Sir Orlando Bridgeman, 1st Baronet, FRS (9 December 1649 – 20 April 1701) was an English baronet and politician.

Background

Bridgeman was the second son of Sir Orlando Bridgeman, 1st Baronet, by his second wife Dorothy, daughter of John Saunders. He was educated at Westminster College from 1662 and after two years went to

Magdalene College, Cambridge Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Mary ...

. In 1669 Bridgeman was called to the bar by the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

Career

Bridgeman entered 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 ...

in 1669, having won a by-election for

Horsham Horsham () is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...

.Henning (1983), p. 717 He represented the constituency for the next ten years until the end of the

Cavalier Parliament The Cavalier Parliament of England lasted from 8 May 1661 until 24 January 1679. With the exception of the Long Parliament, it was the longest-lasting English Parliament, and longer than any Great British or UK Parliament to date, enduring ...

in 1679. King Charles II, created him a

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 14th ...

, of Ridley, in the County of

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

on 12 November 1673.Burke (1841), p. 82 In 1673 Bridgeman became Commissioner for Assessment in the county of

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...

, resigning in 1680. He held the same office in

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

for two years from 1679. Additionally he served as Commissioner for Recusants in 1675, assigned to the county of

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

. Bridgeman was elected a fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

in 1696.

Family

Aged twenty he married Mary Cave on 28 September 1670. She was the daughter of Sir Thomas Cave, 1st Baronet and four years his junior. The couple had two daughters and a son. Bridgeman died intestate in 1701 and was survived by his wife for few weeks, she dying on 8 June; both were buried in the Parish Church of St. Michael, Coventry, where a plaque was erected in her honour by her friend Eliza Samwell.Cokayne (1904), p. 56 As

Coventry Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Michael, commonly known as Coventry Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry within the Church of England. The cathedral is located in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midla ...

, the church was destroyed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Bridgeman was succeeded in the baronetcy by his son

Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...

. His older daughter Charlotte (1681-3 March 1718) married Richard Symes of Blackheath as his second wife in 1703. Symes was the son of Thomas Symes Esq. (1617-22 January 1669), and grandson of John Symes, MP from Somerset. His younger daughter Penelope was the second wife of

Thomas Newport, 1st Baron Torrington Thomas Newport, 1st Baron Torrington, ( – 27 May 1719) was an English barrister, Whig politician and peer who sat in the English and British House of Commons from 1695 until 1716 when he was raised to the peerage of Great Britain as Baron ...

, a younger son of

Francis Newport, 1st Earl of Bradford Francis may refer to: People and characters *Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church (2013–2025) *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) * Francis, a character played by YouTuber Boogie2 ...

, whose title later was revived for a descendant of Bridgemans older brother John.Burke (1832), p. 138

Notes

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bridgeman, Orlando, 1st Baronet 1649 births 1701 deaths Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge Baronets in the Baronetage of England Fellows of the Royal Society Members of the Inner Temple English MPs 1661–1679 People educated at Westminster School, London Younger sons of baronets