Gout is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender and swollen joint. Pain comes on reaching maximal intensity in less than twelve hours; the joint at the base of the big toe is affected in about half of cases. It may result in tophi, kidney stones, or urate nephropathy. Gout is due to persistently elevated levels of uric acid in the blood; this occurs from a combination of diet, other health problems, genetic factors. At high levels, uric acid crystallizes and the crystals deposit in joints and surrounding tissues, resulting in an attack of gout. Gout occurs more in those who eat meat or seafood, drink beer, or are overweight. Diagnosis of gout may be confirmed by the presence of crystals in the joint fluid or in a deposit outside the joint. Blood uric acid levels may be normal during an attack. Treatment with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, steroids, or colchicine improves symptoms. Once the acute attack subsides, levels of uric acid can be lowered via lifestyle changes and in those with frequent attacks, allopurinol or probenecid provides long-term prevention.
Taking vitamin C and eating a diet high in low-fat dairy products may be preventive. Gout affects about 1 to 2% of the Western population at some point in their lives, it has become more common in recent decades. This is believed to be due to increasing risk factors in the population, such as metabolic syndrome, longer life expectancy, changes in diet. Older males are most affected. Gout was known as "the disease of kings" or "rich man's disease", it has been recognized at least since the time of the ancient Egyptians. Gout can present in multiple ways, although the most usual is a recurrent attack of acute inflammatory arthritis; the metatarsal-phalangeal joint at the base of the big toe is affected most accounting for half of cases. Other joints, such as the heels, knees and fingers, may be affected. Joint pain begins over 2–4 hours and during the night; this is due to lower body temperature. Other symptoms may occur along with the joint pain, including fatigue and a high fever. Long-standing elevated uric acid levels may result in other symptoms, including hard, painless deposits of uric acid crystals known as tophi.
Extensive tophi may lead to chronic arthritis due to bone erosion. Elevated levels of uric acid may lead to crystals precipitating in the kidneys, resulting in stone formation and subsequent urate nephropathy; the crystallization of uric acid related to high levels in the blood, is the underlying cause of gout. This can occur because of diet, genetic predisposition, or underexcretion of urate, the salts of uric acid. Underexcretion of uric acid by the kidney is the primary cause of hyperuricemia in about 90% of cases, while overproduction is the cause in less than 10%. About 10% of people with hyperuricemia develop gout at some point in their lifetimes; the risk, varies depending on the degree of hyperuricemia. When levels are between 415 and 530 μmol/l, the risk is 0.5% per year, while in those with a level greater than 535 μmol/l, the risk is 4.5% per year. Dietary causes account for about 12% of gout, include a strong association with the consumption of alcohol, fructose-sweetened drinks and seafood.
Among foods richest in purines yielding high amounts of uric acid are dried anchovies, organ meat, dried mushrooms and beer yeast. Chicken and potatoes appear related. Other triggers include physical surgery. Studies in the early 2000s found. Moderate consumption of purine-rich vegetables are not associated with gout. Neither is total consumption of protein. Alcohol consumption is associated with increased risk, with wine presenting somewhat less of a risk than beer or spirits; the eating or drinking of coffee, vitamin C, dairy products, as well as physical fitness, appear to decrease the risk. Peanuts, brown bread, fruit appear protective; this is believed to be due to their effect in reducing insulin resistance. Gout is genetic, contributing to about 60% of variability in uric acid level; the SLC2A9, SLC22A12, ABCG2 genes have been found to be associated with gout and variations in them can double the risk. Loss-of-function mutations in SLC2A9 and SLC22A12 causes low blood uric acid levels by reducing urate absorption and unopposed urate secretion.
