Simon Watson-Taylor (1811 – 25 December 1902) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

landowner in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

and

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

who briefly served as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

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

Devizes Devizes is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It developed around Devizes Castle, an 11th-century Norman architecture, Norman castle, and received a charter in 1141. The castle was besieged during the Anarchy, a 12th-century ...

between the 1857 election and that of 1859.

Early life

Watson-Taylor was the son of Jamaican planters

George Watson-Taylor George Watson-Taylor (1771 – 6 Jun 1841), of Saul's River, Jamaica, was the fourth son of George Watson. From 1810 he was the husband of Anna Susana Taylor, the daughter of Jamaican planter Sir John Taylor, 1st Baronet, and heiress of her brothe ...

, later a Member of Parliament, and his wife Anna, a daughter of

Sir John Taylor, 1st Baronet Sir John Taylor, 1st Baronet FRS (1745 – 8 May 1786) was a Jamaican-born planter who was a fellow of the Royal Society and was created a baronet of Lysson Hall in Jamaica. He lived in London but he died in Jamaica. Background Taylor was born ...

, of

Vale Royal A vale is a type of valley. Vale may also refer to: Places Georgia * Vale, Georgia, a town in the Samtskhe-Javakheti region Norway * Våle, a historic municipality Portugal * Vale (Santa Maria da Feira), a former civil parish in the municipali ...

(the current Prime Ministerial mansion). His father used the wealth from their Jamaican plantations to acquire estates in Wiltshire, at

Erlestoke Erlestoke is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, on the northern edge of Salisbury Plain. The village lies about east of Westbury and the same distance southwest of Devizes. Erlestoke Prison, the only prison in Wiltshire, is wit ...

Coulston Coulston (until 1934 called East Coulston) is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, five miles northeast of the town of Westbury, just north of the B3098 road. The village lies under the north slope of Salisbury Plain and the parish ...

(including

Baynton House Baynton House is a Grade II listed 17th-century country house at Coulston, Wiltshire, England, about northeast of the town of Westbury. History The house was begun by Francis Godolphin in about 1658; it was said to be worth £200. It was inhe ...

), and

Edington Eddington or Edington may refer to: People *Eddington Varmah, Liberian politician *Eddington (surname), people with the surname Places Australia * Eddington, Victoria United Kingdom * Eddington, Berkshire * Eddington, Cambridge * Ed ...

, along with a large art collection.

Jamaican interests

The Taylor (Tailzour before anglicisation) family – and Watson-Taylor's father, through his marriage – derived its wealth from sugar and slavery in the

Colony of Jamaica The Crown Colony of Jamaica and Dependencies was a British colony from 1655, when it was captured by the English Protectorate from the Spanish Empire. Jamaica became a British colony from 1707 and a Crown colony in 1866. The Colony was pri ...

. In 1852, Simon Watson-Taylor inherited Jamaican estates from his mother Anna. However, the vast majority of the wealth created by her great-uncle Simon Tailzour had been largely squandered by George Watson-Taylor. Watson-Taylor maintained a strong interest in the affairs of Jamaica and offered public support to Governor

Edward John Eyre Edward John Eyre (5 August 181530 November 1901) was an English land explorer of the Australian continent, colonial administrator, and Governor of Jamaica. Early life Eyre was born in Whipsnade, Bedfordshire, shortly before his family moved to ...

, after he brutally suppressed the

Morant Bay rebellion The Morant Bay Rebellion (11 October 1865) began with a protest march to the courthouse by hundreds of people led by preacher Paul Bogle in Morant Bay, Jamaica. Some were armed with sticks and stones. After seven men were shot and killed by th ...

of 1865. Watson-Taylor helped to found the Eyre Defence Fund, which aimed to vindicate the former governor as an imperial hero.

Family

On 30 June 1843 Watson-Taylor married Lady Hannah Charlotte Hay (1818–1887), one of the eight daughters of

Field Marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

George Hay, 8th Marquess of Tweeddale Field Marshal George Hay, 8th Marquess of Tweeddale (1 February 1787 – 10 October 1876) was a British soldier and administrator. He served as a staff officer in the Peninsular War under Arthur Wellesley and was with Wellesley at the Second ...

(1787–1876), thus becoming a brother-in-law of the

Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister of ...

, the Marquess of Dalhousie, the

Marquess of Tweeddale Marquess of Tweeddale (sometimes spelled ''Tweedale'') is a title of the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1694 for the 2nd Earl of Tweeddale. Lord Tweeddale holds the subsidiary titles of Earl of Tweeddale (created 1646), Earl of Gifford (1694), ...

George Hay, Earl of Gifford George Hay, Earl of Gifford (26 April 1822 – 22 December 1862) was a British Liberal Party politician. Lord Gifford was born at Yester House, the eldest son of the 8th Marquess of Tweeddale. He was educated at Trinity College and Trinit ...

, Admiral of the Fleet Lord John Hay, General Sir Richard Taylor, and

Sir Robert Peel, 3rd Baronet Sir Robert Peel, 3rd Baronet, GCB, PC (4 May 1822 – 9 May 1895) was a British Peelite, Liberal and from 1884 until 1886 Conservative Member of Parliament (MP). Eldest son of the prime minister Robert Peel, he was educated at Harrow and ...

. There were four sons and seven daughters from their marriage.Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, 107th edition, vol. 3, ed. Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage Ltd, 2003, p. 3964 Watson-Taylor lived at

Urchfont Manor Urchfont Manor is a manor house near the village of Urchfont in Wiltshire, England, about southeast of the market town of Devizes. Originally a private residence, Urchfont Manor was used to house evacuated children during the Second World War ...

from about 1850 to 1862.

References

External links

* 1811 births 1902 deaths Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1857–1859 {{England-Liberal-UK-MP-stub