Isaac Gascoyne (21 August 1763 – 26 August 1841) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

officer and Tory

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, ...

. He was born at Barking, London Essex on 21 August 1763, the third son of Bamber Gascoyne (senior) and Mary Green and was educated at

Felsted School (Keep your Faith) , established = , closed = , type = Public school Independent day and boarding , religion = Church of England , president = , head_label = Headmaster , head = Chris Townsend , r_head ...

Military career

On 8 February 1779, Gascoyne was commissioned as a

Officer, joining the 20th Regiment of Foot with the rank of Ensign. In July of the following year, still as an Ensign, he transferred to the Coldstream Guards. Gradually rising in rank, he became a

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

on 18 August 1784 and

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on 5 December 1792, and fought at the Battle of Lincelles in 1793, where he was wounded, but continued to hold various posts into the 1810s, becoming

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of the 16th Regiment of Foot on 7 June 1799, Major-General on 29 April 1802,

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

of the 7th West India Regiment on 10 October 1805, Lieutenant-General on 25 April 1808, and was Colonel of the 54th (West Norfolk) Regiment of Foot from 1 June 1816. In August 1819 he was promoted to General in charge of the 54th Foot regiment.

Political career

In 1796, Gascoyne was elected as a

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

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, succeeding his elder brother, Bamber Gascoyne. While there, he used his position to strongly oppose the abolition of the Slave Trade and the

Reform Act 1832 The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major changes to the electo ...

. He also opposed both the abolition of

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and

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. In 1811, Gascoyne received a number of petitions from

resident John Bellingham, calling for him to take up his claim for compensation from the British government for a period of imprisonment he had suffered in

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. In May 1812, Bellingham entered the lobby of the House of Commons and shot Prime Minister Spencer Perceval dead. Gascoyne was able to recognise Bellingham, providing leads in the immediate aftermath. In 1831, Gascoyne moved a motion opposing a reduction of the seats allocated to England. The Government opposed this, holding that it was necessary to address the over-representation of England. When Gascoyne's motion was carried, the Government called the 1831 general election, in an attempt to gain a clear majority for reform. Gascoyne lost his seat on 4 May after the 1831 election, and died on 26 August 1841 at 71 South Audley Street,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, from an

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in his bowels. He was buried in Kensal Green Cemetery, London.

Personal life and family

He has an extensive biographical entry in the Dictionary of National Biography. Isaac Gascoyne was the father of General Ernest Frederick Gascoyne, of Raby Hall, Liverpool (1796–1867), who is the great-great-great-grandfather of Bamber Gascoigne. His daughter Charlotte Gascoyne married on 13 October 1821

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star " admiral" rank. It is often rega ...

Hon. George Pryse Campbell (1793 – 12 January 1858), son of John Campbell of Cawdor, 1st Baron Cawdor of Castlemartin, and Lady Isabella Caroline Howard.

Notes and references

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gascoyne, Isaac 1763 births 1841 deaths British Army lieutenant generals British Army personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Liverpool British MPs 1796–1800 Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Liverpool UK MPs 1801–1802 UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 Ultra-Tory MPs Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery Lancashire Fusiliers officers Coldstream Guards officers