Lennox, Charles

(1764-1819)

   Charles Lennox, the fourth duke of Richmond, together with his wife Lady Charlotte held the ball on the evening of 15 June 1815 from which Arthur Wellesley, the duke of Wellington, departed for Waterloo. With 13 of their 14 children, they moved to a townhouse on the rue de la Blanchisserie in 1814. There were 222 guests at the ball, most of them English, but also including William, the prince of Orange, and his brother Frederick. The duke received a message about midnight that Napoléon Bonaparte's armies were approaching Quatre-Bras. He gave orders to prepare to march early that morning and, then, not wishing to interrupt the soirée, remained until 3 a.m. Lennox was appointed governor of British North America in 1818. He died of hydrophobia near Richmond, Canada, on 20 August 1819.