Francis Robartes FRS (c. 1649 – 3 February 1718) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1673 and 1718.

Early life

Robartes was the fourth son of

John Robartes, 1st Earl of Radnor John Robartes, 1st Earl of Radnor and Viscount Bodmin (160617 July 1685), known as The Lord Robartes (or John, Lord Roberts) between 1634 and 1679, was a Cornish politician, who fought for the Parliamentary cause during the English Civil War. ...

and his second wife Letitia Isabella Smythe (1630–1714). He was baptised at

Lanhydrock Lanhydrock ( kw, Lannhedrek, meaning "church enclosure of St Hydrock") is a civil parish centred on a country estate and mansion in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The parish lies south of the town of Bodmin and is bounded to the north by Bodmin par ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

on 6 January 1650. He was at school at Chelsea under Mr Cary and was admitted at

Christ's College, Cambridge Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 170 graduate students. The college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as ...

on 2 May 1663 aged 13. Robartes was known as a musical composer and a writer of the theory of sound. He became a Fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

in 1673.

Political career

In 1673, Robartes was elected

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 ...

for

Bossiney Bossiney ( kw, Boskyny, meaning ''Cyni's dwelling'') is a village in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is north-east of the larger village of Tintagel which it adjoins: further north-east are the Rocky Valley and Trethevy. Until 1832 t ...

in the Cavalier Parliament and sat until 1679. History of Parliament Online - Robartes, Francis
/ref> He was elected MP for

in 1679 and sat until 1681. He was elected for Cornwall again in 1685 and sat until 1687. In 1689 he was elected MP for Lostwithiel and sat until 1690 when he was re-elected for Cornwall. He was elected MP for Tregony in 1695 and sat until 1702 when he was elected MP for

Bodmin Bodmin () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated south-west of Bodmin Moor. The extent of the civil parish corresponds fairly closely to that of the town so is mostly urban in character. It is bordere ...

. He sat for Bodmin until 1708, for Lostwithiel again from 1709 to 1710 and for Bodmin from 1710 to 1718. He was a Teller of the Exchequer from 1704 to 1710.

Later life

Robartes became a vice-president of the

. He was the brother of Robert Robartes and

Hender Robartes Hender Robartes (November 1635 – 31 January 1688) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1660 to 1687. Robartes was the younger son of John Robartes, 1st Earl of Radnor and his first wife, Lucy Rich, second daughter ...

. Robartes married firstly Penelope Pole, daughter of Sir Courtenay Pole, 2nd Baronet and Urith Shapcote, but had no issue. He married secondly Lady Anne Fitzgerald, daughter of Wentworth Fitzgerald, 17th Earl of Kildare and Lady Elizabeth Holles, and widow of Hugh Boscawen of Tregothnan, and their son, John, inherited the title of 4th Earl of Radnor. Robartes died at

Chelsea, London Chelsea is an affluent area in west London, England, due south-west of Charing Cross by approximately 2.5 miles. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames and for postal purposes is part of the south-western postal area. Chelsea histori ...

, aged 68.

Ancestry

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Robartes, Francis 1649 births 1718 deaths Members of the pre-1707 English Parliament for constituencies in Cornwall Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for constituencies in Cornwall British MPs 1707–1708 British MPs 1708–1710 British MPs 1710–1713 British MPs 1713–1715 British MPs 1715–1722 Younger sons of earls Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Fellows of the Royal Society Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge People from Lanhydrock English MPs 1661–1679 English MPs 1679 English MPs 1680–1681 English MPs 1685–1687 English MPs 1689–1690 English MPs 1690–1695 English MPs 1695–1698 English MPs 1698–1700 English MPs 1701 English MPs 1701–1702 English MPs 1702–1705 English MPs 1705–1707