Sir John Cope, 6th Baronet (1673–1749), of

Bramshill Bramshill is a civil parish in the English county of Hampshire. Its name has become synonymous with the Police Staff College, Bramshill located in Bramshill House. Bramshill forms part of the district of Hart. It is bordered by the Rivers ...

, Hampshire, was a British banker and Whig politician who sat in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

and

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 memb ...

for 36 years from 1705 to 1741. He was a Director of the

Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the Kingdom of England, English Government's banker and debt manager, and still one ...

from 1706 to 1721.

Early life

Cope was the eldest son of

Sir John Cope, 5th Baronet Sir John Cope, 5th Baronet (19 November 1634 – 11 January 1721) was an English landowner, banker and Whig politician. Biography Cope was the third but second surviving son of Sir John Cope, 3rd Baronet by his second wife, Lady Elizabeth Fane, ...

of Hanwell, Oxfordshire and his wife Anne Booth, daughter of Philip Booth, and was baptized on 1 December 1673.George Edward Cokayne ''Complete Baronetage'' 1900
/ref> He matriculated at

Oriel College, Oxford Oriel College () is Colleges of the University of Oxford, a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title for ...

on 22 October 1689, aged 16. He was knighted on 26 January 1696, and also in 1696 married Alice Monoux, daughter of Sir Humphrey Monoux, 2nd Baronet of Wootton, Bedfordshire. By 1700 Cope had acquired the manor of Bramshill for £21,500, helped by a loan from his father.

Career

Cope stood for parliament at

Andover Andover may refer to: Places Australia *Andover, Tasmania Canada * Andover Parish, New Brunswick * Perth-Andover, New Brunswick United Kingdom * Andover, Hampshire, England ** RAF Andover, a former Royal Air Force station United States * Andov ...

in the second general election of 1701 and in the

1702 English general election The 1702 English general election was the first to be held during the reign of Anne, Queen of Great Britain, Queen Anne, and was necessitated by the demise of William III of England, William III. The new government dominated by the Tories (Briti ...

, but was defeated on both occasions. After considering Stockbridge, he was eventually returned as Member of Parliament for Plympton Erle on the interest of Sir George Treby, at the

1705 English general election The 1705 English general election saw contests in 110 United Kingdom constituencies, constituencies in England and Wales, roughly 41% of the total. The election was fiercely fought, with mob violence and cries of "Church in Danger" occurring in ...

. He acted as a Whig and voted for the Court candidate for Speaker on 25 October 1705. In 1706, he became a Director of the Bank of England and remained, with statutory intervals, until 1721. He also became Commissioner of the Equivalent as a representative of the Bank in 1707, and continued to take an interest in the Union and Scottish matters. At the

1708 British general election The 1708 British general election was the first general election to be held after the Acts of Union had united the Parliaments of England and Scotland. The election saw the Whigs gain a majority in the House of Commons, and by November the Whi ...

he transferred to

Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy, from which its name derives. At the 2011 census, the three electoral wards (N ...

, where he was returned unopposed as MP with the support of the Bedford interest. He acted as a teller for the Whigs and supported the naturalization of the Palatinesin 1709. He was re-elected as Commissioner of the Equivalent in 1709 remaining until 1715. In 1710, he voted for the impeachment of Dr Sacheverell. At the

1710 British general election The 1710 British general election produced a landslide victory for the Tories. The election came in the wake of the prosecution of Henry Sacheverell, which had led to the collapse of the previous government led by Godolphin and the Whig Junto. ...

he was returned after a hard contest and avoided being petitioned unlike his colleague. He voted against the French Commerce bill on 18 June 1713. He was returned unopposed at the

1713 British general election The 1713 British general election was held on 22 August 1713 to 12 November 1713, to elect members of the House of Commons, the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain. It produced further gains for the governing Tory party. Since 1710 R ...

and voted against the expulsion of Richard Steele on 18 March 1714. Cope was returned as Whig MP for Tavistock in a contest at the

1715 British general election The 1715 British general election was held on 22 January 1715 to 9 March 1715, to elect members of the House of Commons, the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain. It returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 5th Parliam ...

and was returned unopposed in

1722 Events January–March * January 27 – Daniel Defoe's novel '' Moll Flanders'' is published anonymously in London. * February 10 – The Battle of Cape Lopez begins off of the coast of West Africa (and present-day Gabon), ...

. He succeeded his father in 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 11 January 1721. At the

1727 British general election The 1727 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 7th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election was trigg ...

he stood at Tavistock and

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, and being returned at both decided to sit as MP for Hampshire. At the

1734 British general election The 1734 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of Great Britain, House of Commons of the 8th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scot ...

he was returned as MP for

Lymington Lymington is a port town on the west bank of the Lymington River on the Solent, in the New Forest (district), New Forest district of Hampshire, England. The town faces Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, to which there is a Roll-on/roll-off, car ferry s ...

and retired at the end of that Parliament.

Death and legacy

Cope died on 8 December 1749. He had two sons and a daughter. He was succeeded in the baronetcy by his son

Sir Monoux Cope, 7th Baronet Sir Monoux Cope, 7th Baronet (c. 1696 – 1763) was a British Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1722 and 1747. Cope was the eldest son of Sir John Cope, 6th Baronet and his wife Alice Monoux, daughter of Sir Humphrey ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cope, Sir John, 6th Baronet 1673 births 1749 deaths 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 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Tavistock Baronets in the Baronetage of England Members of the Parliament of England for Plympton Erle English MPs 1705–1707