{{Infobox noble , name = Thomas Watson , title = Earl of Rockingham , image = , caption = , alt = , CoA = WatsonRockinghamArms

, more = no , succession = , reign =

George II George II or 2 may refer to: People * George II of Antioch (seventh century AD) * George II of Armenia (late ninth century) * George II of Abkhazia (916–960) * Patriarch George II of Alexandria (1021–1051) * George II of Georgia (1072–1089 ...

, reign-type = , predecessor = Lewis Watson, 2nd Earl of Rockingham , successor = , suc-type = , spouse = , spouse-type = , issue-type = , issue = , issue-link = , issue-pipe = , full name = , native_name = , styles = , other_titles = {{Plainlist, * Viscount Sondes * Baron Throwley * Baron Rockingham , noble family = Watson , house-type = , father = Edward Watson, Viscount Sondes , mother = Catherine Tufton , birth_name = , birth_date = 30 December 1715 , birth_place = , christening_date = , christening_place = , death_date = {{Death date and age, 1746, 02, 26, 1715, 12, 30, df=y , death_place = , burial_date = 11 March 1746 , burial_place = Rockingham church , occupation = politician , memorials = , website = , module = Thomas Watson, 3rd Earl of Rockingham (30 December 1715 – 26 February 1746), styled Hon. Thomas Watson until 1745, was an English nobleman and politician. He represented

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

in the House of Commons and was appointed

Lord Lieutenant of Kent This is a list of people who have served as Lord-Lieutenant of Kent. Since 1746, all Lords Lieutenant have also been Custos Rotulorum of Kent. Lords Lieutenant of Kent * Sir Thomas Cheney 1551–? *William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham 3 July 1585 � ...

after succeeding to the earldom, but died shortly thereafter.{{sfn, Newman, 1970 The second son of Edward Watson, Viscount Sondes, Watson entered

Eton College Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...

in 1725 and Lincoln's Inn in 1732. In the

1741 British general election The 1741 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 9th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw supp ...

, he stood for

as an opposition Whig. Watson and the Tory Thomas Best ousted the incumbent Sir Thomas Hales, a Whig supporter of Walpole's administration. He continued in opposition to successive governments during his tenure in the House of Commons, which terminated in 1745 when he became Earl of Rockingham on the death of his elder brother Lewis. Despite his politics, he was appointed

in succession to his brother, but did not long survive the appointment: he died of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) ce ...

at Rockingham Castle 26 February and was buried 11 March 1746 at Rockingham.{{sfn, Newman, 1970{{sfn, Cokayne, 1949, p=59{{sfn, Wise, 1891, p=111 On his death, which brought to an end the male line of the Watsons of Rockingham Castle, the Earldom of Rockingham, the Viscountcy of Sondes of Lees Court, and the Barony of Throwley became extinct.{{sfn, Cokayne, 1949, p=59 He was succeeded as Baron Rockingham by Thomas Watson-Wentworth, 1st Earl of Malton, his first cousin once removed.{{sfn, Cokayne, 1949, p=59 Rockingham left his estate to his first cousin Lewis Monson, who thereafter adopted the surname of Watson.{{sfn, Newman, 1970

References

{{reflist

Sources

*{{cite book , last1=Cokayne , first1=G. E. , author-link=George Edward Cokayne , date=1949 , editor1-last=White , editor1-first=Geoffrey H. , title=The Complete Peerage, or a History of the House of Lords and all its Members from the Earliest Times , volume=11 , location=London , publisher=St Catherine Press , pp=58–59 *{{cite book , last1=Handley , first1=Stuart , editor1-last=Hayton , editor1-first=D. , editor2-last=Cruickshanks , editor2-first=E. , editor3-last=Handley , editor3-first=S. , title=The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1690-1715 , date=2002 , publisher=

British History Online ''British History Online'' is a digital library of primary and secondary sources on medieval and modern history of Great Britain and Ireland. It was created and is managed as a cooperative venture by the Institute of Historical Research, Uni ...

, chapter-url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/member/watson-hon-edward-1686-1722 , chapter=Watson, Hon. Edward (1686-1722), of Lees Court, Sheldwich, Kent, and Park Place, London *{{cite book , last1=Henning , first1=Basil Duke , editor1-last=Henning , editor1-first=Basil Duke , title=The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1660-1690 , date=1983 , publisher=British History Online , chapter-url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1660-1690/member/watson-hon-lewis-1655-1724 , chapter=Watson, Hon. Lewis (1655-1724), of Rockingham Castle, Northants *{{cite book , last1=Newman , first1=A. N. , editor1-last=Sedgwick , editor1-first=Romney , editor1-link=Romney Sedgwick , title=The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1715-1754 , date=1970 , publisher=

History of Parliament The History of Parliament is a project to write a complete history of the United Kingdom Parliament and its predecessors, the Parliament of Great Britain and the Parliament of England. The history will principally consist of a prosopography, in ...

, chapter-url=http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1715-1754/member/watson-hon-thomas-1715-46 , chapter=Watson, Hon. Thomas (1715-46) *{{cite book , last1=Wise , first1=Charles , title=Rockingham Castle and the Watsons , date=1891 , publisher=Elliot Stock , location=London , url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=gri.ark:/13960/t70w1vt9h&view=1up&seq=149 , oclc=902976023 {{S-start {{S-par, gb {{S-bef, before= Thomas May , before2= Sir Thomas Hales, Bt {{S-ttl, title=

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 Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house ...

for

, years=1741–1745 , with = Thomas Best {{S-aft, after= Sir Thomas Hales, Bt , after2= Thomas Best {{s-hon {{S-bef, before= The Earl of Rockingham {{S-ttl, title=

, years=1746 {{S-aft, after= The Duke of Dorset {{S-reg, gb {{S-bef, before= Lewis Watson {{S-ttl, title= Earl of Rockingham, years=1745–1746 {{S-non, reason=Extinct {{S-reg, en {{S-bef, before= Lewis Watson {{S-ttl, title= Baron Rockingham, years=1745–1746 {{S-aft, after=

Thomas Watson-Wentworth Hon. Thomas Watson, later known as Thomas Watson-Wentworth (17 June 1665 – 6 October 1723), of Wentworth Woodhouse in Yorkshire, was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1701 and 1723. Origins He was ...

{{s-end {{DEFAULTSORT:Rockingham, Thomas Watson, 3rd Earl Of 1715 births 1746 deaths People educated at Eton College Members of Lincoln's Inn Watson, Thomas Watson, Thomas Earls in the Peerage of Great Britain Lord-Lieutenants of Kent