Sir Robert Clifton, 5th Baronet (1690–1762) KB of

Clifton Hall, Nottingham The Manor of Clifton was a historic manor situated near the City of Nottingham, England. The manor house, known as Clifton Hall is situated on the right bank of the River Trent in the village of Clifton, Nottinghamshire, (). about miles south ...

was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1727 to 1741.

Early life

Clifton was the eldest son of

Sir Gervase Clifton, 4th Baronet Two unrelated baronetcies have been created in the surname of Clifton. The Clifton Baronetcy, of Clifton in the County of Nottinghamshire, was created in the Baronetage of England on 22 May 1611 for Sir Gervas Clifton, of Clifton Hall, Nottingh ...

, and his wife Anne Bagnall, daughter of Dudley Bagnall of Newry, Ireland. He was imprisoned briefly with his father during the

Jacobite Rising of 1715 The Jacobite rising of 1715 ( gd, Bliadhna Sheumais ; or 'the Fifteen') was the attempt by James Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender) to regain the thrones of England, Ireland and Scotland for the exiled Stuarts The House of Stuart, ori ...

. He married on 27 June 1723, Frances Coote, daughter of Nanfan Coote, 2nd Earl of Bellomont. On 27 May 1725, he was made a Knight of the Bath.

Career

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 ...

Clifton planned to stand for both East Retford and

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...

with combined Whig and Tory support, but reached a compromise by which he was assured of support at East Retford where he 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 of ...

. He supported the Government, serving on the gaols committee of the House of Commons. In 1731, he succeeded his father to the baronetcy. He was returned unopposed at the

1734 British general election The 1734 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 8th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. Robert Walpole's incr ...

. He carried on supporting the Government until 1737 when he voted for an increase in the Prince of Wales's allowance. After that he acted with the Opposition. His first wife Frances had died in 1733 and he married on 16 October 1739, Hannah Lombe daughter of Sir Thomas Lombe, Alderman and Sheriff of London and his wife Elizabeth Turner. In a contest for East Retford at the

1741 British general election The 1741 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 9th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw suppo ...

, he came bottom of the poll, despite large bribes paid by his mother-in-law, Lady Lombe, to potential voters. According to Lord Egmont, Clifton separated from his wife and took up with his mother-in-law, both of them behaving so extravagantly that in 1746 he was imprisoned for debt. His second wife Hannah died in 1748. He expressed interest in standing for parliament again, but found little support in his attempts to stand at East Retford in 1747 and Nottingham in 1758. In 1756, he married as his third wife Judith Thwaites, daughter of Captain Thwaites.

Death and legacy

Clifton died on 7 December 1762. By his first wife Frances he had a daughter Frances Clifton, who married in 1747 George Carpenter, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell. By his second wife had a son

Gervase Gervase is a masculine given name which may refer to: Pre-modern era :''Ordered chronologically'' * Gervase of Besançon (died 685), saint and a bishop of Besançon * Gervase of Bazoches (died 1108), Prince of Galilee * Gervase of Blois (died c ...

who succeeded to the baronetcy. His third wife died in 1765.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clifton, Robert, 5th Baronet 1690 births 1762 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of England Politicians from Nottingham Knights Companion of the Order of the Bath British MPs 1727–1734 British MPs 1734–1741 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...