Thomas Knight (15 May 1735 – 23 October 1794) was an English 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. ...

in two periods between 1761 and 1780. Knight was the son of Thomas Knight (previously known as Brodnax and May) of

Godmersham Godmersham is a village and civil parish in the Ashford District of Kent, England. The village straddles the Great Stour river where it cuts through the North Downs and its land is approximately one third woodland, all in the far east and west o ...

and his wife Jane Monke.John Burke ''A genealogical and heraldic history of the commoners of Great Britain''
/ref> In 1761, Knight was elected

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 ...

(MP) for

New Romney New Romney is a market town in Kent, England, on the edge of Romney Marsh, an area of flat, rich agricultural land reclaimed from the sea after the harbour began to silt up. New Romney, one of the original Cinque Ports, was once a sea port, w ...

and held the seat to 1768. In 1774 he was elected MP for

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

and held the seat until 1780. Knight succeeded to his father's estates in 1781, and greatly improved the seat and park of Godmersham.''Parishes: Godmersham'', The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent: Volume 7 (1798), pp. 319-332. Date accessed: 24 November 2010
/ref> Knight died aged 59. Knight married Catherine Knatchbull, daughter of Dr. Wadham Knatchbull,

prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the ...

of Durham. They had no children and by his will he gave

Godmersham Park Godmersham Park is a Grade I listed house in Godmersham in the English county of Kent. The house is on the edge of the North Downs between Ashford and Canterbury. It has associations with the writer Jane Austen, and is depicted on the new B ...

and the lands belonging to it, to his widow Mrs. Catherine Knight, for her life, with remainder to Edward Austen of Rolling Place. Austen, who took the name Knight, was the brother of author

Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...

References

1735 births 1794 deaths British MPs 1774–1780 British MPs 1761–1768 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies People from Godmersham {{England-GreatBritain-MP-stub