Thomas Pelham, 1st Baron Pelham of Laughton Bt ( 1653 – 23 February 1712) was a moderate

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

Whig politician and

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 several constituencies. He is best remembered as the father of two British prime ministers (

Henry Pelham Henry Pelham (25 September 1694 – 6 March 1754) was a British Whig statesman who served as 3rd Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1743 until his death in 1754. He was the younger brother of Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle, who ...

and the

Duke of Newcastle Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne was a title that was created three times, once in the Peerage of England and twice in the Peerage of Great Britain. The first grant of the title was made in 1665 to William Cavendish, 1st Marquess of Newcastle u ...

) who, between them, served for 18 years as first minister. Pelham was born in Laughton, Sussex, the son of

Sir John Pelham, 3rd Baronet Sir John Pelham, 3rd Baronet (1623–1703) was an English landowner and Member of Parliament who sat in the Commons between 1645 and 1698. Personal details John Pelham was born in 1623, eldest son of Sir Thomas Pelham, 2nd Baronet, and his wi ...

and his wife Lucy Sidney (daughter of

Robert Sidney, 2nd Earl of Leicester Robert Sidney, 2nd Earl of Leicester (1 December 1595 – 2 November 1677) was an English diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1614 and 1625 and then succeeded to the peerage as Earl of Leicester. Life Sidney was born a ...

). Pelham was educated at

Tonbridge School (God Giveth the Increase) , established = , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent day and boarding , religion = , president = , head_label ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

. He sat for

East Grinstead East Grinstead is a town in West Sussex, England, near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders, south of London, northeast of Brighton, and northeast of the county town of Chichester. Situated in the extreme northeast of the county, the civ ...

from October 1678 until August 1679. In October 1679 he was returned for

Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. It is the police and judicial centre for all of Sussex and is home to Sussex Police, East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Lewes Crown Court and HMP Lewes. The civil parish is the centre of ...

, serving until 1702; he subsequently chose to sit for

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

, a seat he held until 1705.

Personal life

On 26 November 1679 Pelham married Elizabeth Jones, daughter of Sir William Jones,

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

from 1650 to 1679 and his wife Elizabeth Alleyn, with whom he had two daughters: * Hon. Elizabeth Pelham (died 11 May 1711), married

Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend, (; 18 April 167421 June 1738) was an English Whig statesman. He served for a decade as Secretary of State for the Northern Department, 1714–1717, 1721–1730. He directed British foreign policy in ...

* Hon. Lucy Pelham, died unmarried Pelham's wife Elizabeth died in October 1681. In May 1686, he married Lady Grace Holles (daughter of

Gilbert Holles, 3rd Earl of Clare Gilbert Holles, 3rd Earl of Clare (24 April 1633 – 16 January 1689) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1660. He was styled Lord Haughton from 1637 until he succeeded to the title Earl of Clare in 1666. Life Holles was t ...

and Grace Pierrepoint), with whom he had two sons and five daughters: *Hon. Grace Pelham (died 1710), married

George Naylor George Naylor (21 October 1670 – 29 January 1730), of Hurstmonceaux, Sussex, was an English lawyer and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1706 and 1722. Naylor was the eldest son of Francis Naylor of Staple Inn and his wi ...

Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne and 1st Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne, (21 July 169317 November 1768) was a British Whig statesman who served as the 4th and 6th Prime Minister of Great Britain, his official life extende ...

(1693–1768) *Hon.

(1694–1754) *Hon. Frances Pelham (died 27 June 1756), married

Christopher Wandesford, 2nd Viscount Castlecomer Christopher Wandesford, 2nd Viscount Castlecomer (2 March 1684 – 23 June 1719) was an Irish politician who sat in the Parliament of Ireland in 1707 and in the British House of Commons between 1710 and 1719. Wandesford was the son of Christoph ...

*Hon. Gertrude Pelham, married Edmund Polhill *Hon. Lucy Pelham (died 20 July 1736), married

Henry Clinton, 7th Earl of Lincoln Henry Clinton, 7th Earl of Lincoln, (16847 September 1728), was the elder surviving son of Francis Clinton, 6th Earl of Lincoln and his second wife Susan Penyston (died 1720), younger daughter of Rev Anthony Penyston (son of Sir Thomas Peny ...

*Hon. Margaret Pelham (died 23 November 1758), married Sir John Shelley, 4th Baronet Both of Pelham's sons went on to serve as

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As modern pr ...

. He served as a

Lord Commissioner of the Treasury In the United Kingdom there are at least six Lords Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury, serving as a commission for the ancient office of Treasurer of the Exchequer. The board consists of the First Lord of the Treasury, the Second Lord of the ...

for three separate periods (March 1690–March 1692; May 1697–June 1699 and March 1701–May 1702); in 1706, he was elevated to the peerage as Baron Pelham of Laughton (having previously succeeded to his father's

baronet 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 ...

age in 1703).. Retrieved 2011-10-05.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pelham, Thomas Pelham, 1st Baron 1653 births 1712 deaths Barons in the Peerage of England Peers of England created by Queen Anne

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 ...

English MPs 1661–1679 English MPs 1679 English MPs 1680–1681 English MPs 1681 English MPs 1685–1687 English MPs 1689–1690 English MPs 1690–1695 English MPs 1695–1698 English MPs 1698–1700 English MPs 1701 English MPs 1701–1702 English MPs 1702–1705 Parents of prime ministers of the United Kingdom Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford People educated at Tonbridge School People from Laughton, East Sussex