Thomas Vernon (1724–1771) was a landowner 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 o ...

(MP) in eighteenth century

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

He was the only son of Bowater Vernon (1683–1735), who had inherited

Hanbury Hall Hanbury Hall is a large 18th-century stately home standing in parkland at Hanbury, Worcestershire. The main range has two storeys and is built of red brick in the Queen Anne style. It is a Grade I listed building, and the associated Orangery a ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...

and large estates in

Hanbury Hanbury may refer to: People *Harold Greville Hanbury (1898–1993), English law academic and Vinerian Professor of English Law at the University of Oxford * John Hanbury (disambiguation), a number of men with this name * Robert Hanbury Brown (191 ...

and elsewhere from his second cousin Thomas Vernon, who had died childless. Thomas was brought up in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in the family home in

New Bond Street Bond Street in the West End of London links Piccadilly in the south to Oxford Street in the north. Since the 18th century the street has housed many prestigious and upmarket fashion retailers. The southern section is Old Bond Street and the ...

, and was only 11 when his father died. After a spell at

University College, Oxford University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the unive ...

, he was elected as an MP for the Worcester constituency in 1746 to fill the vacancy created by the death of Thomas Winnington. He continued to represent Worcester till 1761. Vernon married Emma (1711–77), daughter of Vice Admiral Charles Cornwall of Berrington in

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthsh ...

. It seems he first married her in the Mayfair Chapel, notorious for conducting clandestine marriages, and perhaps went through a second marriage when it became clear that a record of the first was not properly kept. No record of either marriage, of the christening of either of his children, Emma (1756–1818) or Thomas (born and died 1754), survives. Thomas was regarded as more sensible than his profligate father Bowater, and spent the last part of his life managing the family estates which stretched to nearly 10,000 acres (40 km²) in

Dodderhill Dodderhill is a civil parish, near Droitwich, Worcestershire, England, located on the River Salwarpe. The parish is bisected by the M5 motorway, constructed in 1962. It is home to the Droitwich transmitting station in Wychbold. History One o ...

Feckenham Feckenham is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Redditch in Worcestershire, England. It lies some south-west of the town of Redditch and some east of the city of Worcester. It had a population of 670 in the 2001 census and its immed ...

and

Shrawley Shrawley is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. The village is situated on the western bank of the River Severn. The northern and southern boundaries of the parish are two small trib ...

in Worcestershire, and in Shropshire and Warwickshire. He died suddenly in December 1771, and left as his heir his only surviving child Emma, who, in 1776, married

Henry Cecil Sir Henry Richard Amherst Cecil (11 January 1943 – 11 June 2013) was a British flat racing horse trainer. Cecil was very successful, becoming Champion Trainer ten times and training 25 domestic Classic winners. These comprised four winners ...

, later Earl, then Marquis, of Exeter.

References

*Vernon archive in Worcester County Record Office 705:7 BA7335. *Jeffrey Haworth, ''Guide Book to Hanbury Hall'' (National Trust) *Rate books for St George's Hanover Sq in Westminster City Archives; *Parish Register for Eye in Herefordshire County Record Office {{DEFAULTSORT:Vernon, Thomas 1724 births 1771 deaths Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Worcester British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1747–1754 British MPs 1754–1761