George Ponsonby (5 March 17558 July 1817), was a British lawyer and Whig politician. He served as

Lord Chancellor of Ireland The Lord High Chancellor of Ireland (commonly known as Lord Chancellor of Ireland) was the highest judicial office in Ireland until the establishment of the Irish Free State in 1922. From 1721 to 1801, it was also the highest political office of ...

from 1806 to 1807 in the Ministry of All the Talents.

Background and education

Ponsonby was the second surviving son of the Honourable John Ponsonby, speaker of the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fr ...

(1756–71), and his wife, Lady Elizabeth Cavendish (1723–1796), daughter of William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire. He was educated at Kilkenny College and at Trinity College, Cambridge.

Legal and political career

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and g ...

, Ponsonby became a member of the Irish Parliament in 1776. He sat for Wicklow Borough between 1778 and 1783 and subsequently for

Inistioge Inistioge (; ) is a small village in County Kilkenny, Ireland. Historically, its name has been spelt as Ennistioge, Ennisteage, and in other ways. The village is situated on the River Nore, southeast of Kilkenny. Situated along the River N ...

between 1783 and 1797. From 1798 until the Act of Union in 1801, he represented

Galway Borough Galway Borough was a United Kingdom Parliament constituency in Ireland. It returned one MP from 1801 to 1832, two MPs from 1832 to 1885 and one MP from 1885 to 1918. It was an original constituency represented in Parliament when the Union of Gr ...

. Ponsonby was Chancellor of the Irish Exchequer in 1782, afterwards taking a prominent part in the debates on the question of Roman Catholic relief, and leading the opposition to the union of the parliaments. After 1801 Ponsonby represented Wicklow and then Tavistock in the Parliament of the United Kingdom; in 1806 to 1807 he was

, and from 1808 to 1817 he was the recognised leader of the opposition in the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 ...

. Ponsonby had been selected as the first recognised leader of the opposition, rather than leader of an opposition, when the two leading Whig peers Lord Grenville and Earl Grey, proposed him to Whig MPs. Ponsonby was described by Foorde as "a little-known mediocrity who was related to Lady Grey". He proved to be a weak leader, but was unwilling to resign and so retained the leadership of the party in the House of Commons until his death. He was succeeded as party leader by George Tierney.

Personal life

In Dublin, he was a member of

Daly's Club Daly's Club, with premises known as Daly's Club House, was a gentlemen's club in Dublin, Ireland, a centre of social and political life between its origins in about 1750 and its end in 1823. History Daly's had its origins in a Chocolate House ...

.T. H. S. Escott, ''Club Makers and Club Members'' (1913)
pp. 329–333
/ref> He married Lady Mary Butler, the daughter of Brinsley Butler, 2nd Earl of Lanesborough and his wife Lady Jane Rochfort. He left an only daughter, Elizabeth, when he died in London on 8 July 1817, who went on to marry Francis Aldborough Prittie, MP, by whom she had six children.

References

* ''Parliamentary Election Results in Ireland, 1801–1922'', edited by B. M. Walker (Royal Irish Academy 1978) * ''His Majesty's Opposition 1714–1830'', by Archibald S. Foorde (Oxford University Press 1964)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ponsonby, George 1755 births 1817 deaths People educated at Kilkenny College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Irish MPs 1776–1783 Irish MPs 1783–1790 Irish MPs 1790–1797 Irish MPs 1798–1800 Lord chancellors of Ireland Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for County Wicklow constituencies (1801–1922) Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Tavistock George Ponsonby UK MPs 1801–1802 UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 Whig (British political party) MPs for Irish constituencies Whig (British political party) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Wicklow constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Kilkenny constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Galway constituencies