Francis Godolphin, 2nd Baron Godolphin (2 November 1706 – 25 May 1785) was a British politician and peer.

Life and career

He was the eldest surviving son of Henry Godolphin, provost of Eton and

Dean of St Paul's The dean of St Paul's is a member of, and chair of the Chapter of St Paul's Cathedral in London in the Church of England. The dean of St Paul's is also '' ex officio'' dean of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of th ...

, and was educated at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

(1718–1721) and Queen’s College, Oxford (1723). In 1733 he inherited his father's estates in

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

. He was appointed as Lieutenant-Governor of the Scilly Isles from 1739 to 1766 and as Governor from 1766 to his death. He served as Member of Parliament (MP) for the borough of

Helston Helston () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated at the northern end of the The Lizard, Lizard Peninsula approximately east of Penzance and south-west of Falmouth, Cornwall, Falmouth.Ordnance Survey: ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

from 1741 to 1766, when he succeeded to the title of Baron Godolphin (of Helston) on the death of his cousin Francis Godolphin, 2nd Earl of Godolphin. He was also the recorder for Helston from 1766 to his death. He married twice: firstly on 18 February 1733/4 at Saint James in Westminster, London, to Lady Barbara Bentinck, the daughter of

William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland William Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland ( Dutch: ''Hans Willem Bentinck''; 20 July 164923 November 1709) was a Dutch-born English nobleman who became in an early stage the favourite of William, Prince of Orange, Stadtholder in the Netherlands, ...

, and, secondly, to Lady Anne Fitzwilliam (22 Aug 1722 – 1805), the daughter of John Fitzwilliam, 2nd Earl Fitzwilliam, on 28 May 1747, also at St James, Westminster.''The Register of Marriages in the Parish of St James within the Liberty of Westminster. 1723-1754''. 28 May 1747.

References

1706 births 1785 deaths Alumni of the Queen's College, Oxford Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for constituencies in Cornwall Barons in the Peerage of Great Britain

Francis Francis may refer to: People and characters *Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church (2013–2025) *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) * Francis, a character played by YouTuber Boogie2 ...

British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1747–1754 British MPs 1754–1761 British MPs 1761–1768 Governors of the Isles of Scilly {{GB-baron-stub