George Augustus Rochfort
| George Augustus Rochfort, 2nd Earl of Belvedere | |
|---|---|
George Rochfort in volunteer uniform and his second wife, Jane, with baby
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| Born | 12 October 1738 |
| Died | 13 May 1814 (aged 75) Dublin, Ireland |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Peer, politician |
George Augustus Rochfort, 2nd Earl of Belvedere (12 October 1738 – 13 May 1814) was an Anglo-Irish peer and politician.
George Augustus Rochfort was born on 12 October 1738, son of Robert Rochfort, 1st Earl of Belvedere and Hon. Mary Molesworth. The Rochfort family, originally called De Rupe Forti, had settled in Ireland in 1243. Sir Maurice de Rochfort was Lord Justice of Ireland in 1302. Gerald Rochfort was summoned to Parliament as a baron in 1339. George's great-grandfather was the prominent lawyer Robert Rochfort, Attorney General of Ireland and Speaker of the House of Commons in 1695, and Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer in 1707. The family estate of Gaulstown lay on the shore of Lough Ennell in County Westmeath.
George's father, Robert Rochfort, was a favourite courtier of King George II of Great Britain. He was made an Irish peer as Baron of Bellfield in 1737, and then Earl of Belvedere in 1756. He was estranged from his mother for his of his childhood, after his father locked her away after an alleged affair with George's uncle, Arthur.
From 1756 to 1774 George Rochfort was styled Viscount Belfield. He was Member of Parliament for Philipstown from 1758–61, and Member of Parliament for Westmeath from 1761–1774. The 1761 parliamentary election in County Westmeath followed the death of King George II of Great Britain. George Rochfort, the Right Honorable Lord Belfield, won the election. He was supported by The Honorable Captain Richard Rochfort, Esq. and opposed by Mr. George Rochfort and Gustavus Lambert. The election thus seems to have been very much a family affair. Mr. George Rochfort supported the "Patriots", who demanded that parliaments last only seven years before being dissolved, rather than for the lifetime of the king, as was the custom.
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