William Bridgeman
FRS (c.1646 – 10 May 1699) was a senior English civil servant and MP.
He was born in Amsterdam, Netherlands, the son of Richard Bridgeman, a merchant for the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
and was the cousin of
Sir Orlando Bridgeman, 1st Baronet, of Ridley
Sir Orlando Bridgeman, 1st Baronet, FRS (9 December 1649 – 20 April 1701) was an English baronet and politician.
Background
Bridgeman was the second son of Sir Orlando Bridgeman, 1st Baronet, by his second wife Dorothy, daughter of John ...
. He entered
Queen's College, Oxford
The Queen's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its predominantly neoclassical architecture, ...
, matriculating in 1662.
He became a naturalised British subject in 1657 and lived at Combes Hall, near Stowmarket, Suffolk.
He became a civil servant and occupied a number of important posts, viz. Under-Secretary of State (1667-1681, 1683-1689, 1690-1692, 163-1694); Commissioner for Assessment for Westminster (1679-1680), 1689-1690);
Clerk of the Privy Council (1685-1689, 1693-death); Registrar of the
Ecclesiastical Commission (1687-1688); Member of the Royal Fisheries, Ireland (1692); Secretary to the Admiralty (1694-1698). He was elected a
Fellow of the Royal Society
Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...
in 1679.
[
He was also returned as MP for Bramber, Sussex for 1685 to 1687 and served as Deputy Lieutenant of Middlesex from 1692 to his death in 1699.][
He had married Diana, daughter of Peter Vernatt.][
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bridgeman, William
1646 births
1699 deaths
Politicians from Suffolk
Alumni of The Queen's College, Oxford
Deputy Lieutenants of Middlesex
Fellows of the Royal Society