William Stratford Dugdale DL (1 April 1800 – 15 September 1871) was a British

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...

(and later

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

) politician.

Early life

He was the only son of

Dugdale Stratford Dugdale Dugdale Stratford Dugdale (1773–1836) was a Member of Parliament for Warwickshire from 1802 to 1831. Early life Dugdale Stratford Dugdale was the first surviving son of Richard Geast (later Dugdale), barrister, of Blythe Hall, by Penelope ...

Merevale Hall Merevale Hall is a private country house in Merevale, near Atherstone, Warwickshire. It is a Grade II* listed building. The estate descends from Merevale Abbey which once stood on the site. The Manor of Merevale was granted in 1540 to Sir Walte ...

, Warwickshire and his wife, the Hon. Charlotte Curzon, daughter of

Assheton Curzon, 1st Viscount Curzon Assheton Curzon, 1st Viscount Curzon (2 February 1730 – 21 March 1820), styled Lord Curzon between 1794 and 1802, was a British Tory politician. Background and education Curzon was the second son of Sir Nathaniel Curzon, 4th Baronet of Kedles ...

. His father was a Member of Parliament (MP) for

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Avon an ...

. William 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 at

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 ...

. He married Harriet Ella Portman in 1827, and the couple had 10 children.

Member of Parliament

Dugdale entered the

unreformed House of Commons "Unreformed House of Commons" is a name given to the House of Commons of Great Britain and (after 1800 the House of Commons of the United Kingdom) before it was reformed by the Reform Act 1832, the Irish Reform Act 1832, and the Scottish Reform ...

at the 1830 general election as an MP for the borough of Shaftesbury in

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

. He did not contest that seat at the 1831 general election, when he was returned unopposed for the

rotten borough A rotten or pocket borough, also known as a nomination borough or proprietorial borough, was a parliamentary borough or constituency in England, Great Britain, or the United Kingdom before the Reform Act 1832, which had a very small electorat ...

Bramber Bramber is a former manor, village and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It has a ruined mediaeval castle which was the ''caput'' of a large feudal barony. Bramber is located on the northern edge of the South Downs ...

in Sussex.Stooks Smith, p. 551 Bramber was disenfranchised by the

Reform Act 1832 The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament, Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major chan ...

, and at the 1832 general election he was returned as a member for

North Warwickshire North Warwickshire is a local government district with borough status in the ceremonial county of Warwickshire, West Midlands, England. Outlying settlements in the borough include the two towns of Atherstone (where the council is based) and Co ...

. He held that seat until he retired from Parliament at the 1847 election.

Other interests

Dugdale was a

Justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

and Deputy Lieutenant for the County of Warwickshire, held a commission in the

Warwickshire Yeomanry The Warwickshire Yeomanry was a yeomanry regiment of the British Army, first raised in 1794, which served as cavalry and machine gunners in the First World War and as a cavalry and an armoured regiment in the Second World War, before being amalg ...

and was a trustee of

Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. Up ...

References

External links

* * 1800 births 1871 deaths Tory MPs (pre-1834) Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1835–1837 UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 People from Atherstone People educated at Westminster School, London Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Deputy Lieutenants of Warwickshire Warwickshire Yeomanry officers English justices of the peace {{England-Conservative-UK-MP-1800s-stub