John White (2 December 1699 – 7 September 1769), of Wallingwells, Nottinghamshire, was an English politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

from 1733 to 1768..

Early life

White was the eldest son and heir of Thomas White of

Tuxford Tuxford is a historic market town and a civil parish in the Bassetlaw District, Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 2,516, increasing to 2,649 at the 2011 census. Geography Nearby town ...

and

Wallingwells Wallingwells is a small civil parish and hamlet in the Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England, with a population at the 2001 census of 22. The population remained less than 100 at the 2011 census. Details are included in the civil pa ...

and his wife Bridget Taylor daughter of Richard Taylor, MP, of Wallingwells. He succeeded to his father's estates, including

in Nottinghamshire, at the age of 33 in 1732. A portrait of him as a young man show him as handsome, similar in looks to

Prince Charles Edward Stuart Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (20 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, grandson of James II and VII, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, Scotland and ...

Career

White was an influential politician of his day. He was returned as Whig

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 ...

for

East Retford East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

at a by-election on 26 January 1733 in succession to his father. He was returned unopposed at the 1734 British general election. He was elected a trustee and a common councillor of the Georgia Society. In 1736, he resigned from the council together with Robert More, though remaining a trustee. He was a professed Dissenter and no friend to church establishment' and disapproved of the Society's policy of appropriating land in Georgia to the endowment of the Church of England. Also in 1736, he spoke and voted against a proposal that Parliament should contribute £4,000 towards the repair of Henry VII's chapel. In 1739 he introduced a motion for the repeal of the Test Act. He voted with the Government on the Spanish convention that year but was absent from the division on the place bill in 1740. He was re-elected at the

1741 British general election The 1741 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 9th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw suppo ...

, after a costly contest. Due to ill-health, he was absent on the division on the chairman of the elections committee but voted with the Government in all other recorded divisions. He was a supporter of

Henry Pelham Henry Pelham (25 September 1694 – 6 March 1754) was a British Whig statesman who served as 3rd Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1743 until his death in 1754. He was the younger brother of Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle, who ...

and the

Duke of Newcastle Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne was a title that was created three times, once in the Peerage of England and twice in the Peerage of Great Britain. The first grant of the title was made in 1665 to William Cavendish, 1st Marquess of Newcastle u ...

, who were the

Prime Ministers A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is no ...

between 1744 and 1756. In particular he held sway over the Duke of Newcastle, who was a close friend of both John and his late father, Thomas. Their relationship is seen in a book of letters from the Duke to White. White was returned unopposed at the

1754 British general election The 1754 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 11th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. Owing to the exten ...

and returned again at the

1761 British general election The 1761 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 12th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. This was the first P ...

. He made only two speeches in the period, on the peace preliminaries, on 10 December 1762, and on a point of order in a debate on the Regency, on 9 May 1765. He lost control at East Retford, and at the

1768 British general election The 1768 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 13th Parliament of Great Britain to be held, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election took plac ...

he decided not to stand. Each season White would travel in great state to

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 ...

in a coach and six, attended by a throng of servants and outriders. The park at Wallingwells was well stocked with deer and its ponds teeming with fish. When at Wallingwells, John hunted and showed generous hospitality to his guests. He built the

grotto A grotto is a natural or artificial cave used by humans in both modern times and antiquity, and historically or prehistorically. Naturally occurring grottoes are often small caves near water that are usually flooded or often flooded at high ti ...

on the edge of one of the ponds just south of the house.

Death and legacy

White died unmarried on 7 September 1769. He was succeeded by his younger brother

Taylor White Taylor White (21 December 1701 – 27 March 1772) was a British jurist, naturalist, and art collector. A Fellow of the Royal Society, he was the patron of several prominent wildlife and botanical artists including Peter Paillou, George Edwards ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:White, John Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Whig (British political party) MPs 1769 deaths 1699 births Fellows of the Royal Society British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1747–1754 British MPs 1754–1761