ABERDEEN, GEORGE HAMILTON GORDON, 4 Earl of (_1 son of George Gordon, styled Lord Haddo 1764–91, by Charlotte, youngest dau. of Wm. Baird of Newbyth, co. Haddington, she d. 8 Oct. 1795_). _b._ Edinburgh 28 Jany. 1784; ed. at Harrow, and St. John’s coll. Cam., M.A. 1804; succeeded his grandfather 13 Aug. 1801; visited Greece, Turkey and Russia; founded Athenian society 1804, of which no one might be a member who had not visited Athens; rep. peer Scotland 15 Dec. 1806–1 June 1814; K.T. 16 March 1808; ambassador to Vienna 29 July 1813–April 1814, when he prevailed with the Emperor to join the allied sovereigns against Napoleon by treaty of Toplitz 9 Sep. 1813; present at battles of Dresden and Leipsic; signed treaty of peace at Paris 1 June 1814; created a peer of the U.K. as Viscount Gordon of Aberdeen, co. Aberdeen 1 June 1814; P.C. 23 July 1814; took name of Hamilton before that of Gordon by royal license 13 Nov. 1818; chancellor of univ. of Aberdeen 1827; chancellor of duchy of Lancaster 26 Jan. 1828–2 June 1828; sec. of state for foreign affairs 2 June 1828–2 Nov. 1830 and 2 Sep. 1841–5 July 1846; sec. of state for the colonies 5 June 1834–18 April 1835; ranger of Greenwich park 1 Feb. 1845; lord lieut. of Aberdeenshire 23 April 1846; first lord of the treasury 28 Dec. 1852–1 Feb. 1855; an elder brother of Trinity house Nov. 1853–54; a comr. for executing office of treasurer of exchequer of Great Britain, and lord high treasurer of Ireland 6 Mch. 1854; president of Society of Antiquaries 1812–46; F.R.S. 28 April 1808, F.R.G.S. 1830, K.G. 7 Feb. 1855; visited by the Queen at Haddo house, 15 Oct. 1857; author of _Inquiry into principles of beauty in Grecian architecture_, 1822. (_m._ (1) 28 July 1805 Catherine Elizabeth, 3 dau. of John James Hamilton, 1 Marquess of Abercorn, she was _b._ 10 Jan. 1784, and _d._ 29 Feb. 1812. _m._ (2) 8 July 1815 Harriet, 2 dau. of honble. John Douglas and widow of James Hamilton, eld. son of 1 Marquess of Abercorn, she was _b._ 8 June 1792, and _d._ 26 Aug. 1833). _d._ 7 Argyll st. Regent st. London 14 Dec. 1860. _bur._ in family vault at Stanmore 21 Dec. _Correspondence of Earl of Aberdeen 1850–53_, _privately printed_ 1880; _Edinburgh Review_, _clviii_, 547–77 (1883); _Thirty years of foreign policy_ 1854; _Proc. of Royal Society of Edin. iv_, 477–83 (1862); _The British cabinet in 1853_, _pp._ 7–43, _pt._; _Jerdan’s National portrait gallery_, _vol._ 3, _pt._; _I.L.N. i_, 461 (1842), _xx_, 1, (1853) _xxxvii_, 635 (1860) _pts._; _A.R._ (1860) 376–83.