Sir Conyers Darcy or Darcey, (c. 16851 December 1758), of Aske, near Richmond, Yorkshire, was a British Army officer, courtier and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1707 and 1758.

Early life

Darcy was the second surviving son of Hon. John Darcy, MP, and his wife Bridget Sutton, daughter of Robert Sutton, 1st Baron Lexington. He was the younger brother of

Robert Darcy, 3rd Earl of Holderness Robert Darcy, 3rd Earl of Holderness, (24 November 168120 January 1721) was a British peer and politician. Life Darcy was the second (but eldest surviving) son of John Darcy, Lord Conyers, (himself the eldest son of Conyers Darcy, 2nd Earl of H ...

. He was probably educated at Eton College in 1698 and matriculated

fellow-commoner A commoner is a student at certain universities in the British Isles who historically pays for his own tuition and commons, typically contrasted with scholars and exhibitioners, who were given financial emoluments towards their fees. Cambridge ...

from King's College, Cambridge in 1703. He joined the army and was cornet and major in the

1st Life Guards The 1st Regiment of Life Guards was a cavalry regiment in the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry. It was formed in 1788 by the union of the 1st Troop of Horse Guards and 1st Troop of Horse Grenadier Guards. In 1922, it was amalgamated w ...

from 1706 to 1715.

Career

Darcy was returned as Member of Parliament for Yorkshire at a by-election on 3 December 1707, but was defeated at the

1708 general election Seventeen or 17 may refer to: *17 (number), the natural number following 16 and preceding 18 * one of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017 Literature Magazines * ''Seventeen'' (American magazine), an American magazine * ''Seventeen'' (Japanese m ...

. He refused to stand at the

1710 general election Year 171 ( CLXXI) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Herennianus (or, less frequently, year 924 ''Ab urbe con ...

. In 1710 he became gentleman of horse and in 1711, avener and clerk martial. From 1712 to 1714, he was one of the commissioners for the office of Master of the Horse. At the

1715 general election Events For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire i ...

, Darcy was returned as Member of Parliament for

Newark Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-the ...

. He was appointed commissioner for the office of Master of the Horse again in 1715. He went into opposition with Walpole in 1717, and voted against the Government on several occasions, so he lost all his official posts. When the WHigs subsequently came together again, he was appointed Master of the Household in 1720. At the 1722 general election he was returned at Boroughbridge and at

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

and chose to sit at Richmond. In 1725, he was invested as a Founder Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath. In 1727, he was appointed

Lord Lieutenant of the North Riding of Yorkshire The post of Lord Lieutenant of the North Riding of Yorkshire was created in 1660, at the Restoration, and was abolished on 31 March 1974. From 1782 until 1974, all Lords Lieutenant were also Custos Rotulorum of the North Riding of Yorkshire. Lord ...

holding the post until 1740. He was initially defeated at the poll at the 1727 general election, but was seated on petition on 14 March 1728. He was promoted to the post of

Comptroller of the Household The Comptroller of the Household is an ancient position in the British royal household, nominally the second-ranking member of the Lord Steward's department after the Treasurer of the Household. The Comptroller was an ''ex officio'' member of t ...

and was sworn a Privy Counsellor in 1730. He was returned for Richmond again at the general elections of

1734 Events January– March * January 8 – Salzburgers, Lutherans who were expelled by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Salzburg, Austria, in October 1731, set sail for the British Colony of Province of Georgia, Georgia in North America ...

and

1741 Events January–March * January 13 – Lanesborough, Massachusetts is created as a township. * February 13 – Sir Robert Walpole, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, popularizes the term "the balance of power" in a spe ...

. At the

1747 Events January–March * January 31 – The first venereal diseases clinic opens at London Lock Hospital. * February 11 – King George's War: A combined French and Indian force, commanded by Captain Nicolas Antoine II Coul ...

he was returned again for Yorkshire and Richmond and this time chose to sit for Yorkshire. He was re-elected for Yorkshire in the

1754 general election Events January–March * January 28 – Horace Walpole, in a letter to Horace Mann, coins the word ''serendipity''. * February 22 – Expecting an attack by Portuguese-speaking militias in the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Pla ...

Family and legacy

Darcy married Mary Lady Capell, widow of

Algernon Capell, 2nd Earl of Essex Algernon Capell, 2nd Earl of Essex PC (28 December 1670 – 10 January 1710, Watford) of Cassiobury House, Watford, Hertfordshire, was an English nobleman, a soldier and courtier. Origins He was the son of Arthur Capell, 1st Earl of Essex ...

and daughter of

Hans William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland, (Dutch: ''Hans Willem Bentinck''; 20 July 164923 November 1709) was a Dutch-born English nobleman who became in an early stage the favourite of William, Prince of Orange, Stadtholder in the Netherlands, a ...

in August 1714. He bought Aske Hall near Richmond, North Yorkshire in 1722 and extensively remodelled it. His wife died on 20 August 1726 and on 12 September 1728 he married Elizabeth, twice widowed daughter of John Rotherham of Much Waltham, Essex. Her former husbands were Sir Theophilus Napier, 5th Baronet, of Luton Hoo, Bedfordshire, and Thomas Howard, 6th Lord Howard of Effingham). He was a founding governor of the

Foundling Hospital The Foundling Hospital in London, England, was founded in 1739 by the philanthropic sea captain Thomas Coram. It was a children's home established for the "education and maintenance of exposed and deserted young children." The word "hospital" w ...

in London, a charity set up to care for foundlings ( abandoned children). Darcy died without issue on 1 December 1758. Aske Hall was sold in 1763 by Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness to

Sir Lawrence Dundas, 1st Baronet Sir Lawrence Dundas, 1st Baronet (c. 1710 – 21 September 1781) was a Scottish businessman, landowner and politician. Life He was the son of Thomas Dundas and Bethia Baillie. He made his first fortune as Commissary General: supplying goods to ...

References

* * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Darcy, Conyers 1680s births 1758 deaths Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain British MPs 1707–1708 British MPs 1708–1710 British MPs 1710–1713 British MPs 1713–1715 British MPs 1715–1722 British MPs 1722–1727 British MPs 1727–1734 British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1747–1754 British MPs 1754–1761 Knights Companion of the Order of the Bath Lord-Lieutenants of the East Riding of Yorkshire Lord-Lieutenants of the North Riding of Yorkshire Masters of the Household