Richard Muilman Trench Chiswell (baptised 23 March 1734 – 3 February 1797) was an English banker,

antiquarian An antiquarian or antiquary () is an fan (person), aficionado or student of antiquities or things of the past. More specifically, the term is used for those who study history with particular attention to ancient artifact (archaeology), artifac ...

and MP. He committed suicide after his

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...

Life

Henry Muilman' marriage with Phillips took place at St Benet's, Paul's Wharf. Richard Muilman was born as the son of the Dutch merchant/banker Peter Muilman (Amsterdam, 10 December 1706-Marylebone, 4 February 1790) who settled in

Bishopsgate Bishopsgate was one of the eastern gates in London's former defensive wall. The gate gave its name to the Bishopsgate Ward of the City of London. The ward is traditionally divided into ''Bishopsgate Within'', inside the line wall, and ''Bishop ...

in 1722, close to London’s Dutch church the last remaining fragment of

Austin Friars Austin Friars is a coeducational independent day school located in Carlisle, England. The Senior School provides secondary education for 350 boys and girls aged 11–18. There are 150 children aged 4–11 in the Junior School and the Nursery ha ...

. Peter Muilman married Mary Chiswell in 1734 and owned

Kirby Hall, Essex Kirby Hall is a house in Castle Hedingham, Braintree, Essex. History It was originally the home of John de Vere (–1624), eldest brother of Horace and Francis. They were members of a junior branch of the de Vere family and their first cousin wa ...

near

Great Yeldham Great Yeldham is a village in north Essex, England, about from the Suffolk border. Great Yeldham is situated along the busy main A1017 road (formerly A604) between Braintree and Haverhill. The village is where the infant River Colne is joi ...

. For many years his father and uncle Henry cooperated with their brothers, bankers in Amsterdam. They traded on Denmark, Russia, Dutch Guiana and the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

. In 1757 Richard joined the Muilman company, which cooperated with the

Clifford family (bankers) The Clifford family was a family of bankers, merchants and regenten of English descent who were active in Amsterdam during the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries. The family originated in northern England, although the surname originated ...

in speculating on the rise of EIC-stocks and in the circulation of

bills of exchange A negotiable instrument is a document guaranteeing the payment of a specific amount of money, either on demand, or at a set time, whose payer is usually named on the document. More specifically, it is a document contemplated by or consisting of a ...

but the Cliffords were hit by the

credit crisis of 1772 The British credit crisis of 1772-1773 also known as the crisis of 1772, or the panic of 1772, was a peacetime financial crisis which originated in London and then spread to Scotland and the Dutch Republic.

. Richard assumed the extra surnames of Trench and Chiswell by royal licence on 28 November 1772 after the death of his mother's brother,

Richard Chiswell Richard Chiswell (1673 – 14 May 1751) was a wealthy English merchant and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1715 to 1722. Early life Chiswell was the eldest surviving son of Richard Chiswell, a bookseller of London, and his secon ...

, when he inherited a fortune of £120,000 (£ as of ) and

Debden Hall, Uttlesford :''There was another Debden Hall in Essex, in Epping Forest'' Debden Hall was a country house in the north-west of the county of Essex, in England. It was demolished in 1936. Debden, Uttlesford is a village, parish and manor south of Saffron Wal ...

in Essex. He was appointed

High Sheriff of Essex The High Sheriff of Essex was an ancient sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the invasion of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around a thousand years. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the ...

for 1776. Chiswell made some literary collections relating to the history of Essex, and he was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in 1791. He is said to have owned some "fine Caxtons" which were accidentally burned. He was elected MP for Aldborough, Yorkshire, in 1790, and served until his death, supporting the government of

William Pitt the Younger William Pitt the Younger (28 May 175923 January 1806) was a British statesman, the youngest and last prime minister of Great Britain (before the Acts of Union 1800) and then first prime minister of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Ire ...

. In 1792 he voted against the Slave Trade Bill. His mind became deranged as a result of unsuccessful speculations in the West Indies in which he may have lost £450,000 (£ as of ). He shot himself in his country house.

Family

Keen on local history Peter Muilman supported financially the publication of "''A New and Complete History of Essex, From a Late Survey; Compared with the most celebrated Histories Containing, A natural and pleasing Description of the Several Divisions of the County, With Their Products and Curiosities of every Kind Both Ancient and Modern. And a Review of the most remarkable Events and Revolutions therein, from the earliest Era down to 1769''" to be issued in 36 fortnightly parts. The author seems to have been Henry Dudley. Henry Muilman (27 August 1698-4 May 1772) married a notorious courtisane

Teresia Constantia Phillips Teresia Constantia Phillips or Con Phillips (1700/1703 – 2 February 1765) was a British courtesan and bigamist who married at least five times and published a scandalous autobiography. The case is narrated in Lawrence Stone, 'Uncertain unions. ...

in 1724. It has been speculated that the marriage was ended after her past was discovered.Emma Plaskitt, 'Phillips , Teresia Constantia (1709–1765)', ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 200
accessed 1 April 2015
(subscription is required) Muilman refused to pay her the money that had been agreed as part of the separation and a dispute began. After his divorce he married Anne Darnell in 1728. The long-running court case between Phillips and Muilman was settled in 1748. In 1756, Richard married Mary (c1732-1807), a daughter of Dr

James Jurin James Jurin Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, FRCP (baptised 15 December 168429 March 1750) was an English scientist and physician, particularly remembered for his early work in capillary action and in ...

; he lived at

Portland Place Portland Place is a street in the Marylebone district of central London. Named after the Third Duke of Portland, the unusually wide street is home to BBC Broadcasting House, the Chinese and Polish embassies, the Royal Institute of British A ...

. Their only child, also Mary, married the British Resident in Venice,

Sir Francis Vincent, 8th Baronet ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as p ...

. Chiswell's first cousin, Anna Muilman, married

John Julius Angerstein John Julius Angerstein (1735 – 22 January 1823) was a London businessman and Lloyd's underwriter, a patron of the fine arts and a collector. It was the prospect that his collection of paintings was about to be sold by his estate in 1824 ...

.Twist, A.F. (2002) Widening circles in finance, philanthropy and the arts. A study of the life of John Julius Angerstein 1735-1823
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References

;Attribution *

External links

1734 births 1797 deaths People educated at Newcome's School Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies British MPs 1790–1796 British MPs 1796–1800 British politicians who committed suicide Suicides by firearm in England High Sheriffs of Essex Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London {{England-GreatBritain-MP-stub