The rare genetic disorders familial juvenile hyperuricemic nephropathy, medullary cystic kidney disease, phosphoribosylpyrophosphate synthetase superactivity and hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase deficiency as seen in Lesch-Nyhan syndrome, are complicated by gout. Gout occurs in combination with other medical problems. Metabolic syndrome, a combination of abdominal obesity, insulin resistance, abnormal lipid levels, occurs in nearly 75% of cases. Other conditions complicated by gout include lead poisoning, kidney failure, hemolytic anemia, solid organ transplants and myeloproliferative disorders such as polycythemia. A body mass index greater than or equal to 35 increases male risk of gout threefold. Chronic lead exposure and lead-contaminated alcohol are risk factors for gout due to the harmful effect of lead on kidney function. Diuretics have been associated with attacks of gout, but a low dose of hydrochlorothiazide does not seem to increase risk. Other medications that increase the risk include niacin, aspirin, ACE inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers, beta blocker
Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough
Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough rose to be one of the most influential women of her time through her close friendship with Anne, Queen of Great Britain. Sarah's friendship and influence with Princess Anne were known, leading public figures turned their attentions to her in the hope that she would influence Anne to comply with requests; as a result, by the time Anne became Queen, Sarah’s knowledge of government, intimacy with the queen, had made her a powerful friend and a dangerous enemy. Sarah enjoyed a "long and devoted" relationship with her husband of more than 40 years, John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, she acted as Anne's agent after James II, was deposed during the Glorious Revolution. When Anne came to the throne after William's death in 1702, the Duke of Marlborough, together with Sidney Godolphin, the first Earl of Godolphin, rose to head the government owing to his wife's friendship with the queen. While the Duke was out of the country commanding troops in the War of the Spanish Succession, Sarah kept him informed of court intrigue, while he sent her requests and political advice, which she would convey to the queen.
Sarah tirelessly campaigned on behalf of the Whigs, while devoting much of her time to building projects such as Blenheim Palace. Sarah, a strong-willed woman, strained her relationship with the Queen whenever she disagreed with the Queen on political, court, or church appointments. After her final break with Anne in 1711, Sarah and her husband were dismissed from the court, but she had her revenge under the Hanoverians following Anne's death, she had famous subsequent disagreements with many important people, including her daughter the second Duchess of Marlborough. The money she inherited from the Marlborough trust left her one of the richest women in Europe, she died in 1744, aged 84. Sarah Jennings was born on 5 June 1660 at Holywell House, St Albans, Hertfordshire, she was the daughter of Richard Jennings, a Member of Parliament, Frances Thornhurst. Her uncle was a prominent naturalist. Richard Jennings came into contact with James, Duke of York, in 1663, during negotiations for the recovery of an estate in Kent, the property of his mother-in-law, Susan Lister.
James's first impressions were favourable, in 1664 Sarah’s sister, was appointed maid of honour to the Duchess of York, Anne Hyde. Although James forced Frances to give up the post because of her marriage to a Catholic, James did not forget the family. In 1673, Sarah entered court as maid of honour to Mary of Modena. Sarah became close to the young Princess Anne in about 1675, the friendship grew stronger as the two grew older. In late 1675, when she was still only fifteen, she met John Churchill, 10 years her senior, who fell in love with her. Churchill, a lover of Charles II’s mistress, Barbara Palmer, Duchess of Cleveland, had little to offer financially, as his estates were in debt. Sarah had a rival for Churchill in Catherine Sedley, a wealthy mistress of James II and the choice of Churchill's father, Sir Winston Churchill, anxious to restore the family's fortune. John may have hoped to take Sarah as a mistress in place of the Duchess of Cleveland, who had departed for France, but surviving letters from Sarah to John show her unwillingness to assume that role.
In 1677, Sarah's brother Ralph died, she and her sister, became co-heirs of the Jennings estates in Hertfordshire and Kent. John chose Sarah over Catherine Sedley, but both John's and Sarah's families disapproved of the match, therefore they married secretly in the winter of 1677–78. John and Sarah were both Protestants in a predominantly Catholic court, a circumstance that would influence their political allegiances. Although no date was recorded, the marriage was announced only to the Duchess of York, a small circle of friends, so that Sarah could keep her court position as Maid of Honour; when Sarah became pregnant, her marriage was announced publicly, she retired from the court to give birth to her first child, who died in infancy. When the Duke of York went into self-imposed exile to Scotland as a result of the furore surrounding the Popish Plot and Sarah accompanied him, Charles II rewarded John's loyalty by creating him Baron Churchill of Eyemouth in Scotland, Sarah thus becoming Lady Churchill.
