Sir Henry Watkin Dashwood, 3rd Baronet (30 August 1745 – 10 June 1828) was an English landowner and 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. T ...

between 1775 and 1795.

Early life

Dashwood was the eldest surviving son of

Sir James Dashwood, 2nd Baronet Sir James Dashwood, 2nd Baronet (1715–1779) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1740 to 1768. Early life He was the son of Robert Dashwood, and his grandfather from whom he inherited the baronetcy was Sir Robert D ...

of Kirtlington Park, Oxfordshire and his wife Elizabeth Spencer, daughter of Edward Spencer of Rendlesham, Suffolk. He matriculated at Brasenose College, Oxford in 1763 and undertook a

Grand Tour The Grand Tour was the principally 17th- to early 19th-century custom of a traditional trip through Europe, with Italy as a key destination, undertaken by upper-class young European men of sufficient means and rank (typically accompanied by a tut ...

in 1768. He was extremely extravagant and in 1775 his father had to pay off his debts amounting to £25,000.

Political career

In 1774 Dashwood contested Wigtown Burghs on the interest of his brother-in-law

John Stewart, 7th Earl of Galloway John Stewart, 7th Earl of Galloway, (13 March 1736 – 13 November 1806), styled Viscount Garlies from 1747 until 1773, was a British peer who became the 7th Earl of Galloway in 1773 and served as a Member of Parliament from 1761 to 1773. Early ...

. With each candidate receiving only two of the four votes, Dashwood's opponent was initially declared the winner, but on petition the result was reversed and Dashwood was returned 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 o ...

. He voted in support of Lord North in the 1770s. In 1779, Dashwood succeeded to the

baronetcy A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

on the death of his father on 10 November. He married Helen Mary Graham, daughter of John Graham of Kinross on 17 July 1780. Helen's uncles were MP's

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

and Robert Mayne and in 1780 he decided to stand at

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

which had been a Mayne seat. Dashwood was unsuccessful at Canterbury and equally unsuccessful in obtaining a lucrative government office. In 1783 he was appointed Gentleman of the Privy Chamber an honorary appointment. After he came into his inheritance Dashwood sold most of the family estate to pay further debts. Dashwood was a friend of the

Duke of Marlborough General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, 1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722 O.S.) was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reign ...

and was returned unopposed on the Duke's interest at the pocket borough of

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aq ...

at the 1784 He was returned unopposed at each election until 1820. Dashwood tried to persuade

William Pitt the Younger William Pitt the Younger (28 May 175923 January 1806) was a British statesman, the youngest and last prime minister of Great Britain (before the Acts of Union 1800) and then first prime minister of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Ire ...

to give him a peerage several times in 1794, as he was a loyal supporter of the government. Unhappily for Dashwood no preferment was forthcoming.

Later life and legacy

Dashwood died on 10 June 1828. He and his wife had four sons and two daughters, including: *Anna Maria, married

John Loftus, 2nd Marquess of Ely John Loftus, 2nd Marquess of Ely KP (15 February 1770 – 26 September 1845), styled The Honourable John Loftus from 1785 to 1794 and Viscount Loftus from 1794 to 1806, was a British peer in both the Irish and British peerages. Life He was the ...

*Sir George Dashwood, 4th Baronet (9 July 1829 – 7 December 1869), married Sarah Marianne Rowley. Their daughter, Susan Caroline Dashwood, married Charles George Cholmondeley, Viscount Malpas and became the mother of

George Cholmondeley, 4th Marquess of Cholmondeley George Henry Hugh Cholmondeley, 4th Marquess of Cholmondeley (; 3 July 1858 – 16 March 1923) was a British peer and a hereditary joint Lord Great Chamberlain of England. He exercised the office of Lord Great Chamberlain during the reign of Ki ...

.G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume III, page 206. * Georgiana Carolina, married Sir Jacob Astley, 6th Baronet

References

External links

JJHC Family History page for Sir Henry Watkin Dashwood
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dashwood, Henry 1745 births 1828 deaths Dashwood, Henry Watkin, 3rd Baronet Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Scottish constituencies British MPs 1774–1780 British MPs 1784–1790 British MPs 1790–1796 British MPs 1796–1800 Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies UK MPs 1801–1802 UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820 Gentlemen of the Privy Chamber