William Michell (14 February 1796 – 4 November 1872) was a British physician and

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 ...

. The son of Bennet Michell, he was born in Bodmin in 1796. He wrote a paper on the use of ergot in childbirth in 1828; that year he was also admitted to Emmanuel College, Cambridge, receiving an MB in 1834, and an MD in 1839. Michell was admitted an MRCS in 1843. He was elected an MP for Bodmin in 1852. In 1859, faced with a petition against him by

James Wyld James Wyld (1812–1887) was a British geographer and map-seller, best known for Wyld's Great Globe. He was the eldest son of James Wyld the Elder (1790–1836) and Eliza (née Legg). In 1838, he married Anne, the daughter of John Hester, and ...

for corrupt practices during the elections, he agreed not to defend his seat if Wyld would withdraw the petition. Attacked by

John Arthur Roebuck John Arthur Roebuck (28 December 1802 – 30 November 1879), British politician, was born at Madras, in India. He was raised in Canada, and moved to England in 1824, and became intimate with the leading radical and utilitarian reformers. He was ...

, who saw in this an attempt to escape charges, Michell replied that his means were insufficient to sustain the expenses necessary to defend himself against the petition. Roebuck's motion to prevent him from resigning was defeated, and he left Parliament by becoming Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds. He died in Plymouth in 1872.

References

* * *''Hansard's Parliamentary Debates'', 5 August 1859. "Election Compromises—Bodmin Election". {{DEFAULTSORT:Michell, William 1796 births 1872 deaths Alumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for Bodmin UK MPs 1852–1857 UK MPs 1857–1859 People from Bodmin