Walter Hungerford (9 July 1675 – 1754), of Studley House, near

Calne Calne () is a town and civil parish in Wiltshire, southwestern England,OS Explorer Map 156, Chippenham and Bradford-on-Avon Scale: 1:25 000.Publisher: Ordnance Survey A2 edition (2007). at the northwestern extremity of the North Wessex Downs h ...

, Wiltshire, was an English Whig politician who sat in the

English House of Commons The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England (which incorporated Wales) from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of ...

in 1701 and in the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 mem ...

from 1734 to 1747.

Early life

Hungerford was the second, but eldest surviving son of Sir George Hungerford of Cadenham House,

Bremhill Bremhill is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The village is about northwest of Calne and east of Chippenham. The name originates from '' 'Bramble hill'.'' Geography Bremhill civil parish is a rural area which stretches nort ...

, Wiltshire and his wife, Frances Seymour, daughter of Charles Seymour, 2nd Baron Seymour MP, of

Trowbridge Trowbridge ( ) is the county town of Wiltshire, England, on the River Biss in the west of the county. It is near the border with Somerset and lies southeast of Bath, 31 miles (49 km) southwest of Swindon and 20 miles (32 km) southe ...

. He was sent away to sea as a young man with a loan of £500 from his father. He later raised a lengthy suit in Chancery against his father, and also alienated his sister Frances after claiming the reversion of her house in

Yatesbury Yatesbury is a village in Wiltshire, England. It is next to Cherhill, north of the A4 road (England), A4 road between Calne and Marlborough, Wiltshire, Marlborough. Yatesbury was an ancient parish and in the 19th century became a Civil parishe ...

, a dowry from Sir George, following her husband's death in 1693; he refused to repay the £1,000 mortgage owed to Sir Robert Holford, who threatened to evict Frances. He married Elizabeth Dodson of

St Clement Danes St Clement Danes is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London. It is situated outside the Royal Courts of Justice on the Strand. Although the first church on the site was reputedly founded in the 9th century by the Danes, the current ...

, London on 22 November 1703. He succeeded his father in 1712.

Career

Hungerford was returned as

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

at the first general election of 1701, where there was a vacancy because his elder brother,

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

, had died prematurely in 1698 and his brother-in-law, Henry Blaake, the sitting member, had fallen out with Sir George Hungerford. He made little or no impression upon the work of the House and he is not known to have spoken. He was not put up to stand at the second general election of 1701. In 1708, he purchased the office of Commissioner of Appeals in Excise worth, £200 a year, from

Joseph Addison Joseph Addison (1 May 1672 – 17 June 1719) was an English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. He was the eldest son of The Reverend Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend Richard S ...

. He was dismissed from the post in December 1714 despite an appeal from Addison to the Treasury to let him "enjoy the fruits of his purchase". Hungerford stood at Calne in 1715, but was defeated. He served as

High Sheriff of Wiltshire This is a list of the Sheriffs and (after 1 April 1974) High Sheriffs of Wiltshire. Until the 14th century, the shrievalty was held ''ex officio'' by the castellans of Old Sarum Castle. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the Local Gov ...

for the year 1727 to 1729. At the

1734 British general election The 1734 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 8th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. Robert Walpole's incr ...

, he was returned again as Whig MP for Calne. He voted against the Spanish convention in 1739 but thenceforth supported the Administration. His only known speeches were on 16 March 1739, when he opposed a motion to take the duty off Irish yarn, 1741 and on 6 December 1743, when he spoke against an opposition motion to discontinue the Hanoverians in English pay. Classed as an Old Whig in 1746, he did not stand again.

Death and legacy

Hungerford used his residence at Studley House as a base from which to purchase further Wiltshire properties, including

Rodbourne Rodbourne is a suburb of Swindon in Wiltshire, England, north of the town centre and about northwest of Swindon railway station. It includes an area formerly called Even Swindon. Northern area Land to the north of the Wilts and Berks Canal a ...

manor and neighbouring messuages. His wife Elizabeth died in 1749. He died without issue on 31 May 1754 and was buried in the family vault at Bremhill, Wiltshire. He left Rodbourne and Great Durnford manors, Wiltshire, and Stanton Court, Devon, to three nephews.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hungerford, Walter 1675 births 1754 deaths Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747