Sir John Cropley, 2nd Baronet (15 July 1663 – 22 October 1713), of

Red Lion Square Red Lion Square is a small square in Holborn, London. The square was laid out in 1684 by Nicholas Barbon, taking its name from the Red Lion Inn. According to some sources, the bodies of three regicides—Oliver Cromwell, John Bradshaw and He ...

, was an English Whig politician who sat in the

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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 mem ...

from 1701 to 1710.

Early life

Cropley was baptised at

St. James Clerkenwell Clerkenwell () is an area of central London, England. Clerkenwell was an ancient parish from the mediaeval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington. The well after which it was named was redis ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

, on 23 July 1663, the only son of Sir Edward Cropley of Clerkenwell and his wife Martha née Wilson, daughter of Robert Wilson, a London merchant. He succeeded his father in 1665 and 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 grandfather in November 1676. He studied at

Clare College, Cambridge Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. It was refounded ...

in 1678. He travelled abroad in Italy, France, and Germany from 1686 to 1689 with Anthony Ashley-Cooper who became a firm friend.

Career

Cropley was returned unopposed as Whig

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

Shaftesbury Shaftesbury () is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is situated on the A30 road, west of Salisbury, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hilltop settlement in Dorset, being built about above sea level on a ...

with the support of Ashley at the second general election of 1701. He was returned unopposed again at the 1702 English general election. He did not vote for the Tack, and told against the occasional conformity bill. At the 1705 English general election he was returned again unopposed as Whig MP for Shaftesbury, and voted for the Court candidate for Speaker on 25 October 1705. He started to pursue an independent Whig line and occasionally opposed the

Whig Junto The Whig Junto is the name given to a group of leading Whigs who were seen to direct the management of the Whig Party and often the government, during the reigns of William III and Anne. The Whig Junto proper consisted of John Somers, later ...

. Although he sought no post for himself he was involved in attempts by Ashley to obtain a place for his relative Thomas Micklethwayte. He was returned unopposed again as a Whig at the 1708 British general election and fell in line with the Whig policies. In 1709, he voted for the naturalization of the Palatines, and in 1710 for the impeachment of Dr Sacheverell. However he was defeated at the 1710 British general election in the light of public support for Sacheverell.CROPLEY, Sir John, 2nd Bt. (1663-1713), of Red Lion Square, Mdx.
/ref> Since Lord Shaftesbury had moved abroad because of ill-health, Cropley became a guardian of his friend's child and estate for the next three years. He did not stand for Parliament again and died unmarried on 22 October 1713. He left an estate worth about £4,000 p.a. to Thomas Micklethwayte, and the baronetcy became extinct.

References

1663 births 1713 deaths English MPs 1701–1702 English MPs 1702–1705 English MPs 1705–1707 British MPs 1707–1708 British MPs 1708–1710 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Baronets in the Baronetage of England Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge People from Holborn {{England-GreatBritain-MP-stub