Sir Charles Kemeys, 4th Baronet (1688–1735) was a British Tory 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 ...

between 1713 and 1734 .

Early life

Kemeys was born on 23 November 1688, the only son of

Sir Charles Kemeys, 3rd Baronet Sir Charles Kemeys, 3rd Baronet (died December 1702) was a Welsh landowner in the late 17th century and early 18th century in south Wales and MP for both Monmouthshire and Monmouth Boroughs. He was a student at Wadham College, Oxford. His fath ...

Cefn Mably Cefn Mably () is a district located approximately 6 miles north of Cardiff city centre and 5 miles south-east of Caerphilly. It's mostly within the city and county of Cardiff but is also partly within the Caerphilly County Borough. Notable Buil ...

and his first wife Mary Wharton, daughter of

Philip Wharton, 4th Baron Wharton Philip Wharton, 4th Baron Wharton (18 April 1613 – 4 February 1696) was an English soldier, politician and diplomat. He was a Parliamentarian during the English Civil War. Wharton was the son of Sir Thomas Wharton of Aske Hall and his wi ...

. His father died in December 1702 and he succeeded to his father's estates and the

baronetcy A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

. His maternal uncle

Thomas Wharton, 1st Marquess of Wharton Thomas Wharton, 1st Marquess of Wharton, Privy Council of England, PC (August 1648 – 12 April 1715) was an English peer and Whigs (British political party), Whig politician. A man of great charm and political ability, he was also notoriou ...

and two Tory MPs Robert Price and Thomas Edwards were his guardians. He was admitted at

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

in May 1706 but abandoned his studies and decided to tour Europe. In the course of his travels he met and became a friend of the Elector of Hanover – later King George I.

Political career

Kemeys contested Appleby on his uncle's interest at the 1710 election but was defeated. He was

High Sheriff of Glamorganshire This page is a list of High Sheriffs of Glamorgan. Sheriffs of Glamorgan served under and were answerable to the independent Lords of Glamorgan until that lordship was merged into the crown. This is in contrast to sheriffs of the English shires w ...

from 1712 to 1713. At the 1713 general election, he was returned as Member of Parliament for

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

with the support of

Henry Somerset, 2nd Duke of Beaufort Henry Somerset, 2nd Duke of Beaufort, KG PC (2 April 1684 – 24 May 1714) was an English peer and politician. He was the only son of Charles Somerset, Marquess of Worcester, and Rebecca Child. He was styled Earl of Glamorgan until 1698, ...

. Kemeys was a strong Jacobite, despite being a friend of King George before his accession and nephew to the Whig leader, Lord Wharton. He did not stand in

1715 Events For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire in ...

, but was returned unopposed for

Glamorganshire Glamorgan (), or sometimes Glamorganshire ( or ), was one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It is located in the south of Wales. Originally an early medieval petty kingdom of varying bo ...

at a by-election on 22 February 1716. He was again returned unopposed in

1722 Events January–March * January 27 – Daniel Defoe's novel '' Moll Flanders'' is published anonymously in London. * February 10 – The Battle of Cape Lopez begins off of the coast of West Africa (and present-day Gabon), ...

and

1727 Events January–March * January 1 – (December 21, 1726 O.S.) Spain's ambassador to Great Britain demands that the British return Gibraltar after accusing Britain of violating the terms of the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht. Britain ...

. He decided to retire at the 1734 general election on grounds of ill-health.

Death and legacy

Kemeys died unmarried on 29 January 1735. His estate passed to his sister, who married Sir John Tynte, 2nd Baronet of Halswell, Somerset. Their son Sir Charles Tynte, 5th Baronet was Tory MP for Monmouthshire and Somerset.

References

External links

Art Collections Online - National Museum Wales Sir Charles Kemeys (1688-1734) and ? William Morgan (1688-1699)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kemeys, Sir Charles, 4th Baronet 1688 births 1735 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge British MPs 1713–1715 British MPs 1715–1722 British MPs 1722–1727 British MPs 1727–1734 High sheriffs of Glamorgan Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Welsh constituencies Baronets in the Baronetage of England