Thomas Brand (17 September 1749 – 21 February 1794) was an English country landowner of

Kimpton, Hertfordshire Kimpton is a village in Hertfordshire, England, six miles south of Hitchin, seven miles north of St Albans and four miles from Harpenden and Luton. The population at the 2011 Census was 2,167. History Kimpton is mentioned in the Domesday Book: "I ...

and 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. ...

from 1774 to 1780.

Biography

Brand was born on 17 September 1749, the eldest son of Thomas Brand of The Hoo, Kimpton, Hertfordshire and his wife Lady Caroline Pierrepont daughter of

Evelyn Pierrepont, 1st Duke of Kingston-upon-Hull Evelyn Pierrepont, 1st Duke of Kingston-upon-Hull, (c. 16655 March 1726) was an English aristocrat, the third son of Robert Pierrepont of Thoresby, Nottinghamshire, and his wife Elizabeth Evelyn (daughter of John Evelyn), and the grandson of ...

. He was educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

in 1764 and was admitted at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

on 19 January 1765. In August 1770 he succeeded his father to The Hoo. He married Gertrude Roper, daughter of Charles Roper on 20 April 1771. Brand's estate extended into Cambridgeshire and he tried to enter Parliament in 1770 at

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...

in a by-election, but he was dismissed as an outsider, and withdrew before the poll, receiving £1,000 compensation from Sir Sampson Gideon, Bt. At the 1774 general election Brand was returned unopposed 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 ...

for

Arundel Arundel ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Arun District of the South Downs, West Sussex, England. The much-conserved town has a medieval castle and Roman Catholic cathedral. Arundel has a museum and comes second behind much large ...

on the interest of the Duke of Norfolk. There is no record of his having spoken in the House, and 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 ...

. He stood for Cambridgeshire at a by-election in 1789 but there was such support for his opponent

James Whorwood Adeane James Whorwood Adeane (1740 – 15 April 1802), of Babraham, Cambridgeshire and Chalgrove, Oxfordshire, was an English Tory politician. He was the only son of Simon Adeane of Chalgrove and Mary Brydges, niece of James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chan ...

, that he withdrew before the poll.

Death and succession

Brand died on 21 February 1794. His wife Gertrude succeeded her brother Trevor as

Baroness Dacre Baron Dacre is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of England, every time by Hereditary peer#Writs of summons, writ. History The first creation came in 1321 when Ralph Dacre, 1st Baron Dacre, Ralph Dacre was Hereditary peer# ...

on 4 July 1794 and was succeeded firstly by their eldest son

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

and then by their second son Henry Otway. They also had a daughter Gertrude.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brand, Thomas 1749 births 1794 deaths People educated at Westminster School, London Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies British MPs 1774–1780