After being educated in Germany he studied at the Queen's College in Oxford University from 1818, though he left before obtaining a degree.
He then joined the army, serving in Ireland as part of the 3rd Dragoon Guards, where he rose to the rank of captain.
In 1832 he attempted to run for office as the member of parliament for Montrose Burghs, but was defeated by Horatio Ross.
In 1842 he was forced to resign due to ill-health, having an unidentified disease at the base of his spine, becoming the first Member of Parliament to be appointed as Steward of the Manor of Northstead.
His health returned in later years, with some suggesting that he run for re-election in the next general election, but on a journey with some young relatives on a continental tour in 1854 he was struck by smallpox, immediately followed by a second bout of the spinal disease that had forced him to resign.