William Ashburnham, 2nd Baron Ashburnham (21 May 1679 – 16 June 1710) was an English landowner and Tory politician who sat in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and

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 1702 until 1710, when he succeeded to the peerage as

Baron Ashburnham Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...

and entered the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

. Ashburnham was the eldest son of

John Ashburnham, 1st Baron Ashburnham John Ashburnham, 1st Baron Ashburnham (15 January 1656 – 21 January 1710) was an English landowner and politician. Ashburnham was the son of William Ashburnham and the grandson of John Ashburnham. His mother was the Honourable Elizabeth, daug ...

, and his wife Bridget Vaughan, daughter of Walter Vaughan, of Porthammel House,

Brecknockshire , image_flag= , HQ= Brecon , Government= Brecknockshire County Council (1889-1974) , Origin= Brycheiniog , Status= , Start= 1535 , End= ...

. Ashburnham was put forward by his father for

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...

at the second general election of 1701, but was defeated. However at the

1702 English general election The 1702 English general election was the first to be held during the reign of Anne, Queen of Great Britain, Queen Anne, and was necessitated by the demise of William III of England, William III. The new government dominated by the Tories (Britis ...

, he was returned unopposed 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 Hastings. His only known action in Parliament was to act as teller with regard to the occasional conformity bill. He was returned unopposed again for Hastings at the

1705 English general election The 1705 English general election saw contests in 110 constituencies in England and Wales, roughly 41% of the total. The election was fiercely fought, with mob violence and cries of " Church in Danger" occurring in several boroughs. During the pr ...

and voted against the Court candidate for Speaker on 25 October 1705. At the

1708 British general election The 1708 British general election was the first general election to be held after the Acts of Union had united the Parliaments of England and Scotland. The election saw the Whigs finally gain a majority in the House of Commons, and by November ...

, he was returned unopposed again as a Tory for Hastings. He succeeded his father in the barony on 21 January 1710, and vacated his seat in the House of Commons. He was also briefly

Custos Rotulorum of Brecknockshire This is a list of people who have served as Custos Rotulorum of Brecknockshire. * Sir William Vaughan c. 1544 * Sir Roger Vaughan bef. 1558–1571 * Richard Price bef. 1573–1586/1587 * Sir Robert Knollys bef. 1594 – aft. 1608 * Si ...

in 1710. Ashburnham married Catherine Taylor, daughter of Thomas Taylor, of

Clapham Clapham () is a suburb in south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (most notably Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Early history T ...

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...

, in 1705. The marriage was childless. He died on 16 June 1710, aged 31, from

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) c ...

, and was buried at Ashburnham. Lady Ashburnham also died from smallpox less than a month later, aged 23. He was succeeded in the peerage by his younger brother,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashburnham, William 1679 births 1710 deaths Barons Ashburnham 18th-century English landowners English MPs 1702–1705 English MPs 1705–1707