Page "John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich" Paragraph 1

John Montagu was born in 1718, the son of Edward Montagu, Viscount Hinchingbrooke.

At the age of four his father died, leaving him as his heir.

His mother soon remarried and he had little further contact with her.

He succeeded his grandfather as Earl of Sandwich in 1729.

Educated at Eton and at Trinity College, Cambridge, Montagu spent some time in travelling, initially going on the Grand Tour round Continental Europe before visiting the more unusual destinations of Greece, Turkey and Egypt which were then part of the Ottoman Empire.

This led him to later found a number of Orientalist societies.

On his return to England in 1739 he took his seat in the House of Lords as a follower of the Duke of Bedford, one of the wealthiest and most powerful politicians of the era.

He became a Patriot Whig and one of the sharpest critics of the Walpole government, attacking the government's strategy in the War of the Austrian Succession.

Like many Patriot Whigs, Lord Sandwich was opposed to Britain's support of Hanover and strongly opposed the deployment of British troops on the European Continent to protect it, instead arguing that Britain should make greater use of its naval power.

He gained attention for his speeches in parliament which earned him a reputation for clearly setting out his argument, even if they lacked natural eloquence.