The Creevey Papers
Thomas Creevey, Journal entry, 11 December 1809
“Monday, December
11.—Folkestone had been induced
by Mrs. Clarke to think Wardle was an agent of the Duke of Kent, and that in that capacity he had
bound himself by promises of great service to her which he had afterwards
forfeited. He is now perfectly convinced that the whole of Mrs.
Clarke’s account to him was fabrication, and he tells both
Wardle, Western and
myself that he has a higher opinion of Wardle than
ever.”
William Pleydell- Bouverie, third earl of Radnor (1779-1869)
Son of the second earl (d. 1828); educated at Brasenose College, Oxford, he was Whig MP
for Downton (1801) and Salisbury (1802-28), and an associate of Sir Francis Burdett and
Samuel Whitbread.
Mary Anne Clarke (1776 c.-1852)
Having married a Joseph Clarke, she was mistress to the Duke of York (1803-06) and
involved with selling government offices, as came to light in an 1809 House of Commons
investigation. She spent her later years living in Paris.
Edward Augustus, duke of Kent (1767-1820)
The fourth son of George III, who pursued a military career and acquired a reputation as
a martinet; he was governor of Gibraltar (1802-03).
Gwyllym Lloyd Wardle (1762-1833)
Military officer and MP for Okehampton (1807-1811); with the assistance of the courtesan
Mary Anne Clarke he forced the resignation of the Duke of York as commander-in-chief. She
later turned on Wardle, who retired to Italy where he died.
Charles Callis Western, baron Western (1767-1844)
Of Rivenhall in Essex, politician and agricultural reformer; he was educated at Eton and
Queens' College, Cambridge and was MP for Maldon (1790-1812) and Essex (1812-32). He was a
school friend of Thomas Creevey.
