Nicholas Lechmere, 1st Baron Lechmere (5 August 167518 June 1727) was an English lawyer and Whig politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, 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 ...

from 1708 until 1721 when he was raised to the

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

as Baron Lechmere. He served as

Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

and

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is a ministerial office in the Government of the United Kingdom. Excluding the prime minister, the chancellor is the highest ranking minister in the Cabinet Office, immediately after the prime minister ...

Life

Lechmere was the second son of Edmund Lechmere of

Hanley Castle Hanley Castle is a village and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, between the towns of Malvern and Upton upon Severn and a short distance from the River Severn. It lies in the administrative area of Malvern Hills District, and is part of ...

, Worcestershire, and the younger brother of Anthony Lechmere, MP. He was admitted at

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

in 1693 and called to the bar on 25 October 1698. In 1708, he became

King's counsel A King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) is a senior lawyer appointed by the monarch (or their Viceroy, viceregal representative) of some Commonwealth realms as a "Counsel learned in the law". When the reigning monarc ...

. He made a profitable career as a lawyer, where he followed the profession of his grandfather Sir Nicholas Lechmere. Lechmere was elected in a contest as Member of Parliament for Appleby at the 1708 general election. He transferred to

Cockermouth Cockermouth is a market town and civil parish in the Cumberland unitary authority area of Cumbria, England. The name refers to the town's position by the confluence of the River Cocker into the River Derwent. At the 2021 census, the built u ...

at the 1710 general election and was returned MP in contests then and in

1713 Events January–March * January 17 – Tuscarora War: Colonel James Moore leads the Carolina militia out of Albemarle County, North Carolina, in a second offensive against the Tuscarora. Heavy snows force the troops to take ...

. He was one of the authors who drafted legislation concerning Scotland in January 1710. He opposed the Tory ministry's peace policy after 1710 and supported

Dissenters A dissenter (from the Latin , 'to disagree') is one who dissents (disagrees) in matters of opinion, belief, etc. Dissent may include political opposition to decrees, ideas or doctrines and it may include opposition to those things or the fiat of ...

’ rights. During Queen Anne's reign he was known as a spokesman of the Whigs. In 1714 Lechmere was appointed

Solicitor-General A solicitor general is a government official who serves as the chief representative of the government in courtroom proceedings. In systems based on the English common law that have an attorney general or equivalent position, the solicitor general ...

and made a Reader of his Inn. In 1715 he became Treasurer of the Inn. Lechmere was returned unopposed as MP for Cockermouth at the 1715 general election. He replaced his brother as MP for

Tewkesbury Tewkesbury ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the north of Gloucestershire, England. The town grew following the construction of Tewkesbury Abbey in the twelfth century and played a significant role in the Wars of the Roses. It stands at ...

at a by-election on 12 June 1717. In 1718, he was appointed

and also became a

Privy Counsellor The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are current or former ...

and

. On 4 September 1721, having ceased to be attorney-general, he was raised to the peerage as Baron Lechmere of Evesham in the County of Worcester and vacated his seat in the House of Commons. Lechmere was also a collaborator with

Richard Steele Sir Richard Steele ( – 1 September 1729) was an Anglo-Irish writer, playwright and politician best known as the co-founder of the magazine ''The Spectator (1711), The Spectator'' alongside his close friend Joseph Addison. Early life Steel ...

on his pamphlet ''The Crisis''. Lechmere died from a sudden attack of apoplexy, while seated at table, at Campden House,

Kensington Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around west of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensingt ...

, on 18 June 1727, and was buried at Hanley Castle, where there is a tablet inscribed to his memory.

Family

Lechmere married Lady Elizabeth Howard, daughter of

Charles Howard, 3rd Earl of Carlisle Charles Howard, 3rd Earl of Carlisle, PC (c. 1669 – 1 May 1738) was a British nobleman, peer, and statesman. Charles Howard was the eldest son of Edward Howard, 2nd Earl of Carlisle, and inherited his title on the death of his father in 169 ...

in 1719, but they had no children and his title became extinct on his death in 1727.

References

External links

* ''Burke's Extinct Peerage'' (London: Henry Colburn & Richard Bentley, 1831) * D. Hayton, E. Cruickshanks, S. Handley, eds. The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1690-1715 ''LECHMERE, Nicholas (1675-1727), of the Middle Temple'' 2002 Boydell and Brewer {{DEFAULTSORT:Lechmere, Nicholas, 1st Baron Lechmere 1675 births 1727 deaths Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Barons in the Peerage of Great Britain Chancellors of the Duchy of Lancaster Solicitors general for England and Wales Attorneys general for England and Wales British MPs 1708–1710 British MPs 1710–1713 British MPs 1713–1715 British MPs 1715–1722 Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain Alumni of Merton College, Oxford

Nicholas Nicholas is a male name, the Anglophone version of an ancient Greek name in use since antiquity, and cognate with the modern Greek , . It originally derived from a combination of two Ancient Greek, Greek words meaning 'victory' and 'people'. In ...