Sir Francis Blake, 3rd Baronet (c. 1774 – 10 September 1860) was a landowner, politician and baronet of Northumberland, England.

Background

Born at

Heston Heston is a suburban area and part of the Hounslow district in the London Borough of Hounslow. The residential settlement covers a slightly smaller area than its predecessor farming village, 10.8 miles (17.4 km) west south-west of Charing ...

, he was the son of Sir Francis Blake, 2nd Baronet and his wife, the daughter of Alexander Douglas. In 1818, he succeeded his father as baronet.

Career

Blake was commissioned captain in the

Northumberland Militia The Militia and Volunteers of Northumberland are those military units raised in the County independent of the regular Army. The "modern" militia dates from legislation enacted during the Seven Years' War. The volunteers had several forms and separa ...

in 1794 and was appointed colonel of the Northumberland Fencibles in 1795. He entered the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 mem ...

in 1820, sitting as

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 ...

(MP) for

Berwick-upon-Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...

until 1826. A year later, he was re-elected for the constituency, representing it until 1834. Blake owned estates at

Twizell Castle Twizell Castle (also spelt Twizel) is a Grade II* listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument which stands on a bend of the River Till at Tillmouth Park, Northumberland, northern England. Below it, the medieval Twizell Bridge spans the riv ...

, Tillmouth House,

Seghill Seghill is a large village located on the Northumberland border which is the county boundary between Northumberland and Tyne and Wear. Seghill is situated between the villages of Seaton Delaval and Annitsford, about north of Newcastle upon Tyne. ...

and

Duddo Duddo is a village and civil parish in Northumberland, about southwest of Berwick-upon-Tweed. History Duddo Five Stones is a stone circle to the north of the village. It is a Scheduled Monument. Duddo Tower, south of the village, was bu ...

, which later he sold for £45000 in 1823.

Death and legacy

He married Jane, daughter of William Neale, in 1827 but had no legitimate children and the baronetcy became extinct on his death. His illegitimate son Frederick Blake (1835–1909) suffered severe sunstroke while serving as an army officer and was confined to a mental asylum in 1873. His father granted him a life interest in property at Seghill and also bequeathed Helen, the widow of his brother Robert Dudley Blake (1776–1860). Blake's principal beneficiary was Captain Francis Blake (1832–1861) whose son Francis Douglas Blake was created a baronet in his own right in 1907. The family repurchased Seghill Park from the Treasury Solicitor following the intestacy of Helen Blake.

References

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, Francis, 3rd Baronet 1770s births 1860 deaths British Militia officers British Fencibles officers Royal Northumberland Fusiliers officers Blake, Francis, 3rd Baronet, of Twizell Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs 1832–1835