He was the son of William Henry Edgcumbe, 4th Earl of Mount Edgcumbe by his first wife, Lady Katherine Hamilton, fourth daughter of James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Abercorn and his wife, Lady Louisa Russell.

[citation needed] Educated at Oxford University and a keen horseman, he was part of the varsity polo team playing against Cambridge in 1885–1887.

[2] He was appointed a captain in the 3rd (Militia) Battalion of The Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry on 23 March 1891.

He left Cape Town for the United Kingdom in early May 1902, shortly before the end of the war.

He succeeded his father to the earldom and Mount Edgcumbe House in 1917.