Sir John Saunders Sebright, 7th Baronet, (23 May 1767 – 15 April 1846), of Besford,

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

, and Beechwood Park,

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

, was an English politician and agricultural innovator.

Life

Born on 23 May 1767 in Sackville Street, St. James's, he was the eldest son of Sir John Sebright, 6th Baronet, by Sarah, daughter of Edward Knight, of Wolverley, Worcestershire. His father died in March 1794. The seventh baronet served for a short time in the Foot Guards and was attached to the staff of Lord Amherst. He was elected M.P. for

on 11 May 1807, and continued to represent the county till the end of the first reformed parliament. He was appointed

High Sheriff of Hertfordshire The High Sheriff of Hertfordshire was an ancient Sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the foundation of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around a thousand years. On 1 April 1974, under the provi ...

for 1797–98. He commanded the Western Battalion, Hertfordshire Local Militia, when it was raised at St Albans in 1808.

Parliamentarian

Sebright disclaimed connection with a party, but generally acted with the more advanced Whigs. He was a strong advocate of economy in administration, of the abolition of

sinecure A sinecure ( or ; from the Latin , 'without', and , 'care') is a position with a salary or otherwise generating income that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service. The term originated in the medieval church, ...

s and unnecessary offices, and of the reduction of

indirect taxation An indirect tax (such as a sales tax, per unit tax, value-added tax (VAT), excise tax, consumption tax, or tariff) is a tax that is levied upon goods and services before they reach the customer who ultimately pays the indirect tax as a part of m ...

. He was in principle a free-trader. On 5 April 1821 he seconded Lord Cranborne's motion for an inquiry into the game laws, and supported subsequent bills for their amendment. In 1826 he attributed the increase of crime chiefly to their influence. In 1824, and again in 1828, he spoke in favour of the repeal of the usury laws, and he 'detested monopolies of all kinds.' As a practical agriculturist, owning land in three counties, Sebright gave his opinion (17 December 1830) against any allotments larger than kitchen-gardens, but was willing to try an experiment on a larger scale. When, on 1 March 1831,

Lord John Russell John Russell, 1st Earl Russell (18 August 1792 – 28 May 1878), known as Lord John Russell before 1861, was a British Whig and Liberal statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1852 and again from 1865 to 186 ...

moved for leave to bring in the first Reform Bill, Sebright, as an independent member, seconded the motion; and supported this and the succeeding reform bills. On 17 December 1832 he was returned for Hertfordshire, at the head of the poll, to the first reformed parliament, but retired at its close.

Death and legacy

He died on 15 April 1846 at

Turnham Green Turnham Green is a public park on Chiswick High Road, Chiswick, London, and the neighbourhood and conservation area around it; historically, it was one of the four medieval villages in the Chiswick area, the others being Old Chiswick, Littl ...

and was buried at Flamstead. A portrait of him was engraved by S. Reynolds from a painting by Boileau. He built and endowed a school at Cheverell's Green, and a row of almshouses for sixteen paupers in the parish of Flamstead, Hertfordshire, where some of the family property lay. The Sebright bantam, which he created, is named after him and remains a popular breed of chicken to this day.

Works

In 1809 he published a letter to

Sir Joseph Banks Sir Joseph Banks, 1st Baronet, (19 June 1820) was an English naturalist, botanist, and patron of the natural sciences. Banks made his name on the 1766 natural-history expedition to Newfoundland and Labrador. He took part in Captain James Co ...

on ''The Art of Improving the Breeds of Domestic Animals''. Sebright was also author of ''Observations on Hawking, describing the mode of breaking and managing several kinds of hawks used in falconry'', 1826; and of ''Observations upon the Instinct of Animals'', 1836.

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

commented on Sebright's practical skill as a breeder in ''

The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication ''The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication'' is a book by Charles Darwin that was first published in January 1868. A large proportion of the book contains detailed information on the domestication of animals and plants but it al ...

''.

Family

He married, on 6 August 1793, Harriet, heiress of Richard Crofts of West Harling,

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

. She died in August 1826, having borne nine children: * Sir Thomas Gage Saunders Sebright, 8th Baronet (1802–1864). He married Lady Sarah Anne Hoffmann (12 September 1809 - 14 February 1846), daughter of Frederick Hoffman, Esq., Capt R.N. (author of "A Sailor of King George: The Journals of Captain Frederick Hoffman, RN, 1793-1814"). Lady Sarah Anne is buried in the

English Cemetery, Florence The English Cemetery in Florence, Italy (Italian, ''Cimitero degli inglesi'', ''Cimitero Porta a' Pinti'' and ''Cimitero Protestante'') is an Evangelical cemetery located at Piazzale Donatello. Although its origins date to its foundation in 1827 ...

. *Frederica Anne Sebright *Emily Sebright (d. 1822), married Frederick Franks in 1822 *Caroline Sebright *Frances Elizabeth Sebright *Sophia Sebright (d. 1829), unmarried *Mary Anne Sebright *Octavia Elinor Sebright *Gertrude Sebright (11 Aug 1807 – 1820)

References

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Sebright, John Saunders 1767 births 1846 deaths British agricultural writers British Army officers Hertfordshire Militia officers Sebright, 07th Baronet Deputy lieutenants of Hertfordshire Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Hertfordshire High sheriffs of Hertfordshire UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs 1832–1835 People from Wychavon (district) People from Markyate Burials in Hertfordshire Military personnel from the City of Westminster 18th-century British Army personnel 19th-century British Army personnel