The Duke of York returned to England after the religious tension had eased, Sarah was appointed a Lady of the Bedchamber to Anne after the latter's marriage in 1683. The early reign of James II was successful. In addition, his daughter and heir was a Protestant. However, when James attempted to reform the national religion, popular discontent against him and his government became widespread; the level of alarm increased when Queen Mary gave birth to a Roman Catholic son and heir, Prince James Francis Edward, on 10 June 1688. A group of politicians known as the Immortal Seven invited Prince William of Orange, husband of James's Protestant daughter Mary, to invade England and remove James from power, though the plan became public knowledge quickly
Charles Jervas was an Irish portrait painter and art collector of the early 18th century. Born in Clonlisk, County Offaly, Ireland around 1675, the son of John Jervas and Elizabeth, daughter of Captain John Baldwin of Shinrone Castle & Corolanty, High Sheriff of County Offaly. Jervas studied in London, England as an assistant under Sir Godfrey Kneller between 1694 and 1695. After selling a series of small copies of the Raphael Cartoons circa 1698 to Dr. George Clarke of All Souls College, the following year he travelled to Paris and Rome remaining there for most of the decade before returning to London in 1709 where he found success as a portrait painter. Painting portraits of the city's intellectuals, among them such personal friends as Jonathan Swift and the poet Alexander Pope, Charles Jervas became a popular artist referred to in the works of literary figures of the period. Jervas gave painting lessons to Pope at his house in Cleveland Court, St James's, which Pope mentions in his poem, To Belinda on the Rape of the Lock, written 1713, published 1717 in'Poems on Several Occasions'.
Pope's verse Epistle to Mr Jervas, written circa 1715, was published in the 1716 edition of John Dryden's 1695 translation of Fresnoy's Art of Painting. With his growing reputation, Jervas succeeded Kneller as Principal Portrait Painter to King George I in 1723, continued to live in London until his death in 1739, his translation of Cervantes' novel Don Quixote, published posthumously in 1742 as being made by Charles "Jarvis" – because of a printer's error – has since come to be known as "the Jarvis translation". Jervas was first to provide an introduction to the novel including a critical analysis of previous translations of Don Quixote, it has been praised as the most accurate translation of the novel up to that time, but strongly criticised for being stiff and humourless, although it went through many printings during the 19th century. As principal portraitist to the King of England, Jervas was known for his vanity and luck, as mentioned in the Imperial Biographical Dictionary, "He married a widow with $20,000.
According to one account, after comparing a painting he had copied from Titian, he was said to have stated "Poor little Tit, how he would starve!". Upon being told that Jervas had set up a carriage with four horses, Kneller replied: "Ach, mein Gott, if his horses do not draw better than he does, he will never get to his journey's end." Webb, Alfred. A Compendium of Irish Biography: Comprising Sketches of Distinguished Irishmen and of Eminent Persons Connected with Ireland by Office or by Their Writings, New York: Lemma Publishing Corporation, 1970. Grove Dictionary of Art: Charles Jervas The Twickenham Museum: Charles Jervas AbsoluteArts.com - Charles Jervas National Portrait Gallery - Charles Jervas UK Government Art Collection - Charles Jervas
Windsor Great Park
Windsor Great Park is a Royal Park of 2,020 hectares, including a deer park, to the south of the town of Windsor on the border of Berkshire and Surrey in England. The park was, for many centuries, the private hunting ground of Windsor Castle and dates from the mid-13th century; the park covered an area many times the current size known as Windsor Forest, Windsor Royal Park or its current name. The park is funded by the Crown Estate. Most parts of the park are open to the public, free of charge, from dawn to dusk, although there is a charge to enter Savill Garden; the park is Grade I listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. Windsor Forest and Great Park is a Site of Special Scientific Interest; the Great Park is a undulating area of varied landscape. It has sweeping deer lawns, small woods and areas covered by huge solitary ancient oak trees. There is a small river in the north of the park called the Battle Bourne running to the Thames near Datchet; the River Bourne runs through a number of ponds to the south.
Chief amongst these are Great Meadow Obelisk Pond, near the great lake of Virginia Water. The most prominent hill is Snow Hill and the avenue of trees known as the Long Walk runs between here and Windsor Castle; the area is accessed by a number of gates: Queen Anne's Gate, Ranger's Gate, Cranbourne Gate, Forest Gate, Sandpit Gate, Prince Consort's Gate, Blacknest Gate, Bishop's Gate and Bear's Rails Gate and the original medieval park pale can still be seen in places. The main road known as Sheet Street into Windsor runs through the northeast of the park. On the western side of the park is The Village, built in the 1930s to house Royal estate workers, it has a village infant/junior school. Other buildings include Cumberland Lodge, the Cranbourne Tower and Norfolk Farm; the park lies within the civil parish of Old Windsor, though the eastern regions are in the Borough of Runnymede and there are small areas in the parishes of Winkfield and Sunninghill. Areas associated with or attached to the Great Park, but not within its borders include the Home Park, Mote Park, Flemish Farm, Cranbourne Chase, Forest Lodge and South Forest.
