Sir John Molesworth, 4th Baronet (1705–1766) of

Pencarrow Pencarrow ( kw, Pennkarow) is a listed building, Grade II*-listed country house in the civil parish of Egloshayle, in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated three miles (5 km) east-southeast of Wadebridge and three miles ( ...

, Cornwall, was a British landowner and Tory 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. ...

between 1734 and 1761. pencarrow

Molesworth was baptized on 28 February 1705, the eldest of Sir John Molesworth, 3rd Baronet, and his wife Jane Arscott daughter of John Arscott of Tetcott, Devon. In June 1723, he succeeded to the

baronetcy 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 ...

and Pencarrow, on the death of his father. He married Barbara Morice, daughter of

Sir Nicholas Morice, 2nd Baronet Sir Nicholas Morice, 2nd Baronet (1681–1726) of Werrington, Cornwall, Werrington Park (then in Devon but now in Cornwall) was an English people, English politician who sat in the English House of Commons, English and British House of Commons from ...

in 1728. 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 ...

Molesworth was returned unopposed as a 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 of ...

for Newport on the interest of his brother-in-law, Sir William Morice. He did not stand 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 ...

but was returned as MP for

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

at a by-election on 12 December 1744 in succession to his wife's brother-in-law,

Sir John St Aubyn, 3rd Baronet Sir John St Aubyn, 3rd Baronet (1696–1744), of Clowance and St Michael's Mount, Cornwall, was an English Tory politician who sat in the British House of Commons, House of Commons from 1722 to 1744. Early life St Aubyn was born on 27 September 1 ...

. He was returned unopposed again at the

1747 British general election The 1747 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 10th 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 Henr ...

. He voted consistently against the Governments of Walpole and Pelham. Molesworth was alarmed at the threat of a contest at the

1754 British general election The 1754 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 11th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. Owing to the exten ...

but it did not materialize and he was returned unopposed. However he declined the prospect of a contest at the

1761 British general election The 1761 British general election returned members to serve in the 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 Scotland in 1707. This was the first P ...

. Molesworth started the construction of Pencarrow in the 1760s, extending a large older house on the site. He died on 4 April 1766, leaving two sons and a daughter. He was succeeded in the baronetcy by his son

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

who completed the house at Pencarrow.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Molesworth, Sir John, 4th Baronet 1705 births 1766 deaths British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1747–1754 British MPs 1754–1761 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies 4

Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Newport (Cornwall)