Ashley, born in
1836, was private secretary to
Prime Minister Lord Palmerston from
1858 until
Palmerston's death in
1865. Enclosed in
this despatch is a document addressed from Ashley to the Colonial Office forwarding a memorial
from the Mayor and Council of the City of Victoria offering the
Queen congratulations on the birth of the Prince and Princess of Wales' son.
During his time as
Palmerston's private secretary, Ashley accompanied British diplomat Laurence Oliphant on an
expedition to Volhynia, Russia, where they were arrested on suspicions that they were
Polish insurgents. In
1865, he was decorated commander of the Danish order of the Dannebrog. Following
Palmerston's death, Ashley embraced his office as treasurer of county courts, and was elected
as a Liberal for Poole, Dorset, in
1874. In the
1880 general election, he was appointed parliamentary secretary to the Board of Trade,
in Prime Minister William Gladstone's administration; and in
1882 he transferred to the Colonial Office where he represented the Secretary of State,
Lord Derby, in the House of Commons. Ashley died on
15 November 1907 at Broadlands.