McCauley Wycliff
Member
Lavington estate- one of the posh estates in Nairobi, has over the years garnered a reputation for lavish and luxurious houses as well as a great lush environment.
The estate boasts mansions whose cost average Ksh66.7 million while an acre of land sells at Ksh236 million according to the 2020 report by HassConsult.
However, little is known about the British leader who was immortalised after the estate was named after him.
Ralph Payne, a British MP who rose to high status as the first Baron Lavington in the 1700s, ultimately died broke at his house.
Undated file image of Former UK Prime Minister William Pitt
Undated file image of Former UK Prime Minister William PittFILE
Early Life
Payne was born in 1738 on St Kitts, England. He came from a wealthy family whose origin dated back to Lavington in Wiltshire, England.
Payne was educated in England at Christ's Hospital school in Sussex. After finishing school he returned back to St Kitts to pursue a political career.
Political life
He first rose to political status by clinching the seat of the Speaker in the Assembly of the Leeward Islands. Soon after, he returned to England and became an MP for Shaftesbury from 1768 to 1771.
In 1771, he was accoladed as the Knight of the Order of the Bath and Governor in Chief of the Leewards Islands. Payne served in the position until 1775 when he resigned due to health reasons.
Further, during the reign of Prime Minister William Pitt, Payne endeared himself to the ruler who created the position of Baron Lavington which he bestowed upon him in 1795.
Personal Life
Payne married Frances Christiana Kolbel, the daughter of a German nobleman, Baron Kolbel of Saxony.
Reports indicate that his wife was well connected in high social circles such as Queen Charlotte's (wife of King George III) inner circle - an influence which Payne used immensely to gain political advantage throughout his tenure.
The politician owned Carlisle's estate in the Leeward Islands, which was an inheritance from his grandmother, and enslaved over 300 men to work on his farm.
Despite amassing all the wealth, Payne died poor on August 3, 1807, inside his government house in Leeward Islands. Reports revealed that the politician endured difficult economic times during the years leading to his death.
Past reports indicate that at the time of his demise, his wife was left to survive on a government stipend of Ksh39,000- considered to be an extremely low amount for the widow of an influential politician.
In order to honour Lord Lavington's career, a marble monument was erected in the parish church of St John's in Antigua.
His wife later died at Hampton Court Palace on May 2, 1830, in London