The modern enclosed deer park is at the northern end of the Great Park. It is home to a large herd of semi-wild deer, reflecting the original medieval purpose of the park; the Long Walk runs south from Windsor Castle to the 1829 Copper Horse statue of King George III atop Snow Hill where there are impressive views of the castle. It is 2.65 miles from George IV Gateway at Windsor Castle to The Copper Horse. Other equestrian statues in the park include one of the Prince Consort, to the west of the polo grounds, one of Queen Elizabeth II near the Village; the Royal Lodge was built in the centre of the park as the Deputy Ranger's house. It was made into a retreat for the Prince Regent from 1812, but was pulled down after his death; the remains were renovated, in the 1930s, as a home for the Duke and Duchess of York before their accession as George VI and Queen Elizabeth. It is now the official residence of the Prince Andrew, Duke of York and not accessible by the public; the Royal Chapel of All Saints was built after the chapels of the Royal and Cumberland Lodges proved too small for growing numbers of household staff.
The chapel was built in 1825 by Jeffry Wyattville and used by George IV during the refurbishment of Windsor Castle. It was remodelled in the Gothic Revival style by Samuel Sanders Teulon and Anthony Salvin. Queen Victoria attended the chapel as did the Duke and Duchess of York before their accession as George VI and Queen Elizabeth, it is used by Queen Elizabeth II when she is in residence at Windsor. Other notable buildings in the park include Cumberland Lodge, built in 1652 during the Commonwealth. After the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 the Lodge became the home of the Ranger of the Great Park, an office in the gift of the sovereign; each Ranger made his – or in one case, that of Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, her – own mark on the features of the house and its surroundings. Throughout her life Queen Victoria was a frequent visitor, her daughter Princess Helena of the United Kingdom lived at the Lodge for over fifty years, presiding over elaborate re-building after a bad fire in 1869 and extensive alterations in 1912.
Lord FitzAlan, last British Viceroy of Ireland, was the last private person to be entrusted with the Lodge. It was in his time, in 1936, that the Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin, discussed the crisis over King Edward VIII's desire to marry Wallis Simpson, talks which led to his abdication of the crown a few weeks later. In 1947, the King made the Lodge available to the newly established St. Catharine's Foundation known as the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Foundation of St Catharine's. Today the organisation is known as Cumberland Lodge. Cumberland Lodge today is an educational charity dedicated to initiating fresh debate on the burning questions facing society; the grounds are not open to the public, but the house is continually holding conferences, open days and lectures. The private Cranbourne Tower is viewed from surrounding paths, it is all that survives of the residence of the Keeper of Cranbourne Chase. It is thought to date back to the 16th century. In the south-east of the park, near Englefield Green, are the well-endowed Savill Garden and Valley Gardens which were designed and built by Eric Savill in the 1930s and 1940s.
They include an extraordinary range of trees from around the world. Smith's Lawn and Polo Grounds are nearby; the gardens are open to visitors between 10:00 and 16:30 in the winter and 10:00 and 18:00 in the summer. Virginia Wat
Thomas Hudson (painter)
Thomas Hudson was an English portrait painter. Hudson was born in Devon in 1701, his exact birthplace is unknown. He studied under Jonathan Richardson in London and against his wishes, married Richardson's daughter at some point before 1725. Hudson was most prolific between 1740 and 1760 and, from 1745 until 1755 was the most successful London portraitist, he had many assistants, employed the specialist drapery painter Joseph van Aken. Joshua Reynolds, Joseph Wright and the drapery painter Peter Toms were his students. Hudson visited the Low Countries in 1748 and Italy in 1752. In 1753 he bought a house at Cross Deep, just upstream from Pope’s Villa, he retired toward the end of the 1750s. William Hickey described the elderly Hudson, "His figure was rather grotesque, being uncommonly low in stature, with a prodigious belly, wearing a large white bushy periwig, he was remarkably good tempered, one of my first-rate favourites, notwithstanding that he told me I should be hanged.". He died at Twickenham in 1779.
