William Dickinson (1771–1837) was an English politician, in parliament from 1796 to 1831.

Life

From a Bristol merchant family who were slave-owners in

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

, he was the eldest son of William Dickinson, also a Member of Parliament, and his wife Philippa Fuller, daughter of Stephen Fuller who was a London West India merchant and Jamaica agent. He was educated at

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

where he matriculated in 1789, graduating B.A. in 1793, M.A. in 1795. He came into the family estate at

Kingweston Kingweston is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated on top of Combe Hill, north east of Somerton in the South Somerset district. The village has a population of 128. keinton mandeville is on top of combe hill kingweston is o ...

on his father's death. Dickinson entered 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. ...

in 1796 for , as a supporter of

William Pitt the Younger William Pitt the Younger (28 May 175923 January 1806) was a British statesman, the youngest and last prime minister of Great Britain (before the Acts of Union 1800) and then first prime minister of the United Kingdom (of Great Britain and Ire ...

. He stood successfully for in 1802, and was a

Lord of the Admiralty This is a list of Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty (incomplete before the Restoration, 1660). The Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty were the members of The Board of Admiralty, which exercised the office of Lord High Admiral when it was n ...

in the period 1804 to 1806. In 1806 he was elected for , a seat he held until 1831, and moved his support generally to the Whig opposition. He came to oppose

Catholic emancipation Catholic emancipation or Catholic relief was a process in the kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, and later the combined United Kingdom in the late 18th century and early 19th century, that involved reducing and removing many of the restricti ...

. According to the ''

Legacies of British Slave-Ownership The Centre for the Study of the Legacies of British Slavery, formerly the Centre for the Study of the Legacies of British Slave-ownership, is a research centre of University College, London (UCL) which focuses on revealing the impact of Britis ...

'' at the

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

, Dickinson was awarded a payment as a slave trader in the aftermath of the

Slavery Abolition Act 1833 The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 (3 & 4 Will. IV c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which provided for the gradual abolition of slavery in most parts of the British Empire. It was passed by Earl Grey's reforming administrati ...

with the

Slave Compensation Act 1837 The Slave Compensation Act 1837 (1 & 2 Vict. c. 3) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom, signed into law on 23 December 1837. It authorised the Commissioners for the Reduction of the National Debt to compensate slave owners in the Briti ...

. The British Government took out a £15 million loan (worth £1.43 billion in 2020) with interest from

Nathan Mayer Rothschild Nathan Mayer Rothschild (16 September 1777 – 28 July 1836) was an English-German banker, businessman and financier. Born in Frankfurt am Main in Germany, he was the third of the five sons of Gutle (Schnapper) and Mayer Amschel Rothschild, an ...

and

Moses Montefiore Sir Moses Haim Montefiore, 1st Baronet, (24 October 1784 – 28 July 1885) was a British financier and banker, activist, philanthropist and Sheriff of London. Born to an Italian Sephardic Jewish family based in London, afte ...

which was subsequently paid off by the British taxpayers (ending in 2015). Dickinson was associated with five different claims, but two of those were in the capacity of executor. For the three plantations he owned (Appleton Estate, Barton Isles Pen, and Pepper Pen & Bona Vista) in

, he received £11,978 payment at the time.

Family

Dickinson married in 1803 Sophia Smith, daughter of Samuel Smith MP of

Woodhall Park Woodhall Park is a Grade I listed country house near Watton-at-Stone, Hertfordshire, England. The 18th century neo-classical building is set in a walled park in the Beane valley. It has been the home of Heath Mount School since the 1930s. Histo ...

; they had three sons and two daughters. The children included: *

Francis Henry Dickinson Francis Henry Dickinson (6 January 1813 – 17 July 1890) was an English Conservative Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for West Somerset from 1841 to 1847. Life He was the grandson of William Dickinson (1745–1806), the ...

(1813–1890) MP, married in 1830 his first cousin Caroline Carey; she was the daughter of Major General Thomas Carey of the

3rd Foot Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the ...

, and his wife Caroline Smith, sister of Sophia Smith. *Edmund Henry Dickinson (1821–1897), married in 1861 Emily Dulcibella Eden, daughter of

Robert Eden, 3rd Baron Auckland Robert John Eden, 3rd Baron Auckland (10 July 1799 – 25 April 1870), styled The Honourable Robert Eden from birth until 1849, was a British clergyman. He was Bishop of Sodor and Man from 1847 to 1854 and Bishop of Bath and Wells from 1854 to ...

, and was father of

Robert Edmund Dickinson Robert Edmund Dickinson (1 August 1862 – 1947) was an English banker and Conservative Party politician. Life The son of Edmund Henry Dickinson (1821–1896), son of William Dickinson (1771–1837), and his wife Emily Dulcibella Eden, daughter ...

MP. *Sophia Gertrude (1814–1902), married in 1840 the Rev. John Stuart Hippisley Horner, and was mother of

John Francis Fortescue Horner Sir John Francis Fortescue Horner, (28 December 1842 – 21 March 1927) was a British barrister. His family had lived at Mells Manor for generations and many have memorials in St Andrew's Church, Mells. He and his family became associated with ...

. *Caroline (1817–1886), married in 1843 William Bence-Jones.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dickinson, William 1771 births 1837 deaths British MPs 1796–1800 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for constituencies in Cornwall Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies MPs for rotten boroughs UK MPs 1801–1802 UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 British slave owners Recipients of payments from the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 Lords of the Admiralty