Sir James Duke, 1st Baronet (31 January 1792 – 28 May 1873) was a British Liberal Party politician. He was Lord Mayor of London in 1848–1849, and sat in the House of Commons from 1837 to 1865. Born in Montrose, he was elected at the 1837 general election as a member of parliament (MP) for the borough of Boston in Lincolnshire, and was re-elected at the

1841 Events January–March * January 20 – Charles Elliot of the United Kingdom, and Qishan of the Qing dynasty, agree to the Convention of Chuenpi. * January 26 – Britain occupies Hong Kong. Later in the year, the first census of the i ...

and 1847 general elections. He was elected as Sheriff of the City of London in 1837 and

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

on 5 April of that year. Sir James was Lord Mayor of London in 1847. In June of that year a vacancy arose in the City of London constituency when the Liberal MP James Pattison died at age 62. A group of leading Liberals from the City met on 16 July and resolved to nominate Duke for the vacancy if he would consent, agreeing that:

"impressed with the opinion that the personal character and commercial experience of the Rt. Hon. Sir James Duke, combined with his business habits, and his long acquaintance with public affairs as a member of the House of Commons, eminently qualify him for the representation of the various interests of this city in Parliament"

A deputation was sent to the Mansion House, where Duke was asked to stand, which he immediately agreed to do. He resigned his Boston seat by taking the Chiltern Hundreds, and at the by-election on 27 July 1849 he was elected as an MP for the City of London constituency, winning more than twice as many votes as his sole opponent, the Conservative Party candidate Lord John Manners.Craig, pages 5–6 He was made a baronet in October 1849, on 30 November he was appointed as a commissioner for enquiring into

Smithfield Market Smithfield, properly known as West Smithfield, is a district located in Central London, part of Farringdon Without, the most westerly ward of the City of London, England. Smithfield is home to a number of City institutions, such as St Bartho ...

. He held the City of London seat until he stood down from the Commons at the 1865 general election. He was appointed High Sheriff of Sussex for 1872.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Duke, James 1792 births 1873 deaths Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 UK MPs 1847–1852 UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1857–1859 UK MPs 1859–1865 Sheriffs of the City of London 19th-century lord mayors of London 19th-century English politicians High Sheriffs of Sussex