12 Facts About Benjamin Keene

Benjamin Keene has been described as "by far the most prominent British agent in Anglo-Spanish relations of the 18th century".

Benjamin Keene later agreed the 1739 Convention of Pardo resolving trade and boundary issues in the Caribbean, but political opposition in England meant it was never ratified, leading to the 1739 to 1748 War of Jenkins' Ear.

Benjamin Keene was appointed to the Board of Trade in 1741 and made Paymaster of Pensions in 1745; he found political life less interesting than diplomacy and in 1745 transferred to Lisbon as Ambassador to Portugal.

Benjamin Keene was born around 1697 in King's Lynn Norfolk, eldest son of Charles Keene and Susan Rolfe.

Keene was unmarried and left his estate to his brother Edmund; his nephew Benjamin was MP for Cambridge from 1774 to 1786.

Benjamin Keene graduated from Pembroke College, Cambridge in 1718 and completed his legal studies at the Dutch university of Leiden.

Benjamin Keene was acquired by the British government after going bankrupt in the 1720 'South Sea Bubble' and became a state enterprise.

Benjamin Keene negotiated the 1739 Convention of El Pardo, an attempt to prevent war between the two states; the terms were denounced by British merchants, and never ratified.

Benjamin Keene brokered the 1752 Treaty of Aranjuez between Spain, Austria and Sardinia, in which the three countries agreed to recognise each other's boundaries in Italy.

Benjamin Keene's achievements were recognised with the award of the Order of the Bath by George II, presented to him by Ferdinand at a special ceremony.

Benjamin Keene was now in poor health, but his request to be relieved was rejected since he was considered too valuable to British interests.

Benjamin Keene died in Madrid in 1757, and was replaced by George Hervey, 2nd Earl of Bristol, who did not have the same influence; Charles III of Spain succeeded Ferdinand in 1759, and in 1762 he entered the war on the side of France.