Joseph Micklethwaite, 1st Viscount Micklethwaite (c. 1680 – 16 January 1734) was an English politician, peer and diplomat.

Early life and family background

Joseph Micklethwaite was born circa 1680. The Micklethwaites were the descendants of Dr. Joseph Micklethwaite of York, who had retired from his physician's practice and had purchased the manor of Swine, becoming a gentleman farmer and an active county magistrate. Dr. Micklethwaite was married to Ann Topham, the widow of

Christopher Topham Christopher Topham, member of Parliament for York (died 1670), was the son of York merchant and Sheriff for the city of York Christopher Topham and his wife Ann, a daughter of Percival Levett, merchant of York and also formerly a Sheriff for the c ...

, member of Parliament and York merchant, and the daughter of Percival Levett, a Sheriff of York and a merchant. Joseph's elder brother was

Thomas Micklethwaite Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

of Swine, Yorkshire, who represented Arundel in Parliament, was later a Lord of the Treasury, and subsequently was named

Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance The Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance was a member of the British Board of Ordnance and the deputy of the Master-General of the Ordnance. The office was established in 1545, and the holder was appointed by the crown under letters patent. It ...

Career

Joseph Micklethwaite began his career working in the Netherlands for

Lord Shaftesbury Earl of Shaftesbury is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1672 for Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Baron Ashley, a prominent politician in the Cabal then dominating the policies of King Charles II. He had already succeeded his f ...

and then in Spain as secretary to

Earl Stanhope Earl Stanhope ()Debrett's Correct Form, Debrett's Peerage Ltd, 1976, pg 408 was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. The earldom was created in 1718 for Major General James Stanhope,Edward Hasted, 'Parishes: Chevening', in The History and T ...

, the English ambassador to Spain. On Stanhope's return to England, Micklethwaite became his business manager and, while Stanhope was Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1717–18, his secretary. He succeeded in 1718 to his brother's fortune and parliamentary seat (until 1727) at Arundel. On 14 August 1724, he was created Baron Micklethwaite, of Portarlington, in the

Peerage of Ireland The Peerage of Ireland consists of those titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lord or King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. It is one of the five divisi ...

. On 6 June 1727, he was further created Viscount Micklethwaite, of Longford, in the same peerage. Lord Micklethwaite represented the town of

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually abbreviated to Hull, is a port city and unitary authority in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Estuary, inland from the North Sea and south-ea ...

, in his native Yorkshire from 1727 to 1734. He was elected as a Bailiff to the board of the

Bedford Level Corporation The Bedford Level Corporation (or alternatively the Corporation of the Bedford Level) was founded in England in 1663 to manage the draining of the Fens of East Central England. It formalised the legal status of the Company of Adventurers previously ...

for 1728–29.

Personal life and death

Lord Micklethwaite died unmarried in 1734 and his titles became extinct. He left his estate to his mistress, Anne Ewer, the sister of Jane Ewer, wife of the 3rd Earl of Shaftesbury, from whom it found its way into the Shaftesbury family.

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Micklethwaite, Joseph Micklethwaite, 1st Viscount 1680s births 1734 deaths Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Viscounts in the Peerage of Ireland British MPs 1715–1722 British MPs 1722–1727 British MPs 1727–1734 Peers of Ireland created by George I