Born in Derbyshire, he served as Gentleman Usher to George III and was granted a baronetcy.

FitzHerbert also owned a number of slave plantations in the British colony of Jamaica which he inherited via his marriage with Jamaican heiress Sarah Perrin.

After leaving Paris they visited the major cities of Italy, including Rome and Florence, where Fitzherbert commissioned portraits of himself and his companion from Thomas Patch and Pompeo Batoni respectively.

On his death in 1791 he was buried at Tissington and was succeeded by Anthony Perrin Fitzherbert his son with Sarah, his wife.

[8] William's younger brother Alleyne FitzHerbert was a diplomat who became Baron St Helens in 1791.