William Bulkeley Hughes J.P. (26 July 17978 March 1882) was a Welsh 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 1837 to 1859 and 1865 to 1882. He was elected for

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 Carnarvon Boroughs constituency. Hughes was the eldest son of Sir William Bulkeley Hughes of Plas Coch, Llanidan,

Anglesey Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strait and some islets and skerries. Anglesey island ...

and Elizabeth, of Coed Alun, Caernarfon. He was educated at Harrow School and called to the bar at Lincoln's Inn in 1824.

Public life

As a prospector in railway shares, Bulkeley-Hughes made significant gains in the 1840s. In 1850, Bulkeley-Hughes had organised a banquet for

Robert Stephenson Robert Stephenson FRS HFRSE FRSA DCL (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railways", he built on the achievements of his father ...

to commemorate the opening of the

Britannia Bridge Britannia Bridge ( cy, Pont Britannia) is a bridge across the Menai Strait between the island of Anglesey and the mainland of Wales. It was originally designed and built by the noted railway engineer Robert Stephenson as a tubular bridge of w ...

. Bulkeley-Hughes was the chairperson of the

Anglesey Central Railway The Anglesey Central Railway (Welsh: ''Lein Amlwch'', ''Amlwch Line'') was a standard-gauge railway in Anglesey, Wales, connecting the port of Amlwch and the county town of Llangefni with the North Wales Coast Line at Gaerwen. Built as an i ...

from its founding until it was absorbed by the London and North Western Railway in 1876. As a politician, Bulkeley-Hughes was Justice of the peace of Anglesey and Caernarvonshire, and became sheriff of Anglesey in 1861.

Politics

Bulkeley-Hughes was initially elected as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

Caernarfon (UK Parliament constituency) Caernarfon was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Caernarfon in Wales. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system. The constituency was created in 1536 as a District of Boroughs, represented in ...

in 1837, during the election, Bulkeley-Hughes contested against and beat

Charles Paget (Royal Navy officer) Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Paget GCH (7 October 1778 – 27 January 1839) was a British sailor who also became a liberal politician and Member of Parliament. Naval career Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Paget (1778–1839) was the son of Henry Bayly P ...

, brother of the

Marquess of Anglesey Marquess of Anglesey ( cy, Ardalydd Môn) is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1815 for Henry Paget, 2nd Earl of Uxbridge, a hero of the Battle of Waterloo, second in command to the Duke of Wellington. The Marqu ...

. For nearly 40 years he was M.P. in parliament with a short hiatus between 18591865. Bulkeley-Hughes was re-elected as MP for Carnarvon Boroughs as a Liberal in 1865 and held the seat until his death in 1882, and aged 85 "was in point of age the 'father' of the House of Commons". He is buried in the churchyard of St Edwen's Church, Llanedwen, Anglesey. In 1846 Bulkeley-Hughes sided with the pro-

Free Trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econ ...

wing of the party led by

Sir Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet, (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850) was a British Conservative statesman who served twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835 and 1841–1846) simultaneously serving as Chancellor of the Exchequer ...

who became known as the Peelites. Hughes appears to have left the Peelites by 1859 as he stood as a '

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

' in the 1859 general election but lost to a Conservative. A few weeks later the Peelites merged with Radicals and Whigs to create the Liberal Party.

Family

Hughes married first Elizabeth Wormald, daughter of Jonathan Nettleship of Mattersey Abbey near Bawtry and widow of Harry Wormald in 1825. He married second Elizabeth Donkin, daughter of William Donkin, in 1866. His only child, Lady Sarah Elizabeth married Charles Hunter-Hughes in 1876, who became the Baronet of Plâs Côch of the Hughes family estate in Llanedwen, Anglesey, north Wales.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bulkeley Hughes, William 1797 births 1882 deaths Members of Lincoln's Inn UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 UK MPs 1847–1852 UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1857–1859 UK MPs 1865–1868 UK MPs 1868–1874 UK MPs 1874–1880 UK MPs 1880–1885 Liberal Party (UK) MPs for Welsh constituencies Conservative Party (UK) MPs for Welsh constituencies High Sheriffs of Anglesey Deputy Lieutenants of Anglesey Deputy Lieutenants of Caernarvonshire Members of Parliament for Caernarfon People educated at Harrow School