Four Country Dances, Thomas Wilson, London, 1815.
1Ellis, M.H. Lachlan Macquarie. His life, adventures and times. p. 396. Angus and Robertson, Sydney 1973.
2 Dillon, Harry & Butler, Peter. Macquarie. From colony to country. p. 48. William Heinemann Australia, Sydney, 2010.
3 Ellis, M.H. Lachlan Macquarie. His life, adventures and times. p. 119. Angus and Robertson, Sydney 1973.
4 Ibid. p.167
5Parker, Derek. Governor Macquarie. His life, times and revolutionary vision for Australia. Woodslane Press, Sydney 2010.
6 Webster, C.K. litt.d. Professor of International Politics in the University of Wales, Fellow of the British Academy, London. The Foreign Policy of Castlereagh 1812 – 1815, G. Bell and sons, Ltd. 1931. http://clclibrary-org-works.angelfire.com/castlereagh.html accessed 25 February, 2013.
7 Wilson, Thomas. Le Sylph: An Elegant Collection of Twenty Four Country Dances London, 1815. Copy supplied courtesy of Kate van Winkle Keller.
Other dances in the manual include The Serpentine Fleet, The Knight Errant, The Lyre, The Tilt, Damp Sheets, The Sheaf, Mr. Barham’s Waltz, The Rat Trap, Lord Roslyn’s Fancy, The Beggar on Horseback, Mr. Madison’s Peccavi, The Orange Waltz, The Nightmare, Lydia Bashful’s Waltz, The Hoax, Not At Home, Bacchus’s Reel, The Tomahawk, Louis the XVIII, The Castle, The Duchess of Oldenburgh’s Favorite.
8 Ibid
9 Cumes, J.W.C. Their Chastity Was Not Too Rigid. Leisure Times in Early Australia>
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