Sir John Trenchard (30 March 1649 – 27 April 1695)
was an English politician and landowner.
Life
He belonged to an old
Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...
family. He was born on 30 March 1649 at
Lytchett Matravers
Lytchett Matravers is a village and civil parish in Dorset, England. The 2011 census recorded the parish as having 1,439 households and a population of 3,424.
History
The name comes from the Brittonic ''litchet'' meaning "grey wood" and the ...
, near
Poole, to Thomas Trenchard of Wolverton (1615–1671), and his wife Hannah née Henley (d. 1691).
His grandfather was
Sir Thomas Trenchard of Wolverton (1582–1657), who was knighted by
James I James I may refer to:
People
*James I of Aragon (1208–1276)
*James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327)
*James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu
*James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347)
*James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...
in 1613.
He was educated at
Winchester (1661-1665) and at
New College, Oxford (1665-1667).
In 1667, he entered the
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...
and was called to the bar in 1674. John Trenchard entered parliament as member for
Taunton
Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...
in 1679. He associated himself with those who proposed to exclude the
Duke of York from the throne, and attended some of the meetings held by these malcontents. It is possible he was concerned in the
Rye House Plot
The Rye House Plot of 1683 was a plan to assassinate King Charles II of England and his brother (and heir to the throne) James, Duke of York. The royal party went from Westminster to Newmarket to see horse races and were expected to make the ...
. In fact, he was arrested at all of the events in July 1683, but no definite evidence was brought against him so he was released.
When
Monmouth landed in the west of
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
in June 1685, Trenchard fled from England to
Groningen, Netherlands.
[IGI: Baptism of Maria Trenchard to John and Philippa on 18 March 1687 at Nederlands Hervormde Kerk, Groningen, Netherlands] Around 1687–1688, he was pardoned through the good offices of
William Penn
William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...
, and able to return home. Again he entered parliament, but he took no active part in the
Revolution
In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...
of 1688, although he managed to secure the good will of
William III. On 29 October 1689, he was knighted by the king, and made
Chief Justice of Chester. In 1692, he was appointed
Secretary of State. He and the government incurred much ridicule through their failure to prove the existence of a great
Jacobite plot in
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...
and
Cheshire in which they had been led to believe.
Family
On 10 November 1682, he married:
Philippa Speke (1664–1743), daughter of
George
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...
and
Mary Speke
Mary Speke (née Pye) (c. 1625 – 1697) was an English nonconformist patron and political activist. She lived in Somerset in a non-conformist family. She was credited with changing her husband's political opinions and the Bishop of Bath and Wel ...
of
White Lackington,
Somerset
( en, All The People of Somerset)
, locator_map =
, coordinates =
, region = South West England
, established_date = Ancient
, established_by =
, preceded_by =
, origin =
, lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset
, lord_ ...
,
with four sons and three daughters including:
# George Trenchard (d. 1758)
# Maria Trenchard (1687-)
# William Trenchard (12 October 1694-)
Sir John died on 27 April 1695 at Kensington, London, of tuberculosis
and he is buried at Bloxworth, Dorset.
See also
*
Whig Junto
The Whig Junto is the name given to a group of leading Whigs who were seen to direct the management of the Whig Party and often the government, during the reigns of William III and Anne. The Whig Junto proper consisted of John Somers, later ...
Notes
References
*, which gives his year of birth incorrectly as 1640.
*
Attribution:
*
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trenchard, John
1649 births
1695 deaths
Knights Bachelor
Alumni of New College, Oxford
People from Purbeck District
Secretaries of State for the Northern Department
Secretaries of State for the Southern Department
Recipients of English royal pardons
Members of the Green Ribbon Club
People of the Rye House Plot
English MPs 1679
English MPs 1680–1681
English MPs 1681
English MPs 1689–1690
English MPs 1690–1695
Members of the Middle Temple