Edward Sackville, 4th Earl of Dorset

Edward Sackville, 4th Earl of Dorset KG (1591 – 17 July 1652) was an English courtier, soldier and politician. He sat in the House of Commons from 1621 to 1622 and became Earl of Dorset in 1624. He fought a duel in his early life, and was later involved in colonisation in North America. He supported the Royalist cause in the English Civil War.

Sackville was the younger surviving son of Robert Sackville, 2nd Earl of Dorset. He matriculated from Christ Church, Oxford, with his brother Richard, on 26 July 1605. He was awarded MA at Cambridge University and was incorporated at Oxford from Cambridge on 9 July 1616. He was one of the handsomest men of his time, and in August 1613 became notorious by killing in a duel Edward Bruce, 2nd Lord Kinloss. The duel concerned Venetia Stanley, a society beauty and a granddaughter of Edward Stanley, 3rd Earl of Derby. The meeting took place on a piece of ground purchased for the purpose two miles from Bergen-op-Zoom, Netherlands, which even in 1814 was known as Bruceland. Sackville was run through the body and lost a finger while attempting to disarm Kinloss, but ultimately dispatched his opponent with two thrusts to the chest. Though gravely wounded, Sackville survived, but Venetia Stanley ultimately married Sir Kenelm Digby who after his marriage maintained friendly relations with Sackville, referring to him as the ‘Mardontius’ in his memoirs. Sackville sent, in self-justification, a long narrative from Louvain, dated 8 September 1613, with copies of Bruce's challenges. Sackville's life was attempted soon after his return to England.

Some sources claim that in 1614, Sackville was elected MP for Sussex and was one of the leaders of the popular party but this is disputed in other records of the Addled Parliament. In 1616 he visited Lyons and procured the release of Sir Edward Herbert who had been arrested there. He was made a Knight of the Bath on 3 November 1616 when Charles I was created Prince of Wales. From 1619 he was a leading member of the party of the Virginia Company which supported Sir Edwin Sandys. On 22 July 1620 he sailed as a commander in the forces sent under Sir Horatio Vere to assist the king of Bohemia. He was present at the Battle of White Mountain on 8 November 1620.

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