Sir William Meredith, 3rd Baronet (c. 1725 – 2 January 1790), was a British landowner who sat in the House of Commons from 1754 to 1780. A

Rockingham Whig The Rockingham Whigs (or Rockinghamites) in 18th century British politics were a faction of the Whigs led by Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, from about 1762 until his death in 1782. The Rockingham Whigs briefly held power fr ...

, he served as a Lord of the Admiralty from 1765 to 1766. Henbury, by Kip

Early life

Meredith was the son of Amos Meredith (1688–1745) of Chester and Johanna Cholmondely, daughter of Thomas Cholmondely of Vale Royal, Chester. 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 24 March 1743, aged 18. His father died in 1744, and in 1752, he inherited his baronetcy and estates on the death of his grandfather, Sir William Meredith, 2nd Baronet.

Political career

At the

1754 general election Events January–March * January 28 – Horace Walpole, in a letter to Horace Mann, coins the word ''serendipity''. * February 22 – Expecting an attack by Portuguese-speaking militias in the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Pla ...

, Meredith was returned unopposed as one of the two Members of Parliament for Wigan. By the time of the

1761 general election The 1761 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of Great Britain, House of Commons of the 12th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Sco ...

, the opposition at Wigan had consolidated against him and he stood instead for Liverpool, where he was returned after a contest. As one of the Rockingham Whigs, he served as a Lord of the Admiralty from 1765 to 1766. He was returned unopposed for Liverpool at the

1768 general election The 1768 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 13th Parliament of Great Britain to be held, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election took plac ...

. In 1774, he was sworn of the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

and appointed

Comptroller of the Household The Comptroller of the Household is an ancient position in the British royal household, nominally the second-ranking member of the Lord Steward's department after the Treasurer of the Household. The Comptroller was an ''ex officio'' member of t ...

, and at the subsequent 1774 general election was again returned unopposed. Meredith was an extravagant man, and in 1779 was obliged to sell the family estate at Henbury, Cheshire, to John Bower Jodrell for £24,000. He did not stand in

1780 Events January–March * January 16 – American Revolutionary War – Battle of Cape St. Vincent: British Admiral Sir George Rodney defeats a Spanish fleet. * February 19 – The legislature of New York votes to allow ...

because of ill-health. In

1784 Events January–March * January 6 – Treaty of Constantinople: The Ottoman Empire agrees to Russia's annexation of the Crimea. * January 14 – The Congress of the United States ratifies the Treaty of Paris with Great Brit ...

he stood again at Liverpool but withdrew before the end of the poll.

Later life and legacy

Meredith died unmarried in

Lyons Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of th ...

, France, on 2 January 1790. His only brother Theophilus had died in 1775 leaving a daughter, and so the baronetcy became extinct. Of his sisters, *Elizabeth married William Bankes of Winstanley Hall, whose son William was

High Sheriff of Lancashire The High Sheriff of Lancashire is an ancient officer, now largely ceremonial, granted to Lancashire, a county in North West England. High Shrievalties are the oldest secular titles under the Crown, in England and Wales. The High Sheriff of Lanca ...

; *Henrietta married Hon. Frederick Vane (brother of Henry Vane, 2nd Earl of Darlington); *Anne married Barlow Trecothick, on 9 June 1770, while he was Lord Mayor of London;Lewis Namier, John Brooke, "TRECOTHICK, Barlow" in ''The House of Commons 1754-1790'', p. 557. *Anna-Margaretta was the third wife of Assheton Curzon, 1st Viscount Curzon; * Mary married firstly Laurence Shirley, 4th Earl Ferrers, and secondly Lord Frederick Campbell. The town of Meredith, New Hampshire, is named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meredith, William, 3rd Baronet 1720s births 1790 deaths Baronets in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Liverpool Tory MPs (pre-1834) British MPs 1754–1761 British MPs 1761–1768 British MPs 1768–1774 British MPs 1774–1780 Lords of the Admiralty Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain Politics of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan