John Perceval, 1st Earl of Egmont, PC, FRS (12 July 16831 May 1748), known as Sir John Perceval, Bt, from 1691 to 1715, as the Lord Perceval from 1715 to 1722 and as the Viscount Perceval from 1722 to 1733, was an

Anglo Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to, or descent from England, English culture, the English people or the English language, such as in the term ''Anglosphere''. It is often used alone, somewhat loosely, to refer to people of British d ...

- Irish politician.

Early life and heritage

Perceval was born at Burton,

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

, the second son of Sir John Perceval, 3rd Baronet, and Catherine, daughter of

Sir Edward Dering, 2nd Baronet Sir Edward Dering, 2nd Baronet (8 or 12 November 1625 – 24 June 1684) of Surrenden Dering, Pluckley, Kent was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1660 and 1674. Life Dering was the eldest surviving ...

. His great-grandfather was

Sir Philip Perceval Sir Philip Perceval (1605 – 10 November 1647) was an English politician and knight. He was knighted in 1638, obtained grants of forfeited lands in Ireland to the amount of , and lost extensive property in Ireland owing to the rebellion of 1641 ...

(1605–1647), DNB00: "Perceval, John (1683-1748)" who had obtained estates in Ireland and England from his father, Sir Richard Perceval (1550–1620), through the death of his elder brother, Walter. Richard Perceval in 1616 had sold a great part (£1,200 a year, according to Lodge) of his ancient patrimony, and invested the sum realised in purchases and mortgages in

, thus laying the foundation of the prosperity and property of his family there. DNB00: "Perceval, Richard" Sir Philip had three children by Catherine Ussher: Judith, John and George.thepeerage.com: "Sir Philip Perceval"
/ref> John would later become the first Baronet and grandfather to Egmont; George would father the Very Reverend William Perceval, grandfather to, amongst others, the Irish landlord Robert Perceval-Maxwell (1813–1905), William Perceval and Spencer Perceval, who together would purchase, administer and settle

Amherst Island Amherst Island is located in Lake Ontario, west of Kingston, Ontario, Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Amherst Island, being wholly in Lake Ontario, is upstream, above the St Lawrence River Thousand Islands. The island is part of Loyalist, Ontario, Lo ...

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada () was a Province, part of The Canadas, British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the Province of Queb ...

.proni.gov.uk: "INTRODUCTION - Perceval Maxwell Papers"
/ref> John Perceval's father died when he was two, and in 1691, he succeeded his elder brother as fifth Baronet. The following year his mother also died. Perceval was educated at

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, and at

Magdalen College, Oxford Magdalen College ( ) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by Bishop of Winchester William of Waynflete. It is one of the wealthiest Oxford colleges, as of 2022, and ...

. However, he left university without taking a degree.

Career

In 1703, he was elected to the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until the end of 1800. The upper house was the Irish House of Lords, House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, ...

for

, and in 1704 he was admitted to the

Irish Privy Council His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal execut ...

. Perceval was again elected for County Cork in 1713. He sat until 1715, when he was raised to the

Peerage of Ireland The peerage of Ireland consists of those Peerage, titles of nobility created by the English monarchs in their capacity as Lordship of Ireland, Lord or Monarchy of Ireland, King of Ireland, or later by monarchs of the United Kingdom of Great B ...

as Baron Perceval, of Burton in the County of Cork, with remainder to the heirs male of his father. In 1722, he was created Viscount Perceval, of

Kanturk Kanturk () is a town in the north west of County Cork, Ireland. It is situated at the confluence of the Allua (Allow) and Dallow (Dalua) rivers, which stream further on as tributaries to the River Blackwater. It is about from Cork and Limeric ...

in the County of Cork, in the Peerage of Ireland, with remainder to his heirs male. Lord Perceval was elected to the

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 memb ...

for

Harwich Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-o ...

in 1727, which constituency he continued to represent until 1734, and was also a Recorder of

from 1728 to 1734. In 1733, he was further honoured when he was made Earl of Egmont in the

. However, he rejected the offer of a British peerage three times. Apart from his political career, he was also a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

. In 1728 he became a member of the committee of Parliament investigating prison conditions. He soon became a close associate of

James Oglethorpe Lieutenant-General James Edward Oglethorpe (22 December 1696 – 30 June 1785) was a British Army officer, Tory politician and colonial administrator best known for founding the Province of Georgia in British North America. As a social refo ...

, who chaired the committee. In 1730, the two men were among those who formed an association that later became the

Trustees for the Establishment of the Colony of Georgia in America The Trustees for the Establishment of the Colony of Georgia in America, or simply the Georgia Trustees, was a body organized by James Oglethorpe, James Edward Oglethorpe and associates following parliamentary investigations into prison conditions in ...

. George II approved a charter for the colony in 1732, making Egmont president of the Georgia Trustees. He and Oglethorpe, working with several other close associates, devised an elaborate plan for the settlement of the colony now famously known as the

Oglethorpe Plan The Oglethorpe Plan is an urban planning idea that was most notably used in Savannah, Georgia, one of the Thirteen Colonies, in the 18th century. The plan uses a distinctive street network with repeating squares of residential blocks, commercia ...

. He actively superintended the colonisation of Georgia, withholding 'neither money, time, nor influence in his ceaseless efforts to advance what he conceived to be the best interests of the province,’ and keeping with his own hand 'A Journal of the Transactions of the Trustees,’ &c., the second and third volumes of which have been printed.

Diary

His diary (published by the

Historical Manuscripts Commission The Royal Commission on Historical Manuscripts (widely known as the Historical Manuscripts Commission, and abbreviated as the HMC to distinguish it from the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England), was a United Kingdom Royal Co ...

) is an important source on Parliamentary History in the 1730s and early 1740s.

Family

Lord Egmont married Catherine, daughter of Sir Philip Parker, 2nd Baronet, in 1710. They had seven children, three sons and four daughters. Only three of the children reached adulthood. *

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

(1711–1770), who succeeded him as the second Earl of Egmont * Catherine (died 16 February 1748), who was married, on 14 April 1733, to Thomas Hanmer of Fenns, Flintshire (died 1 April 1737) * Anne, born 12 May 1713, who died an infant * Philip Clarke, born 21 June 1714, who also died an infant * Mary, born 28 December 1716, who also died an infant * Helena (14 February 1718Egmont notes the occasion of Helena's twentieth birthday on 14th February 1738 - ''Diary of Viscount Percival (afterwards 1st Earl of Egmont)'' (3 volumes, HMSO for Historical Manuscripts Commission, 1920–1923), 46712 June 1746, who was married, on 10 November 1741, to Sir John Rawdon, bart. (afterwards first Earl of Moira). * George (28 January 1722July 1726) Lady Egmont died on 22 August 1749. Engravings of Egmont and his wife by Faber, after Hysing and Gouge respectively, can be found in vol. ii. of the "Genealogical History of the House of Yvery," opposite pp. 403 and 444. A whole-length portrait of Egmont by

Godfrey Kneller Sir Godfrey Kneller, 1st Baronet (born Gottfried Kniller; 8 August 1646 – 19 October 1723) was a German-born British painter. The leading Portrait painting, portraitist in England during the late Stuart period, Stuart and early Georgian eras ...

was engraved by John Smith. Lord Egmont died in London in May 1748, aged 64, and was succeeded in the earldom by his eldest and only surviving son

. The latter's seventh son was Prime Minister

Spencer Perceval Spencer Perceval (1 November 1762 – 11 May 1812) was a British statesman and barrister who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 1809 until his assassination in May 1812. He is the only British prime minister to have been as ...

Notes

Sources

* *Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990.

External links

Portrait in the National Portrait Gallery

Sir John Percival papers, also called: The Egmont Papers, 1732-1745.

Manuscripts of the Earl of Egmont. Diary of Viscount Percival afterwards first Earl of Egmont ...

Parliamentary Archives, Papers of Sir John Perceval, 1st Earl of Egmont, 1683-1748
{{DEFAULTSORT:Egmont, John Perceval, 1st Earl of 1683 births 1748 deaths Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford British MPs 1727–1734 Peers of Ireland created by George I Fellows of the Royal Society Perceval, John Perceval, John Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Cork constituencies Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Earls of Egmont Hereditary peers elected to the House of Commons