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‘In the Sincerest Intentions of Studying’: The Educational Legacy of Thomas Weld (1750–1810), Founder of Stonyhurst College

Thomas Weld (1750–1810), of Lulworth in Dorset, is remembered today principally on three counts: his rôle as the founder of Stonyhurst College in 1794; his benefactions to religious orders at the height of the French revolution as they fled from political upheaval and danger in continental Europe; and his friendship with George III, including his hosting of several visits of the king to Lulworth Castle in the 1790s. Weld’s munificence in making available his Lancashire seat, Stonyhurst, to the English ex-Jesuit ‘Gentlemen of Liège’ has received attention from historians. In contrast, his own education as a young man, at the hands of the English and French Jesuits in continental Europe, has hitherto received little more than passing notice.