Jacob Wilkinson (c. 1722-1799) was an English businessman who served as an MP and as a director of the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

Career

According to Sir

Lewis Namier Sir Lewis Bernstein Namier (; 27 June 1888 – 19 August 1960) was a British historian of Polish-Jewish background. His best-known works were ''The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III'' (1929), ''England in the Age of the Ameri ...

, he was a

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

from

Berwick-upon-Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...

who became rich as a businessman and banker in

London London is the capital and 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 down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. By 1757 he was appearing in commercial directories and by 1759 was a substantial investor in government stock. At some point he also acquired lands and slaves in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

, at his death holding the estate of Hoghole in the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

of St Thomas-in-the-Vale on

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

and another estate on

Tobago Tobago () is an List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, island and Regions and municipalities of Trinidad and Tobago, ward within the Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located northeast of the larger island of Trini ...

. He retained links with his birthplace, where in 1765 he was mentioned as a political opponent of

Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of Northumberland Hugh Percy, 1st Duke of Northumberland, (c. 17146 June 1786), was an English peer, landowner, and art patron. Origins He was born Hugh Smithson, the son of Lansdale Smithson (b. 1682) of Langdale and Philadelphia Revely. He was a grandson of ...

's supporters and in the

general election of 1774 The 1774 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 14th Parliament of Great Britain to be held, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. Lord North's government ...

came top of the poll, becoming MP for

in the

Parliament of Great Britain The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in May 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. The Acts ratified the treaty of Union which created a new unified Kingdo ...

. He did not stand again in the 1780 general election, but in 1781 won a seat at

Honiton Honiton ( or ) is a market town and civil parish in East Devon, situated close to the River Otter, north east of Exeter in the county of Devon. Honiton has a population estimated at 11,822 (based on mid-year estimates for the two Honiton Ward ...

. While sitting, he also sought election as a director of the East India Company, which he achieved in 1782. However, when the government in 1783 proposed greater parliamentary control over the activities of the Company, Wilkinson resigned his directorship. He did not stand again in the general election of 1784, so ending his political career. He died at his home in Bedford Row,

Holborn Holborn ( or ) is a district in central London, which covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part ( St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Ward of Farringdon Without in the City of London. The area has its roots ...

, on 24 June 1799. He was buried at St Mary's churchyard in Watford, Hertfordshire. The inscription reads, "Here lie the Remains of JACOB WILKINSON Esq Late of Grove Mill in this Parish, and an Old and Respectable Merchant of the City of London. He departed this life... on the 24th June 1799, Aged 76 Years..." (''History of Hertfordshire'', Vol 3 - Cussans, 1881)

Family

With his wife Ann, who survived him, he had ten children between 1761 and 1779. In his will, made on 10 August 1798 and proved on 18 July 1799, he appointed as his executors two of his sons, Thomas Wilkinson (1762-) and Daniel Wier Wilkinson (1778-1800), together with John Bourdieu (1763-1825), husband of his deceased daughter Ann (1766-1798). In addition to generous legacies to all these, he left large sums to his third surviving son Hugh Wilkinson (1779-) and to his three surviving daughters, Mary Ann Wilkinson (1764-), Elizabeth Wilkinson (abt 1768-) and Fanny Wilkinson (1776-1812).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkinson, Jacob 1710s births 1799 deaths Year of birth uncertain People from Holborn British MPs 1774–1780 British MPs 1780–1784 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Honiton Directors of the British East India Company