1828.] 



Biographical Memoirs of Eminent Persons. 



325 



peror of Russia to the court of Great Bri- 

 tain. By that lady he has left issue a son 

 and four daughters. His lordship died at 

 his house in Privy Gardens, on the 16th of 

 October. 



Lord Pembroke's seat, at Wilton, has 

 long been celebrated for containing a fine 

 collection of pictures, and the finest col- 

 lection of antique statues, &c. in the king- 

 dom. 



Robert Henry, the present earl, was 

 born on the 19th of September, 1791. His 

 lordship married, at Palermo, on the 17th 

 of August, 1814, Cedavia Spinelli, Princess 

 Dowager of Rubari, in Sicily. This mar- 

 riage was contrary to the wishes of his 

 father, who, on hearing of the connexion, 

 posted to Sicily, in the hope of preventing 

 the ceremony, but he arrived too late. 

 The earl, however, had the address to ef- 

 fect a separation ; and, on his return to 

 London, he instituted proceedings in tlie 

 ecclesiastical court, in the hope of obtain- 

 ing a divorce. In this, however, he was 

 unsuccessful ; but the parties agreed to se- 

 parate ; and, after the earl had settled upon 

 Jier a considerable annuity, she returned 

 to Palermo, accompanied by her brother, 

 a Sicilian duke. She is said to have re- 

 sided there ever since, apart from her 

 husband. 



MB. SALE. 



John Sale, probably a descendant of 

 Franciscus Sale, chapel master at Halee, 

 in Tyrol, at the close of the sixteenth cen- 

 tury, was born in London in the year 1758. 

 In 1767, he was admitted as a chorister of 

 the Royal Chapel, Windsor, and Eton Col- 

 lege Chapel,.under Mr. Webb. Ten years 

 afterwards, he was appointed lay vicar of 

 the choirs of Windsor and Eton ; an office 

 which he retained until the close of the 

 year 1796. At that period he was a mem- 

 ber of five choirs, viz. Windsor, Eton, His 

 Majesty's Chapel Royal, Westminster Ab- 

 bey, and St. Paul's. It was in 1778 that 

 he succeeded Ladd, as gentleman of His 

 Majesty's chapel royal ; Soaper, as vicar- 

 choral of St. Paul's, in 1 794 ; and Hindle, 

 as lay vicar of Westminster Abbey, in 1796. 

 In the last-mentioned year, he resigned 

 Windsor and Eton. In 1800 he succeeded 

 Bellamy, senior, as almoner and master of 

 the choristers of St. Paul's. These offices 

 he resigned in the year 1812. In 1818, he 

 became senior gentleman, or father of His 

 Majesty's chapel royal ; a sinecure office, 

 relieving him from all duty and attendance. 



Mr. Sale, honoured with the friendship 

 of George the Third, as well as of his pre- 

 sent Majesty, and of every member of the 

 royal family most of whom he had num- 

 bered amongst his pupils was, for more 

 than thirty years, a principal bass singer 

 at the King's concert of ancient music ; 

 academy of ancient music ; ladies' concert; 

 vocal and other concerts ; -oratorios, &c. in 

 London, and also Liverpool, Chester, Wor- 



cester, Birmingham, Hull, Norwich, Not- 

 tingham, Halifax, Yarmouth, Lincoln, Win- 

 chester, &c. His voice was a genuine bass, 

 of fine tone and expressive compass. 



In private life, Mr. Sale's character and 

 conduct were irreproachable, and he was 

 greatly esteemed and respected. He was 

 secretary to the Nobleman's and Gentle- 

 man's Catch Club, and conductor of the 

 Glee Club. With the permission of the 

 Wellesley family, he published some of the 

 late Earl of Mornington's glees, amongst 

 which was that great favourite, *' Oh* 

 Bird of Eve." Many excellent glees of his 

 own were published. 



Mr. Sale died at his house in Marsham- 

 street, Westminster, on the llth of Nor 

 vember. Mr. Goulden has been appointed 

 to succeed him in the chapel royal. He 

 has left two sons distinguished in the mu- 

 sical world : Mr. J. B. Sale, who has been 

 selected to teach the piano, &c. to the Prin- 

 cess Victoria, daughter of the Duchess of 

 Kent ; and Mr. G. C. Sale, the organist of 

 St. George's, Hanover-square. 



SIR ROBERT ABERCROMBY. 



General Sir Robert Abercromby, de- 

 scended from a very ancient and distin- 

 guished family, in Clackmananshire, North 

 Britain, was the last surviving brother of 

 the gallant lieutenant general who died of 

 his wounds received at the battle of Alex- 

 andria, in Egypt, in March, 1801. Sir 

 Robert was born in the year 1740 ; and he 

 entered the military service of his country, 

 as an ensign in the 44th regiment of the 

 line, on the 21st of July, 1758. On the 

 19th of April, 1759, he obtained a lieu- 

 tenancy in the same corps ; and, on the 

 12th of December, 1761, he was promoted 

 to a captaincy. He was present at the 

 battle of Ticonderoga, the siege of Niagara, 

 and the reduction of Fort Levi and Mon- 

 treal. In 1763-, he was placed on half pay; 

 on the 1st of January, 1769, he was put on 

 full pay in the 44th foot ; he was promoted 

 on the 15th of May, 1772, to a majority in 

 the 62d regiment of infantry ; and he ob- 

 tained, on the 30th of November, 1775, a 

 lieutenant-colonelcy in the 37th regiment 

 of foot. From that period, until the close 

 of the war, he served in America. He was 

 at the battles of Brooklyne, Brandywine, 

 and Germantown, and the sieges of Charles- 

 town and York town. On the 15th of Fe- 

 bruary, 1782, he became a colonel in the 

 army. From September, 1788, till April, 

 1797, he served in India. He was raised, 

 on the 28th of April, 1790, to the rank of 

 major-general, and succeeded Sir William 

 Meadows, as governor of Bombay, and 

 commander-in-chief of the Bombay army. 

 The presidency of Bombay derived signal 

 benefit from his active zeal and approved 

 skill. He accomplished the reduction of 

 Cananore and the province of Malabar; 

 and, in 1792, his judicious and successful 

 march across a vast extent of country, to 



