George Townshend, 1st Marquess Townshend

The Marquess Townshend
Lord Townshend
Born	28 February 1724 London, United Kingdom
Died	14 September 1807 (aged 83) Raynham Hall, Norfolk
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1743–1796
Rank	Field Marshal
Battles/wars	War of the Austrian Succession Jacobite Rising Seven Years' War

Field Marshal George Townshend, 1st Marquess Townshend, PC (28 February 1724 – 14 September 1807), known as The Viscount Townshend from 1764 to 1787, was a British soldier and politician. After serving at the Battle of Dettingen during the War of the Austrian Succession and the Battle of Culloden during the Jacobite Rising, Townshend took command of the British forces for the closing stages of the Battle of the Plains of Abraham during the Seven Years' War. He went on to be Lord Lieutenant of Ireland or Viceroy where he introduced measures aimed at increasing the size of Irish regiments, reducing corruption in Ireland and improving the Irish economy. In cooperation with Prime Minister North in London he imposed much greater British control over Ireland. He also served as Master-General of the Ordnance, first in the North Ministry and then in the Fox–North Coalition.

Born the son of Charles Townshend, 3rd Viscount Townshend and Audrey Ethelreda Townshend (née Harrison), Townshend was educated at Eton College and St John's College, Cambridge. He joined the army as a volunteer in Summer 1743 and first saw action at the Battle of Dettingen in June 1743 during the War of the Austrian Succession. He became a captain in the 7th Regiment of Dragoons in April 1745 and saw action in the Netherlands. He fought at the Battle of Culloden in April 1746 during the Jacobite Rising, and having been appointed an aide-de-Camp to the Duke of Cumberland and having transferred to the 20th Regiment of Foot in February 1747, he took part in the Battle of Lauffeld in July 1747 during the later stages of the War of the Austrian Succession.