In 1814, Charles Palmer (1777-1851), Major General in the British army, bought a wine property from the Gascq family on which he was to leave his name. The story of Charles Palmer's acquisition of the estate relies as much on a tale of amorous intrigue as on historical truth. A gentleman, officer and aide-de-camp to the Prince de Galles, Charles Palmer was known at the English Court for his female conquests and his military victories. The Napoleonic era was drawing to a close when Palmer arrived in France in 1814 with the future Duke of Wellington. It was on a trip by stagecoach across the country that he met Marie de Gascq, a young widow looking to sell her wine property in the Médoc. Madame de Gascq did not hesitate to compare her estate to Lafite-Rothschild. By the end of the trip, persuaded as much by her arguments as by her charm, Charles Palmer had become the owner of the estate. Palmer was a passionate man and he invested a great deal of time, energy and money to develop his property. Between 1816 and 1831, he purchased land and buildings in the communes of Cantenac, Issan, and Margaux. By the 1830s, his property covered 163 hectares, 82 hectares of which were vineyards.