2nd Baronet. Assumed in 1827 the surname of Verney in lieu of Calvert, having succeeded to the Verney estates through his cousin Richard Calvert, who married Mary (née Nicholson), the widow of the Hon. John Verney, eldest son of
Ralph Verney, 1st Earl Verney. Verney sat as
Liberal Member of Parliament for
Buckingham and
Bedford.
From Wikipedia
Born Harry Calvert, he was the oldest son of
Sir Harry Calvert, 1st Baronet and his wife Caroline Hammersley, second daughter of Thomas Hammersley. He was first educated at
Harrow School, then aged fifteen went to the
Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, as one of its first cadets. In 1826, he succeeded his father as
baronet and in the following year, he changed his surname by Royal Licence to Verney to inherit the estates of his cousin
Mary Verney, 1st Baroness Fermanagh.From 1831, he studied at
Downing College, Cambridge, befriending
Adam Sedgwick and
William Whewell.
Verney joined the British Army for the
31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot in 1819 and was sent to the country's legation in the German states
Württemberg and
Baden, learning during this time German, French and Italian. He returned to England in the following year and was allocated to the
7th (Royal Fusiliers) Regiment of Foot. From 1824, he served with the
Grenadier Guards and from 1826 was private secretary in the office of the
Commander-in-Chief of the Forces.
Verney was meant to accompany
Lord William Bentinck on his appointment as
Governor-General of India, however during the journey was left ill in
Rio de Janeiro, where he recovered, later hunting with natives in the
Pampas and the
Andes. His voyage home lead him around the
Cape of Good Hope onboard a ship, commanded by
Sir Michael Seymour and in 1829, he arrived in England again. Verney was promoted to major in 1831 and was transferred to the
Royal Buckinghamshire Militia (King's Own) in 1844, retiring two years later.
Verney entered the
British House of Commons in 1832, sitting as a
Member of Parliament (MP) for
Buckingham unti 1841.After a six-year break, he was successful for
Bedford and represented it until 1852. Verney was again returned for Buckingham in 1857 until the
1874 general election. In 1880, he was reelected for the constituency for the following five years. In 1885, in his final year in the House, Verney was sworn of as a
Privy Counsellor.
Verney was nominated a
Deputy Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire and a
Justice of the Peace for the same county.
He was a fellow of the
Royal Geographical Society and one of the founders of the
Royal Agricultural Society. Verney acted as chairman of the
Buckinghamshire Railway Company and deputy chairman of the
Aylesbury and Buckingham Railway Company.
On 30 June 1835, he married firstly Eliza Hope, daughter of
Admiral Sir George Johnstone Hope, and had by her four sons and three daughters. After her death in 1857, Verney remarried secondly
Frances Parthenope Nightingale, daughter of William Edward Nightingale and sister of
Florence Nightingale, on 24 June 1858. He died, aged 92 and was succeeded in the
baronetcy by his oldest son
Edmund. His youngest son
Frederick was a diplomat and politician and father of
Sir Ralph Verney, 1st Baronet.
Verney was unusual in the sense that he gave his name to two
railway stations in England, namely
Calvert and
Verney Junction stations in
Buckinghamshire. Mount Verney, Sir Harry Peak and Sir Harry Range in
British Columbia were also named after him.