Sir William Milner, 1st Baronet (c.1696–1745) of
Nun Appleton, Yorkshire, was a British politician who sat in the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
from 1722 to 1734.
![Nun Appleton Hall, Nun Appleton Estate (geograph 4103714)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Nun_Appleton_Hall%2C_Nun_Appleton_Estate_%28geograph_4103714%29.jpg)
Milner was the eldest son of William Milner of Nun Appleton, and his wife Mary Ibbetson, daughter of Joshua Ibbetson, mayor of Leeds. His father was a Leeds clothing merchant and alderman and mayor of Leeds, Milner was educated at
Eton College
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...
and was admitted at
Jesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's full name is The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge. Its common name comes fr ...
and at
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn ...
in 1713. He was married on 5 December 1716 to Elizabeth Dawes, daughter of
Sir William Dawes, 3rd Baronet
Sir William Dawes, 3rd Baronet (12 September 1671 – 30 April 1724), was an Anglican prelate. He served as Bishop of Chester from 1708 to 1714 and then as Archbishop of York from 1714 to 1724. Politically he was a Hanoverian Tory, who favoure ...
, who was
Archbishop of York
The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers th ...
from 1714 to 1724. He was created 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 14t ...
on 26 February 1717.
Milner was elected at the
1722 general election as Tory
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
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
on the interest of his father-in-law, the archbishop, who wanted to make it ‘a church borough’. In 1725, he voted against the restoration of Bolingbroke's estates. He was returned unopposed at the
1727 general election, and
crossed the floor
Crossed may refer to:
* ''Crossed'' (comics), a 2008 comic book series by Garth Ennis
* ''Crossed'' (novel), a 2010 young adult novel by Ally Condie
* "Crossed" (''The Walking Dead''), an episode of the television series ''The Walking Dead''
S ...
to the Government side. He voted with the government on most occasions, but voted against them on the civil list arrears in 1729, and the
Excise Bill
The Excise Bill of 1733 was a proposal by the British government of Robert Walpole to impose an excise tax on a variety of products. This would have allowed Customs officers to search private dwellings to look for contraband untaxed goods. The per ...
in 1733. He spoke on 9 February 1732 to complain of a clergyman who claimed publicly that he received pension of £500 a year, and asserted that he would never accept a place or pension while he was a Member of Parliament so that he could keep an unbiased opinion. He stood again at the
1734 general election, but withdrew before the poll and was defeated at the
1741 general election.
Milner was Grand Master of the English Freemasons in 1728. He died in the parish of St George, Hanover Square on 23 November 1745. He and his wife had a son and daughter. His son William succeeded to the baronetcy and was Receiver-General of
Excise
file:Lincoln Beer Stamp 1871.JPG, upright=1.2, 1871 U.S. Revenue stamp for 1/6 barrel of beer. Brewers would receive the stamp sheets, cut them into individual stamps, cancel them, and paste them over the Bunghole, bung of the beer barrel so when ...
and
High Sheriff of Yorkshire
The Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post have been transferred elsewhere o ...
.
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References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Milner, Sir William, 1st Baronet
1690s births
1745 deaths
People educated at Eton College
Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge
British MPs 1722–1727
British MPs 1727–1734
Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies
Baronets in the Baronetage of Great Britain