Welcome to my Wiki!

It's a personal web page, maybe a companion to my blog; who knows?

I've made it in homage to an eighteenth-century aristocrat, John Montagu, Fourth Earl of Sandwich, 1718-1792. And, yes, he's the guy after whom the item on the left takes its name.

In reading books about the late eighteenth century in Britain, I've learned to appreciate the complexities of politics and life that resulted in the guy being characterized as Jemmy Twitcher.

Detail from a print in LC collections LC bibliographic record

Detail from another print LC bibliographic record

A close-up from this print

For comparison, here's a portrait of the man. John Montagu, Fourth Earl of Sandwich, 1718-92, by Thomas Gainsborough, 1783

Sandwich was poorly treated by contemporary authors and his biographers up until the appearance of N. A. M. Rodger's biography, The Insatiable Earl: A Life of John Montagu, Fourth Earl of Sandwich 1718-1792. The Wikipedia entry for him is based on a derogatory account from the 11th Edition of the Encyclopedial Britannica. Here is the link to find Rodger's book in a library near you (if you're lucky). Here is the link to the Amazon record for the book.

Click on image to view it full size. LC bibliographic record

Rodger clarifies the complexities of Sandwich's relationship with his mistress, Martha Ray, a relationship that was twisted to make him appear much more a libertine than he was. He loved her for her voice as much as her beauty and helped her become one of the better interpreters of Handel in her time. She could not be his wife, but they were faithful to each other while she lived, and, after her murder by a deranged (and infatuated) clergyman, he mourned her as he would a wife and brought up their children as his own. See a bit more on his biography below. This drawing shows Sandwich approaching the 17-year old Ray outside a bookshop.

Here is a reader review of Rodger's biography that appears on the Amazon site:

Review
Lord Montagu, the Earl of Sandwich, is often derided for three reasons. First, because as Secretary of State under Lord North he was responsible - in part - for the British conduct of the Revolutionary War. Second, because he prosecuted a fellow called Wilke for obscenity, prompting a series of celebrated insults by the aforesaid Wilkes and his followers. Third, and most memorably, because he invented the sandwich to enable him to practice his gambling habit without leaving the card tables - in other words, to enable him to be the stereotypical 18th century rake.

As Rodger's illuminating life of Montagu reveals, none of those criticism are fair. His conduct of the American war was, for the most part, efficient and thoughtful, and he successfully masterminded the naval defense of Britain at a time where a Franco-Spanish invasion was a real possibility. In particular, the record exculpates him from responsibilty for the failure of the Saratoga campaign, and actually shows that it was Montagu who should take much of the credit for the subsequent British naval recoveries of the early 1780s. As for Wilkes, he was a worthless scoundrel who deserved all the punishment he got, along with a lot more.

Finally, he was no rake: his financial affairs, though complex, were not those of a compulsive gambler, and he only ever had one mistress, who, for all purposes, was a de facto wife to whom he was devoted (his actual wife went mad and didn't live with him). Culturally, he was chiefly responsible for the revival of Handel, and took a leading role in promoting cricket. An portrait of an attractive and interesting figure, and a spirited demolition job on his detractors.
Reviewer: Matherson (Rhinebeck)

See this site for additional biographic details. Some highlights:
Sandwich was unfortunate to have risen and succeeded on merit at a time when government figures "paid their own way". Although Sandwich was from an old line of Montagus, he never had money. He initiated an attempt to reach the north pole , and Captain Cook named the Sandwich Islands (Hawaii) in the Pacific after him. The modern sandwich (meat between 2 slices of bread) is named after him. His wife was insane, eventually was made a ward of the Chancery Court. The female lead character of "My Fair Lady" may be based on his mistress Martha Ray. Sandwich played a large role in the musical world of his day, especially via his club the Concert of Ancient Music.

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