His extensive private art collection was sold off in three separate sales. Many of Hudson's works may be seen in art galleries throughout the United Kingdom, they include the National Portrait Gallery, the National Maritime Museum, Barnstaple Guildhall, Foundling Museum and the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery. "Hudson, Thomas". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900. Thomas Hudson online Thomas Hudson on Artnet John Singleton Copley in America, a full text exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which contains material on Thomas Hudson
Cheam is a large suburban village in the London Borough of Sutton, England, at the southern boundary of Greater London where it meets Surrey. It is divided into two main areas, North Cheam and Cheam Village, both of which are centred on retail districts. Cheam has a number of listed buildings, including Lumley Chapel and the 16th-century Whitehall, is adjacent to two large adjoining parks, Nonsuch Park and Cheam Park. Nonsuch Park contains the listed Nonsuch Mansion. Parts of Cheam Park and Cheam Village are in a conservation area. Cheam is bordered by Worcester Park to the north-west, Morden to the north-east, Sutton to the east, Ewell to the west and Banstead and Belmont to the south; the Roman road of Stane Street forms part of the boundary of Cheam. The modern London Road at North Cheam follows the course of the Roman road through the area, it is designated A24 on road maps. The village lay within the Anglo-Saxon administrative division of Wallington hundred. Cheam is mentioned in the Charters of Chertsey Abbey in 727, which mentions Cheam being given to the monastery of Chertsey in 675.
However, the Charters are now regarded as obvious fabrications. Cheam appears in Domesday Book as Ceiham. Held by Archbishop Lanfranc of Canterbury, its Domesday assets were four hides, one church, 17 ploughs, 1-acre of meadow, woodland worth 25 hogs, it rendered £14. In the Middle Ages, Cheam had potteries, recent excavations have been carried out by archaeologists. In 1259, Henry III of England made Cheam a town by charter. In 1538, part of Cheam was handed over to Henry VIII; the same year, Henry began work on Nonsuch Palace. This was sold and demolished. In 1801, the time of the first census, Cheam had a population of 616 Cheamonians. Records of Cheam Charter Fair date back to the 1800s. Cheam was the original home of Cheam School, formed in Whitehall in 1645 and occupied Tabor Court from 1719 until 1934 when the school moved to Berkshire. Prince Philip attended the school in Cheam in the years preceding its move; every year on 15th May the Cheam Charter Fair is held. One of the key drivers of the fair is.
It is thought to date back to 1259. Firm historical records of Cheam Charter Fair date back to the 1800s when a fairground accompanied the market. Cheam Village is centred on the crossroads between North Cheam, South Cheam and Ewell; as well as bus services, it is served by Cheam mainline station, in London Travelcard Zone 5 and one stop from Sutton, about a mile away, two from Epsom, about three miles away. Services from Cheam to central London include direct trains to Victoria, it has a conservation area and a number of historic buildings dating back several centuries, including Nonsuch Mansion, the gabled Whitehall and Lumley Chapel and a Georgian former Rectory. Cheam Village is a part of Cheam. Cheam Village Conservation Area was designated in 1970 – it covers historic parkland, housing of varying styles and age and a mock Tudor shopping area with timber detailing and leaded-lights, its shops include Majestic Wine. Its catering facilities include branches of Caffè Nero, Prezzo, Pizza Express and Wildwood.
There are a number including furniture shops and gift shops. It has building societies and estate agents; the entrance to Nonsuch Park with its historic mansion is two hundred yards from the village centre crossroads. North Cheam is centred 1 mile north, at the crossroads between Cheam Village and Worcester Park and Morden. There are established bus routes serving the area, including services 213, 151, 93 and the less frequent X26 express service between Heathrow Airport and Croydon. Victoria Junction is the centre of North Cheam; the area consists of a large Sainsbury's supermarket with adjoining Starbucks, a neighbouring park, a number of independent shops and restaurants, a post office and a Costa. There are plans to redevelop the site of a vacant 1960s building at the North Cheam crossroad and expand commercial and residential buildings. St. Anthony's Hospital is a large private hospital in North Cheam. Cheam Leisure Centre, on Malden Road, has facilities including a swimming pool, squash courts and fitness gym.
The population of Cheam, consisting of the Cheam and Nonsuch wards, was 20,972 in 2011. Nonsuch Mansion is a Grade II listed Gothic revival mansion within Nonsuch Park; the Service Wing Museum is open to the public during the summer on Sundays. It is run by the Friends of Nonsuch, which charitable organisation commissioned the largest model of Nonsuch Palace available; the model can be seen throughout the year on Sundays. The mansion itself is a popular place for wedding receptions. In medieval times the land upon which Nonsuch Mansion sits was part of the three thousand acre manor of Cuddington; the mansion was built in 1731–43 by Joseph Thompson and bought by Samuel Farmer in 1799. He employed Jeffry Wyattville to rebuild it in a Tudor Gothic style in 1802-6. Farmer was succeeded by his grandson in 1838. Nonsuch Mansion bears a resemblance in its design to the original design of Nonsuch Palace, whose construction was begun by King Henry VIII in the 16th century. Built within the north porch of the mansion is a block from the original Nonsuch Palace that bears an inscription which means "1543 Henry VIII in the 35th year of His reign."
