different value to the
parentage of royalty, even when associated with dishonour. The marriage
of Sir Francis Radcliffe to the daughter of Mary Davis was that event
which procured his elevation to the peerage; and this alliance, was
considered as elevating the dignity of an ancient house.[399] The
closest ties of friendship united the Stuarts and the Radcliffes, even
from their earliest infancy. Educated, as well as his elder brother,
James, chiefly at St. Germains, and with the Chevalier James Stuart, and
brought up in the Roman Catholic faith, Charles Radcliffe, owing to the
natural ardour of his disposition, imbibed much more readily than his
brother the strong party views which characterized the Jacobites as a
body.

In James, Earl of Derwentwater, the convictions of his faith, grounded
as they are upon the belief of those great truths common to all
Christians, worked healthfully; expanding the benevolence of his heart,
teaching him mercy, moderation, and forbearance. On Charles, impetuous,
zealous, stronger in intellect than his brother, but devoid of prudence,
the same mode of culture, the same precepts acted differently. He
became, even in early life, violent in his opinions, until the horror of
what he deemed error, amounted to bigotry. Henceforth his destiny was
swayed by those fierce resentments towards the opposite party by which
not only his brother, but even the Chevalier himself, seem to have been
so rarely actuated; a remarkable degree of moderation and candour
raising the character of James Stuart, whilst Lord Derwentwater was the
gentlest of opponents, the most honourable of foes.

In early life Charles Radcliffe appears to have been chiefly dependent
upon his brother's kindness and bounty; whilst his pursuits and
inclinations, characterized in a letter by Lord Derwentwater as his
"pleasures," were of an expensive description. But it was not long
before other causes of concern besides want of money, or a love of
dissipation began to disquiet those who were interested in the welfare
of the Radcliffe family. About the year 1710, the young Earl of
Derwentwater returned from the continent to his patrimonial property at
Dilstone, in Northumberland, accompanied by his brother Francis, and by
Charles who either frequently visited him, or wholly resided with him at
his seat. During this period of the life of Charles Radcliffe, an
insight into the general state of the family is afforded by several
letters, add