Fletcher Norton, 1st Baron Grantley, PC (23 June 1716 – 1 January 1789) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

lawyer and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

from 1756 to 1782 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Grantley.

Life

Norton was the eldest son of Thomas Norton of Grantley, Yorkshire. He was educated at St John's College, Cambridge and the Middle Temple, being called to the bar in 1739. After a period of inactivity, he built up a profitable practice, becoming a King's Counsel in 1754, and later attorney-general for the county palatine of Lancaster. With his father he ordered the building in the mid-1700s of

Grantley Hall Grantley Hall is a Country house located in North Yorkshire, England. It is situated near Grantley, about to the west of Ripon, on the banks of the River Skell. It is listed Grade II* on the National Heritage List for England, and the Japanese ...

, near Ripon in North Yorkshire. In 1756 Norton 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 o ...

for Appleby; he represented

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the north-east and Warrington t ...

from 1761 to 1768, and was appointed solicitor-general for England and knighted in 1762. He took part in the proceedings against

John Wilkes John Wilkes (17 October 1725 – 26 December 1797) was an English radical journalist and politician, as well as a magistrate, essayist and soldier. He was first elected a Member of Parliament in 1757. In the Middlesex election dispute, he f ...

, and, having become

Attorney General for England and Wales His Majesty's Attorney General for England and Wales is one of the law officers of the Crown and the principal legal adviser to sovereign and Government in affairs pertaining to England and Wales. The attorney general maintains the Attorney G ...

in 1763, prosecuted

William Byron, 5th Baron Byron William Byron, 5th Baron Byron (5 November 1722 – 19 May 1798), was a British nobleman, peer, politician, and great-uncle of the poet George Gordon Byron who succeeded him in the title. As a result of a number of stories that arose after a d ...

, for the murder of

William Chaworth William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

. However, he lost his office when the Marquess of Rockingham came to power in July 1765. In 1769, as MP for Guildford, Norton became a privy councillor and chief Justice in Eyre of the forests south of the Trent, and in 1770 was elected

Speaker of the House of Commons Speaker of the House of Commons is a political leadership position found in countries that have a House of Commons, where the membership of the body elects a speaker to lead its proceedings. Systems that have such a position include: * Speaker of ...

. In 1777, when presenting the bill for the increase of the civil list to the king, he told

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

that "parliament has not only granted to your majesty a large present supply, but also a very great additional revenue; great beyond example; great beyond your majesty's highest expense." This speech aroused general attention and caused some irritation; but the Speaker was supported by

Charles James Fox Charles James Fox (24 January 1749 – 13 September 1806), styled ''The Honourable'' from 1762, was a prominent British Whig statesman whose parliamentary career spanned 38 years of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was the arch-riv ...

and by the city of London, and received the thanks of the House of Commons. The king did not forget these plain words, and after the general election of 1780, the prime minister,

Lord North Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford (13 April 17325 August 1792), better known by his courtesy title Lord North, which he used from 1752 to 1790, was 12th Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1770 to 1782. He led Great Britain through most o ...

, and his followers declined to support the re-election of the retiring Speaker, alleging that his health was not equal to the duties of the office, and he was defeated when the voting took place. In 1782 he was made a peer as Baron Grantley of Markenfield in the

County of York Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

. He was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemat ...

in 1776. He died in 1789 at his London home in Lincoln's Inn Fields and was buried at Wonersh, Surrey. In 1741 he had married Grace, the daughter and heiress of Sir William Chapple, Justice of the King's Bench, 1737–1745. They had 5 sons and 2 daughters. He was succeeded as Baron Grantley by his eldest son William (1742–1822).

Nathaniel William Wraxall Sir Nathaniel William Wraxall, 1st Baronet (8 April 1751 – 7 November 1831) was an English author and politician. Life He was born in Queen Square, Bristol, the son of a Bristol merchant, Nathaniel Wraxall, and his wife Anne, great-niece of ...

described Norton as a bold, able and eloquent, but not a popular pleader, and as Speaker he was aggressive and indiscreet. Derided by satirists as "Sir Bullface Doublefee," and described by Horace Walpole as one who rose from obscure infamy to that infamous fame which will long stick to him, his character was also assailed by " Junius".

Family

Grantley married Grace Chapple, daughter and heir of Sir William Chapple, Justice of the King's bench, on 21 May 1741. They had four sons and a daughter: *

William Norton, 2nd Baron Grantley William Norton, 2nd Baron Grantley (19 February 1742 – 12 November 1822) was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1768 to 1789 when he succeeded to the peerage as Baron Grantley. Norton was the son of Fletcher Norton, 1st ...

(1742–1822) *Hon.

Fletcher Norton Fletcher Norton, 1st Baron Grantley, PC (23 June 1716 – 1 January 1789) was an English lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1756 to 1782 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Grantley. Life Norton was the eldest s ...

MP FRSE (1744–1820); father of Hon.

Charles Francis Norton Charles Francis Norton (1807 – 1835) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament for Guildford (UK Parliament constituency), Guildford. Norton was also a Captain of 52nd (Oxfordshire) Regiment of Foot, 52nd Light Infantry. Through his wife Maria L ...

and Hon.

George Chapple Norton George Chapple Norton (31 August 1800 – 24 February 1875) was a Tory Member of Parliament for Guildford from 1826 to 1830. He was educated at Winchester College. He died on 24 February 1875 at Wonersh. Family He was born in Wakefield the son ...

*Hon.

Chapple Norton General Hon. John Chapple Norton (2 April 1746 – 19 March 1818) was a British Army officer who served in the American Revolutionary War and who later became a Member of Parliament for Guildford. Early life John Chapple Norton was born on ...

(1746–1818) *Hon.

Edward Norton Edward Harrison Norton (born August 18, 1969) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has received numerous awards and nominations, including a Golden Globe Award and three Academy Award nominations. Born in Boston, Massachusetts and raised ...

(1750–1786) *Hon. Grace Norton (1752–1813), married

John Wallop, 3rd Earl of Portsmouth John Charles Wallop, 3rd Earl of Portsmouth (18 December 1767 – 14 July 1853), styled Viscount Lymington until 1797, was a British nobleman and lunatic. The Earl was known from an early age to have an unsound mind, and his estate was placed und ...

Arms

References

*Horace Walpole, ''Memoirs of the Reign of George III.'', edited by G. F. R. Barker (1894); *Sir N. W. Wraxall, ''Historical and Posthumous Memoirs'', edited by H. B. Wheatley (1884); *J. A. Manning, ''Lives of the Speakers'' (1850); *Hammond Innes, ''The Last Voyage: Captain Cook's Lost Diary'', (N.Y.: Knopf, 1978). Attribution: * {{DEFAULTSORT:Grantley, Fletcher Norton, 1st Baron 1716 births 1789 deaths People from the Borough of Harrogate Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Members of the Middle Temple Attorneys General for England and Wales Peers of Great Britain created by George III Knights Bachelor Solicitors General for England and Wales Norton, Fletcher Norton, Fletcher Norton, Fletcher Norton, Fletcher Norton, Fletcher Norton, Fletcher Norton, Fletcher Politics of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan Fellows of the Royal Society Fletcher 1

Life

Family

Arms

See also

References