Sir Richard Corbet, 4th Baronet (1696–1774), of

Longnor, Shropshire Longnor is a village and civil parish off the A49 road, south of Dorrington and north of Leebotwood in Shropshire, England, with a population of 289. The nearest railway station is Church Stretton, 4.7 miles (7.6 km) away. The Cound Brook ...

, was a British Whig 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. ...

for 24 years between 1723 and 1754. Corbet was baptised on 21 May 1696, the eldest son of Sir Uvedale Corbet, 3rd Baronet, of Longnor, Shropshire, and his wife Lady Mildred Cecil, daughter of

James Cecil, 3rd Earl of Salisbury James Cecil, 3rd Earl of Salisbury, (1648 – June 1683), known as Viscount Cranborne from 1660 to 1668, was an English nobleman and politician. Biography Salisbury was the son of Charles Cecil, Viscount Cranborne, the son of William Cecil ...

. He was the grandson of Sir Richard Corbet, MP for Shrewsbury from 1678 to 1681. His father died on 15 October 1701 and he succeeded to the estates and

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 ...

. His mother subsequently married Sir Charles Hotham, 4th Baronet. Corbet matriculated at

New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at th ...

on 30 June 1713 aged 17. He lived mainly at

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...

, and took an active interest in the business of the corporation. Corbet's father had founded a Whig club at Shrewsbury in 1684, and Corbet followed in the Whig tradition. He stood for Parliament at

at the 1722 general election, and after a defeat in the poll, he was returned on petition as Whig

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 ...

on 9 April 1723. He did not stand in 1727 but was elected after a close contest in

1734 Events January– March * January 8 – Salzburgers, Lutherans who were expelled by the Roman Catholic Bishop of Salzburg, Austria, in October 1731, set sail for the British Colony of Province of Georgia, Georgia in North America ...

. He always voted for the Government. He was returned unopposed at the 1741 general election but faced another hard fought election in

1747 Events January–March * January 31 – The first venereal diseases clinic opens at London Lock Hospital. * February 11 – King George's War: A combined French and Indian force, commanded by Captain Nicolas Antoine II Coul ...

, after which he decided not to seek re-election in 1754. He told Lord Powis of his decision, and asked him to consider maintaining the Whig interest. Corbet died unmarried on 25 September 1774 and the baronetcy became extinct.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Corbet, Sir Richard, 4th Baronet 1696 births 1774 deaths British MPs 1722–1727 British MPs 1727–1734 British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1747–1754 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Baronets in the Baronetage of England