William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp (1872-1938), governor, was appointed to the position of Governor of NSW in 1899. During his two years in NSW, Beauchamp was criticised by some for his aristocratic background, but spoken of by his friend Henry Lawson as 'a fine, intelligent cultured gentleman' who 'understood and loved the bush people of Australia'. He remained in politics on his return to England, but spent his last years in exile when threatened with legal proceedings that would have exposed his homosexuality. He died in New York in 1938.
Updated 2018
