Sir Richard Grobham Howe, 3rd Baronet (c. 1651–1730), of Little Compton, Withington and Chedworth, Gloucestershire, and Great Wishford, Wiltshire, was an English landowner and Tory politician who sat in the English 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 ...

between 1679 and 1727.

Early life

Howe was the son of Sir Richard Grobham Howe, 2nd Baronet, and his wife Lucy St John, daughter of Sir John St John, 1st Baronet, of Lydiard Tregoze, Wiltshire. He matriculated at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

, on 13 July 1667. On 12 August 1673, he married Mary Thynne, daughter of Sir Henry Frederick Thynne, 1st Baronet, of Kempsford, Glocestershire.

Career

Howe was returned unopposed as Member of Parliament (MP) for Hindon at the general elections in February and August 1679 and sat until January 1681. He was returned unopposed as MP for Tamworth in 1685 and sat until 1687. Howe held an estate at Chedworth, six miles from Cirencester, and at the

1690 English general election The 1690 English general election occurred after the dissolution of the Convention Parliament summoned in the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution, and saw the partisan feuds in that parliament continue in the constituencies. The Tories made signi ...

he was returned in a contest as MP for Cirencester on his own interest. He retained the seat 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 ...

. He refused to sign the Association in February 1696, and opposed fixing the price of guineas at 22 shillings in March. He voted against the attainder of Sir John Fenwick on 25 November 1696. Shortly after, he was removed from the Gloucestershire commission of the peace for not signing the Association. He planned to stand for Wiltshire at the

1698 English general election After the conclusion of the 1698 English general election the government led by the Whig Junto believed it had held its ground against the opposition. Over the previous few years, divisions had emerged within the Whig party between the 'court' sup ...

, but was unable to garner enough support. However, he was returned unopposed for Wiltshire at the first general election of 1701 and then defeated in a contest at the second general election of 1701. He was returned as MP for Wiltshire at 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 (Britis ...

. He succeeded On the death of his father on 1 May 1703, he succeeded to the baronetcy. He voted for the Tack on 28 November 1704. 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 pr ...

, he was returned again for Wiltshire, and voted against the Court candidate for Speaker on 25 October 1705. He was returned as a Tory 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 ...

, and was appointed to the drafting committee on a bill to prevent bribery at elections on 17 January 1709. He was busy sorting out the complicated affairs of Sir Humphrey Mackworth's Company of Mine Adventurers and in raising the complaints of its proprietors and creditors in Parliament. He voted against the impeachment of Dr Sacheverell in 1710. 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 again as a Tory for Wiltshire, and was listed as a 'worthy patriot' who helped detect the mismanagements of the previous administration, and a 'Tory patriot' who opposed to the continuance of war. He was appointed to prepare a bill to restructure the Company of Mine Adventurers on 6 April 1711. He was returned again for Wiltshire at the

1713 British general election The 1713 British general election produced further gains for the governing Tory party. Since 1710 Robert Harley had led a government appointed after the downfall of the Whig Junto, attempting to pursue a moderate and non-controversial policy, b ...

, and supported the French Commerce bill. In 1714, he promoted a bill for the repair of several Wiltshire highways. Howe was returned for Wiltshire 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), as ...

and consistently opposed the Whig administrations. He did not stand 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 ...

Death and legacy

Howe died on 3 July 1730 and was buried at Great Wishford. He had no children and left his main estates in Wiltshire and Gloucestershire to his cousin

John Howe, 1st Baron Chedworth John Howe, 1st Baron Chedworth (died 3 April 1742) of Stowell Park, Gloucestershire was a British peerage, peer and politician. He was the son of John Grubham Howe, of Stowell, MP and Paymaster-General. In 1712, he succeeded his father as Vice-A ...

of Somerset.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howe, Richard Grobham 1651 births 1730 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of England Richard Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Wiltshire English MPs 1701 English MPs 1702–1705 English MPs 1705–1707 British MPs 1707–1708 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 England (pre-1707) for Wiltshire