Whitehall is a timber f
Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield
Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield, was a British statesman, man of letters, an acclaimed wit of his time. He was born in London to Philip Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Chesterfield, Lady Elizabeth Savile, known as Lord Stanhope until the death of his father, in 1726. Following the death of his mother in 1708, Stanhope was raised by his grandmother, the Marchioness of Halifax. Educated at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, he left just over a year into his studies, after focusing on languages and oration, he subsequently embarked on the Grand Tour of the Continent, to complete his education as a nobleman, by exposure to the cultural legacies of Classical antiquity and the Renaissance, to become acquainted with his aristocratic counterparts and the polite society of Continental Europe. In the course of his post-graduate tour of Europe, the death of Queen Anne and the accession of King George I to the throne opened a political career for Stanhope, he returned to England. A member of the Whig party, Phillip Stanhope entered government service as a courtier to the King, through the mentorship of his relative, James Stanhope, the King's favourite minister, who procured his appointment as Lord of the Bedchamber to the Prince of Wales, George II.
In 1715, Philip Dormer Stanhope entered the House of Commons as Lord Stanhope of Shelford and as member for St Germans. When the impeachment of James Butler, 2nd Duke of Ormonde came before the House, he used the occasion to try out the result of his rhetorical studies, his maiden speech was fluent and dogmatic, but upon its conclusion, another member – after first complimenting the speech – reminded the young orator that he was still six weeks short of his age of majority, was liable to a fine of £500 for speaking in the House. While in Paris, he sent the government valuable information about the developing Jacobite plot; when King George I quarreled with his son, the Prince of Wales that same year, Lord Stanhope remained politically faithful to the Prince, while being careful not to break with the King's party." However, his continued friendly correspondence with the Prince's mistress – Henrietta Howard Countess of Suffolk – earned Chesterfield the personal hatred of the Prince's wife, Princess Caroline of Ansbach.
In 1723 he was voted Captain of the Gentlemen Pensioners. In January 1725, on the revival of the Order of the Bath, the red ribbon was offered to him, but Chesterfield declined the honour. Upon his father's death in 1726, Lord Stanhope assumed his seat in the House of Lords and became the 4th Earl of Chesterfield; the new Lord Chesterfield's inclination towards oration – seen as ineffective in the House of Commons due to its polish and lack of force – was met with appreciation in the House of Lords, won many to his side. In 1728, under service to the new king, George II, Chesterfield was sent to the Hague as ambassador, where his gentle tact and linguistic dexterity served him well; as a reward for his diplomatic service, Chesterfield received the Order of the Garter in 1730, the position of Lord Steward, the friendship of Robert Walpole. While a British envoy in the Hague, he helped negotiate the second Treaty of Vienna, which signaled the collapse of the Anglo-French Alliance, the beginning of the Anglo-Austrian Alliance.
In 1732, Madelina Elizabeth du Bouchet – a French governess – gave birth to his illegitimate son, for whose advice on life Chesterfield wrote the Letters to his Son. By the end of 1732, ill health and financial troubles led to Chesterfield's return to Britain and resignation as ambassador In 1731, while at The Hague, Chesterfield initiated the Grand Duke of Tuscany from the House of Habsburg-Lorraine into Freemasonry, at the time being used as an intelligence network by the British Whigs. In 1733, Lord Chesterfield married Melusina von der Schulenberg, the Countess of Walsingham, the illegitimate daughter of the late King George I and his mistress, the Duchess of Kendal. After recuperating from his illness, Chesterfield resumed his seat in the House of Lords, of which he was now one of the acknowledged leaders, he supported the ministry and leadership of Robert Walpole, the de facto Prime Minister, but withheld the blind fealty that Walpole preferred of his followers. Lord Chesterfield opposed The Excise Bill, the Whig party leader's favourite measure, in the House of Lords while his brothers argued against it in the House of Commons.
Though Walpole succumbed to the political fury and abandoned the measure, Chesterfield was summarily dismissed from his stewardship. For the next two years, he led the opposition in the Upper House to effect Walpole's downfall. During this time, he resided in Grosvenor Square and got involved in the creation of a new London charity called the Foundling Hospital, for which he was a founding governor. In 1741, he went abroad on account of his health. In 1742, Walpole's fall from political power was complete, but although he and his administration had been overthrown in no small part due to Chesterfield's efforts, the new ministry did not count Chesterfield either in its ranks or among its supporters, he remained in opposition, distinguishing himself by the courtly b