James Kennedy (1798–1859) was a British
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 ...
.
Kennedy was elected as a
Radical
Radical may refer to:
Politics and ideology Politics
*Radical politics, the political intent of fundamental societal change
*Radicalism (historical), the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and ...
MP for the Constituency of
Tiverton, Devon
Tiverton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Devon, England, and the commercial and administrative centre of the Mid Devon district. The population in 2019 was 20,587.
History Early history
The town's name is conjectured to derive from "Twy-fo ...
at the General Election of 1832.
Kennedy's election was challenged by the Whigs, who petitioned that his nomination at the time had not been strictly legal, due to the property requirements. The petition led to his election being declared void, and his having to fight a further by-election in May 1833, which he won against the Whig contender
Benjamin Wood, who had been the third placed candidate in the 1832 General Election.
After fighting again to retain his seat at the General Election in February 1835, Kennedy left Parliament in July, "Taking the Chiltern Hundreds" and retiring conveniently at a time when
Viscount Palmerston
Viscount Palmerston was a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 12 March 1723 for Henry Temple, who subsequently represented East Grinstead, Bossiney and Weobley in the British House of Commons. He was made Baron Temple, of Mount T ...
found himself without a seat in Parliament and forcing a by-election which Palmerston won comfortably. In Palmerston's Biography by K. Bourne it is reported that "The impecunious Kennedy" was paid £2000 for vacating the seat.
Kennedy was then appointed (by Palmerston) as a judge to the joint British and Spanish Mixed Court of Justice in
Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. Slavery in Diplomacy: The Foreign Office and the Suppression of the Transatlantic Slave Trade by FCDO Historians – Issuu
/ref> in post from 1837 to 1839.
References
External links
* http://electionhub.co.uk/uk/1832/const/tiverton
* https://issuu.com/fcohistorians/docs/history_notes_cover_hphn_17
* http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1820-1832/constituencies/tiverton
1798 births
1859 deaths
Radicals (UK)
Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies
UK MPs 1832–1835
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