Sir Thomas Earle (c. 1629–24 June 1696), of Bristol and Crudwell, was an English merchant 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 1681 to 1685.

Early life

Earle was the son of William Earle, yeoman, of

Patney __NOTOC__ Patney is a small village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, in the Vale of Pewsey about south-east of Devizes. The infant Salisbury Avon forms part of the southern boundary of the parish. Religious sites The nearest Anglican c ...

and his wife Joan Dickenson, daughter of Robert Dickenson, yeoman, of

Chirton Chirton is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, on the southern edge of the Vale of Pewsey about south-east of Devizes. The parish includes the hamlet of Conock, about half a mile west of Chirton village. Both settlements are jus ...

. He was apprenticed to a merchant of

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

in 1647, and became a

Freeman Freeman, free men, or variant, may refer to: * a member of the Third Estate in medieval society (commoners), see estates of the realm * Freeman, an apprentice who has been granted freedom of the company, was a rank within Livery companies * Free ...

of Bristol in 1656. He traded with New England and the Iberian Peninsula. Before 1658, he married Elinor Jackson, daughter of Joseph Jackson of Small Street, Bristol, and

Sneyd Park Sneyd Park is a suburb of Bristol, England, lying on the western fringe of Clifton Down, adjacent to the Avon Gorge and the Sea Walls observation point. It is part of the Stoke Bishop district. Home to many millionaires, Sneyd Park was originally ...

, Gloucestershire.

Political career

Earle became a member of the

Society of Merchant Venturers The Society of Merchant Venturers is a charitable organisation in the English city of Bristol. The society can be traced back to a 13th-century guild which funded the voyage of John Cabot to Canada. In 1552, it gained a monopoly on sea trading ...

of Bristol in 1663. In 1668, he became a common councilman of Bristol until 1684. He was Warden of the Merchant Venturers in 1670, Sheriff of Bristol for the year 1671 to 1672, and Master of the Merchant Venturers for the year 1673 to 1774. In 1676 he became a JP for Wiltshire. He succeeded to the estate of his uncle Giles Earle at

Crudwell Crudwell is a village and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England. The nearest towns are Malmesbury, about to the south-west, and Cirencester, Gloucestershire to the north-east. Also to the north-east is Cotswold Airport. Kemble village, abou ...

in 1677 and in the same year became Commissioner for Assessment for Bristol. He was also

High Sheriff of Wiltshire This is a list of the Sheriffs and (after 1 April 1974) High Sheriffs of Wiltshire. Until the 14th century, the shrievalty was held ''ex officio'' by the castellans of Old Sarum Castle. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Gov ...

for the year 1679 to 1680. He carried on trading with New England and the Peninsula after succeeding to the Crudwell estate. Earle was elected 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

at a by election in January 1681 and again at the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

two months later. He became an alderman and

Mayor of Bristol The Mayor of Bristol is the head of government of Bristol and the chief executive of the Bristol City Council. The mayor is a directly elected politician who, along with the 70 members of Bristol City Council, is responsible for the strategic ...

, and JP for Wiltshire and Somerset in 1681. He was knighted on 4 December 1681. Earle did not stand for Parliament again at the 1685 general election. He became JP for Gloucestershire and Deputy Lieutenant for Bristol from 1685 to 1686. He ceased to be JP for Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Somerset in 1687 prior to the Glorious Revolution. In October 1688 he became common councilman again and in 1689 became Deputy Lieutenant for Bristol and alderman for Bristol again. He also served again for a year as Commissioner for Assessment. In 1690 he became JP for Wiltshire again.

Death and legacy

Earle died on 24 June 1696, aged 67, and was buried at St. Werburgh's. He and his wife had four sons and five daughters. His eldest son,

Joseph Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

succeeded to the family business and was a Whig MP for Bristol. His youngest son, Giles, inherited the Crudwell estate and was also MP.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Earle, Thomas 1620s births 1696 deaths High Sheriffs of Wiltshire Mayors of Bristol Members of the Parliament of England for Bristol Businesspeople from Bristol English MPs 1680–1681 17th-century English businesspeople Members of the Society of Merchant Venturers