Sir John Walter, 3rd Baronet (c. 1674–1722) of
Sarsden House
Sarsden is a village and civil parish about south of Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire. The 2001 Census recorded the parish population as 83. Since 2012 Sarsden has been part of the Churchill and Sarsden joint parish council area, sharing a paris ...
, Oxfordshire was a British politician who sat in the
English House of Commons
The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England (which incorporated Wales) from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of ...
between 1694 and 1717 and in the
British House of Commons from 1708 to 1722.
Biography
Walter was the eldest surviving son of Sir William Walter, 2nd Baronet and his first wife Mary Tufton, daughter of
John Tufton, 2nd Earl of Thanet
John Tufton, 2nd Earl of Thanet (15 December 1608 – 7 May 1664) was an English nobleman and supporter of Charles I of England. He was the eldest son of Nicholas Tufton, 1st Earl of Thanet, and Lady Frances Cecil, granddaughter of William Cec ...
. He matriculated at
Queen's College, Oxford
The Queen's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its predominantly neoclassical architecture, ...
, on 21 August 1691.
On 5 March 1694 he succeeded his father to the estates and 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 ...
. He married. Elizabeth Vernon, daughter of
Sir Thomas Vernon merchant and MP of London in about 1700.
[George Edward Cokayne ''Complete Baronetage, Volume 2'' 1900]
/ref>
Walter 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 ...
for Appleby at a by-election on 13 December 1694 on the interest of his uncle Thomas Tufton, 6th Earl of Thanet
Thomas Tufton, 6th Earl of Thanet, 18th Baron de Clifford PC (30 August 1644 – 30 July 1729)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, ...
. He did not stand at the 1695 English general election
The 1695 English general election was the first to be held under the terms of the Triennial Act of 1694, which required parliament to be dissolved and fresh elections called at least every three years. This measure helped to fuel partisan rivalry ...
but was returned again for Appleby at a by-election on 23 December 1697 and then at the 1698 English general election. He was defeated at Appleby at the first general election of 1701 and did not stand there again. He stood unsuccessfully at 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 1705 English general election
The 1705 English general election saw contests in 110 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 several boroughs. During the pre ...
and was elected MP for Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
at a by-election on 11 December 1706. He was returned unopposed there 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 finally gain a majority in the House of Commons, and by November ...
. He was one of a group of wine-bibbing Tories who came together under the Duke of Beaufort's lead in July 1709 to establish the ‘Board of Brothers’. He was a High Church supporter of Dr Sacheverell, and voted against his impeachment early in 1710. At the 1710 British general election he was returned again for Oxford, and was listed as a ‘worthy patriot’ who assisted in exposing the mismanagements of the previous Whig administration, and in 1711 as a ‘Tory patriot’ opposed to the continuance of war. In 1711 he was appointed Clerk of the Green Cloth
The Clerk of the Green Cloth was a position in the British Royal Household. The clerk acted as secretary of the Board of Green Cloth, and was therefore responsible for organising royal journeys and assisting in the administration of the Royal ...
and held the post until 1714. He was returned unopposed for Oxford again at the 1713 British general election. He was returned unopposed as a Tory for Oxford in 1715
Events
For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire i ...
and 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), a ...
. He voted against the Administration in every recorded division
Private life
Walter was a bon viveur who enjoyed drinking (particularly fine French wines), smart fashion, gambling and horse racing and was a popular socialite. His friend Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dubl ...
described him as ”an honest drunken fellow”. However his extravagance forced him to sell off property to pay his debts.[ He sold Godstow to the ]Earl of Abingdon
Earl of Abingdon is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created on 30 November 1682 for James Bertie, 5th Baron Norreys of Rycote. He was the eldest son of Montagu Bertie, 2nd Earl of Lindsey by his second marriage to Bridget, 4th Barones ...
in 1702, most of Cutteslowe
Cutteslowe is a suburb of north Oxford, England, between Sunnymead and Water Eaton.
Archaeology and toponym
The toponym "Cutteslowe" is derived from Old English. The earliest known record of it is from AD 1004 as ''Cuðues hlaye'', which seems ...
to William Breach in 1703, and the remainder of Cutteslowe and Wolvercote
Wolvercote is a village that is part of the City of Oxford, England. It is about northwest of the city centre, on the northern edge of Wolvercote Common, which is itself north of Port Meadow and adjoins the River Thames.
History
The Domesday B ...
to 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 ...
in 1710.
Walter died on 11 June 1722 and was buried at Sarsden. His marriage had been childless and he was succeeded in the baronetcy by his half-brother Robert. He left the Sarsden estate to his wife with reversion to Robert upon her death. He also left £1,000 to his friend Lord Harcourt who in 1724 married Walter's widow. The baronet
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 14t ...
cy became extinct in 1731 when Sir Robert died childless, and the estate then became caught up in a protracted Chancery suit.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walter, Sir John, 3rd Baronet
1670s births
1722 deaths
Alumni of The Queen's College, Oxford
British MPs 1708–1710
British MPs 1710–1713
British MPs 1713–1715
British MPs 1715–1722
British MPs 1722–1727
Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies
Baronets in the Baronetage of England