John Hardres (2 October 1675 – 14 January 1758) of St Georges, Canterbury was an English politician who sat in the

House of Commons of England The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England (which incorporated Wales) from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of ...

and then the

House of Commons of Great Britain The House of Commons of Great Britain was the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain between 1707 and 1801. In 1707, as a result of the Acts of Union of that year, it replaced the House of Commons of England and the third estate of th ...

in two periods between 1705 and 1722. Hardres was the son of Thomas Hardres of Canterbury. He was educated at

Wadham College, Oxford Wadham College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It is located in the centre of Oxford, at the intersection of Broad Street and Parks Road. Wadham College was founded in 1610 by Dorothy W ...

. Hardres 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 ...

(MP) for

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

in 1705 and sat to 1708. He was elected again in 1710 and held the seat until 1722. In 1711, Hardres required an Act of Parliament in order to "sell certain Lands, in the County of Kent, and for settling of others to the Uses therein mentioned". Hardres' political views were considered ambiguous. He voted against the government, except on the

Peerage Bill {{short description, Proposed British law of 1719 The Peerage Bill was a 1719 measure proposed by the British Whig government led by James Stanhope, 1st Earl Stanhope and Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland which would have largely halted the ...

which he supported and received money through

Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland, KG, PC (23 April 167519 April 1722), known as Lord Spencer from 1688 to 1702, was an English statesman and nobleman from the Spencer family. He served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (1714–1717), Lord ...

from the King's bounty in 1721. He also appeared to be a Jacobite, and his name was among those sent to the Pretender in 1721 as a likely supporter in the event of a rising. However, he retired in 1722 before he had to declare his views. Hardres died aged 82, leaving 2 surviving daughters.

References

1675 births 1758 deaths People from Canterbury Alumni of Wadham College, Oxford English MPs 1705–1707 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies British MPs 1707–1708 British MPs 1710–1713 British MPs 1713–1715 British MPs 1715–1722 {{England-GreatBritain-MP-stub