Sir Walter Rawlinson (29 May 1734''London, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812'' – 13 March 1805) was a British banker and politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

from 1774 to 1790.

Early life

Rawlinson was the son of Sir Thomas Rawlinson and his wife Dorothea Ray, daughter of Rev. Richard Ray, vicar of Haughley, Suffolk. He was baptised at All Hallows Staining at 12 days old on 9 June 1734. His father was a London merchant who became

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the mayor of the City of London and the leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded precedence over all individuals except the sovereign and retains various traditional pow ...

in 1753–4. Rawlinson was educated at Bury St Edmunds Grammar School in 1744 and was admitted at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

on 18 January 1753, aged 18. In 1752 he entered Lincoln's Inn to study law. He married Mary Ladbroke, daughter of Sir Robert Ladbroke on 2 February 1769. He succeeded his father on 2 December 1769 and inherited Stowlangtoft Hall which had been purchased by his father in 1760. In 1771 Rawlinson became a partner with his father-in-law in the firm of Ladbroke, Robinson & Co., bankers. He was an Alderman for Dowgate, in the City of London, from 1773 and was knighted on 4 March 1774.

Political career

Rawlinson was a friend of

Lord Sandwich Earl of Sandwich is a noble title in the Peerage of England, held since its creation by the House of Montagu. It is nominally associated with Sandwich, Kent. It was created in 1660 for the prominent naval commander Admiral Sir Edward Montagu ...

, who returned him 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 o ...

for

Queenborough Queenborough is a town on the Isle of Sheppey in the Swale borough of Kent in South East England. Queenborough is south of Sheerness. It grew as a port near the Thames Estuary at the westward entrance to the Swale where it joins the R ...

on the Admiralty interest in the 1774 general election. In the House of Commons he supported North's Administration, but took little part in politics and apparently never spoke in the House. He was equally uninterested in City politics and in 1777 resigned as alderman. He does not seem to have used his position as an MP to secure financial advantages for his firm. He was re-elected MP for Queenborough without contest in

1780 Events January–March * January 16 – American Revolutionary War – Battle of Cape St. Vincent: British Admiral Sir George Rodney defeats a Spanish fleet. * February 19 – The legislature of New York votes to allow ...

. He was a member of the St. Alban's Tavern group which tried to bring together Fox and Pitt in 1784. In

1784 Events January–March * January 6 – Treaty of Constantinople: The Ottoman Empire agrees to Russia's annexation of the Crimea. * January 14 – The Congress of the United States ratifies the Treaty of Paris with Great Bri ...

he was returned as MP for

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cromwell was born there ...

on Sandwich's interest. He did not stand at the 1790 general election

Later life

Rawlinson was also president of

Bridewell and Bethlehem Hospitals The Bridewell and Bethlehem Hospitals were two charitable foundations that were independently put into the charge of the City of London. They were brought under joint administration in 1557. Bethlehem Hospital The Bethlem Royal Hospital was foun ...

. He died without issue at Devonshire Place, London, on 13 March 1805, aged 70.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rawlinson, Walter 1734 births 1805 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Members of Lincoln's Inn British bankers Aldermen of the City of London Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies British MPs 1774–1780 British MPs 1780–1784 British MPs 1784–1790 Knights Bachelor