Bennet Sherard, 1st Earl of Harborough (9 October 1677 – 16 October 1732) (created Viscount Sherard in 1718, and

Earl of Harborough The Earldom of Harborough was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain created in 1719 for Bennet Sherard, who had previously been made Baron Harborough (1714) and Viscount Sherard, with the viscountcy ending with the death of its original hol ...

in 1719) was a British peer and

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

Early life

Born on 9 October 1677, he was the second, but only surviving, son and heir of the former Elizabeth Christopher and

Bennet Sherard, 2nd Baron Sherard Bennet Sherard, 2nd Baron Sherard DL (''baptised'' 30 November 1621 – 15 January 1700) was a British politician and Irish peer. An influential landowner in Leicestershire and Rutland, he was returned to Parliament by the former county from 16 ...

, an MP for

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...

who served as

Lord Lieutenant of Rutland The ancient position of Lord-Lieutenant of Rutland was abolished on 31 March 1974. Between 1 April 1974 and its reestablishment on 8 April 1997 Rutland came under the Lord Lieutenant of Leicestershire. Since 1690, all lord-lieutenants have also b ...

. His sister, Hon. Lucy Sherard, married

John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland KG (18 September 1676 – 22 February 1721), styled Lord Roos from 1679 to 1703 and Marquess of Granby from 1703 to 1711, was a British Whig politician sat in the English and British House of Commons from 1 ...

. His mother was the daughter and co-heiress of Sir Robert Christopher of Alford. His paternal grandfather was

William Sherard, 1st Baron Sherard William Sherard, 1st Baron Sherard of Leitrim (1 August 1588 – 16 April 1640) was an English official who was created Baron Sherard in the peerage of Ireland by King Charles I in 1627. Early life Sherard was born on 1 August 1588 in Stapleford, ...

, a member of the Honourable Band of Gentlemen Pensioners under King

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

. Through his sister, he was uncle to

Lord Sherard Manners Lord Sherard Manners ( – 13 January 1742) was an English nobleman and Member of Parliament. Early life Lord Sherard was born around 1713. He was the eldest son of John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland and, his second wife, Lady Lucy Sherard. Fro ...

, MP for Tavistock, Lady Caroline Manners (wife of

Sir Henry Harpur, 5th Baronet Sir Henry Harpur, 5th Baronet (24 June 1708 – 7 June 1748) was an English baronet and politician. He was the oldest son of Sir John Harpur, 4th Baronet, of Calke Abbey, and his wife Catherine, daughter of Thomas Crew, 2nd Baron Crew. He was ...

and, secondly, Sir Robert Burdett, 4th Baronet), Lady Lucy Manners (wife of

William Graham, 2nd Duke of Montrose William Graham, 2nd Duke of Montrose by Pietro Longhi William Graham, 2nd Duke of Montrose (27 August 1712 – 23 September 1790) was the son of James Graham, 1st Duke of Montrose, and his wife, Christian Carnegie. He married Lady Lucy Manner ...

), Lord Robert Manners, and Lord Charles Manners, among others. Through his uncle Hon. Philip Sherard, also an MP for Rutland, he was a first cousin of Bennet Sherard and Margaret Sherard, the wife of

The Most Rev. The Most Reverend is a style applied to certain religious figures, primarily within the historic denominations of Christianity, but occasionally in some more modern traditions also. It is a variant of the more common style "The Reverend". Anglic ...

John Gilbert,

Archbishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers th ...

Career

In 1700, he succeeded his father Bennet as

Baron Sherard Lord Sherard, Baron of Leitrim, was a title in the Peerage of Ireland in 1627. The third holder of the barony would also be named Baron Harborough (1714), Viscount Sherard (1718), and Earl of Harborough (1719), with the viscountcy ending with t ...

, of Leitrim, and shortly thereafter as

, and was made deputy lieutenant of

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-we ...

the same year. He held these offices until his dismissal in 1712. From 1701 to 1702, he was MP for

, and was returned for Rutland in 1713. He held that seat until 19 October 1714, when he was created Baron Sherard, of Harborough, in the

Peerage of Great Britain The Peerage of Great Britain comprises all extant peerages created in the Kingdom of Great Britain between the Acts of Union 1707 and the Acts of Union 1800. It replaced the Peerage of England and the Peerage of Scotland, but was itself r ...

, and entered the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...

. In 1715, he was reappointed to the Lord-Lieutenancy of Rutland, which he held until his death. He was created Viscount Sherard on 31 October 1718 and Earl of Harborough on 8 May 1719.

Personal life

On 30 April 1696, Sherard was married to Mary Calverley (d. 1702), the daughter and co-heiress of Sir Henry Calverley of

Eryholme Eryholme is a village and civil parish in the district of Richmondshire in North Yorkshire, England. As the population remained less than 100 in the 2011 census, information is included with that of Dalton-on-Tees. The village is situated on t ...

and the former Mary Thompson (a daughter of Sir Henry Thompson of

Escrick Escrick is a village and civil parish in the Selby District of North Yorkshire, England. It was historically part of the East Riding of Yorkshire until 1974. It is approximately equidistant between Selby and York on what is now the A19 road. Hi ...

). He was succeeded by his cousin Philip as Earl of Harborough, Baron Sherard (in Great Britain and in Ireland), and as Lord-Lieutenant; the Viscountcy of Sherard became extinct upon his death.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Harborough, Bennet Sherard, 1st Earl of 1677 births 1732 deaths Bennet Sherard, Bennet Sherard, 3rd Baron Deputy Lieutenants of Lincolnshire Earls in the Peerage of Great Britain Lord-Lieutenants of Rutland Sherard, Bennet Sherard, 3rd Baron Sherard, Bennet Sherard, 3rd Baron English MPs 1701–1702