Sir Henry Ford (January 1617Vivian, p.350 – 1684), of

Nutwell Nutwell in the parish of Woodbury, East Devon, Woodbury on the south coast of Devon is a historic Manorialism, manor and the site of a Georgian neo-classical Listed building, Grade II* listed mansion house known as Nutwell Court. The house is s ...

in Devon was four times MP for Tiverton between 1664 and 1685 and twice Secretary to the

Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the Kingdo ...

, 1669–70 and 1672–73.

Origins

Ford was the eldest son of Henry Ford (d.1616) of

Bagtor Bagtor is an historic estate in the parish of Ilsington in Devon, England. It was the birthplace of John Ford (1586-c.1639) the playwright and poet. The Elizabethan mansion of the Ford family survives today at Bagtor as the service wing of a la ...

in the parish of

Ilsington Ilsington is a village and civil parish situated on the eastern edge of Dartmoor, Devon, England. It is one of the largest parishes in the county, and includes the villages of Ilsington, Haytor Vale, Liverton and South Knighton. The parish is s ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

by his wife Katharine Drake, daughter and sole heiress of George Drake of Spratshays in Littleham, Devon. His grandfather was Thomas Ford (1556–1610) of Bagtor in the parish of

, by his wife Elizabeth Popham (d.1629) of the

Popham family Popham may refer to: People Places * Popham, Hampshire, a small hamlet in the southern United Kingdom * The Popham Colony, a short-lived English colonial settlement in North America * Fort Popham Fort Popham is a Civil War-era coastal defens ...

Huntworth Huntworth is a small hamlet and farming community (population approximately 50), within the civil parish of North Petherton east of the M5 motorway from Bridgwater, Somerset, England. Huntworth was in the news on 5/12/19 as it was the epicent ...

in Somerset. Her monument exists in Ilsington Church. Thomas Ford's grandfather was John Ford (d.1538) of Ashburton (the son and heir of William Ford of

Chagford Chagford is a market town and civil parish on the north-east edge of Dartmoor, in Devon, England, close to the River Teign and the A382, 4 miles (6 km) west of Moretonhampstead. The name is derived from ''chag'', meaning gorse or broom, and ...

,) who purchased the estate of Bagtor in the parish of

, which his male heirs successively made their seat. The Elizabethan mansion of the Fords survives today at Bagtor as the service wing of a later house appended in about 1700. Sir Henry Ford was a nephew of the dramatist

John Ford John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...

(1586-c.1639)

Early life

Henry Ford was born in January 1617 and was baptised at Littleham on 19 January 1617, four months after his father's death in September 1616. His mother remarried five years later in 1621 to John Clobery. Henry matriculated at

Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England and the fourth-oldest college of the un ...

on 21 November 1634 aged 17, 'Alumni Oxonienses, 1500–1714: Flooke-Fyrmin', Alumni Oxonienses 1500–1714 (1891), pp. 510–541. Date accessed: 23 June 2012
/ref> and went home to look after his inheritance.

Parliamentary career

In April 1660 Ford 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

Lostwithiel Lostwithiel (; kw, Lostwydhyel) is a civil parish and small town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom at the head of the estuary of the River Fowey. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,739, increasing to 2,899 at the 2011 c ...

in the Convention Parliament, but his election was declared void on 5 May. He purchased Nutwell Court, in

Woodbury Woodbury may refer to: Geography Antarctica *Woodbury Glacier, a glacier on Graham Land, British Antarctic Territory Australia * Woodbury, Tasmania, a locality in Australia England * Woodbury, Bournemouth, an area in Dorset *Woodbury, East Devo ...

, near

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

, which he made his home. He was put in the Commission of the Peace for the county, and was lieutenant-colonel in the militia for the eastern division of the shire, of which he was likewise a deputy-lieutenant. 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 science, natural knowledge, incl ...

in 1663 On 6 April 1664 he was elected MP for Tiverton in a by-election to the

Cavalier Parliament The Cavalier Parliament of England lasted from 8 May 1661 until 24 January 1679. It was the longest English Parliament, and longer than any Great British or UK Parliament to date, enduring for nearly 18 years of the quarter-century reign of C ...

. History of Parliament Online – Ford, Henry
/ref> In 1669 he accompanied John, lord Robartes, the lord-lieutenant, to Ireland as secretary of state, but 'to his no little damage and disappointment' was recalled along with his chief the very next year. In 1672 Ford, having been knighted at Whitehall on 20 July in that year, served in the same capacity for

Arthur Capel, 1st Earl of Essex Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex, PC (163113 July 1683), also spelt Capel, of Cassiobury House, Watford, Hertfordshire, was an English statesman. Early life He was the son of Arthur Capell, 1st Baron Capell of Hadham (executed in 1649) ...

. He did not, however, continue in office long, 'for being sent into England on some important affair, contrived by those who were willing to put him out of the way, he returned no more unto Ireland'. The fact was that his brusque, overbearing manner made him everywhere disliked. He was re-elected MP for Tiverton in the two elections of 1679 and in 1681. Ford died in 1684, aged 65, at Nutwell Court, and was buried in Woodbury Church.

Family

Ford left a son Charles, supposed to have died in his minority, and three daughters, married to Drake, Holwell, and Egerton.(Lysons, Magna Britannia, vol. vi. pt: ii. p. 571)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Henry 1619 births 1684 deaths Fellows of Exeter College, Oxford English knights Year of birth uncertain Fellows of the Royal Society English MPs 1661–1679 English MPs 1679 English MPs 1680–1681 English MPs 1681 Chief Secretaries for Ireland