Sir Hugh Acland, 5th Baronet ( – 9 March 1714) was an English politician. He obtained a confirmation of the family baronetcy in 1678, and served as a Member of Parliament for two boroughs in Devon in 1679 and from 1685 to 1687. Never very active in national politics, he was one of the many Tories estranged by James II's pro-Catholicism, but remained a Tory after the Glorious Revolution. He continued to hold local office in Devon off and on until his death in 1714, when he was succeeded by his grandson.

Career

He was a younger son of

Sir John Acland, 1st Baronet Sir John Acland, 1st Baronet (c. 1591 – 24 August 1647) of Acland in the parish of Landkey and of Columb John in Devon, England, was a Royalist commander in the Civil War, during the early part of which he maintained a garrison for the king ...

and his wife Elizabeth. He matriculated at

Exeter College, Oxford Exeter College (in full: The Rector and Scholars of Exeter College in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, and the fourth-oldest college of the university. The college was founde ...

on 27 November 1652 and received his B.A. on 22 June 1655. He was appointed a justice of the peace for Devon in 1670, and in 1672, he succeeded his nephew

Arthur Arthur is a masculine given name of uncertain etymology. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. A common spelling variant used in many Slavic, Romance, and Germanic languages is Artur. In Spanish and Ital ...

as baronet and inherited an estate worth £2,000 per year. In 1673, he was appointed a commissioner for assessment in Devon, and unsuccessfully contested a by-election at Tiverton following the death of Sir Thomas Carew, 1st Baronet. He was appointed to the commission on recusants in 1675 and made a freeman of

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

; in 1676, he was appointed a deputy lieutenant of the county. The family baronetcy was of somewhat uncertain status; the

letters patent Letters patent (plurale tantum, plural form for singular and plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, President (government title), president or other head of state, generally granti ...

to his father were either lost during the confusion of the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

or never passed the seals. Sir Hugh's predecessors in the baronetcy had generally died in their minorities and had not pursued the claim. Hugh obtained new letters patent dated 21 January 1678 which confirmed the original grant and granted precedence to the baronetcy of the original date of issue, 24 June 1644. Acland again stood for Parliament for

Barnstaple Barnstaple ( or ) is a river-port town and civil parish in the North Devon district of Devon, England. The town lies at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool from ...

in the spring 1679 election and was successfully returned. He was not an active member and, though thought to be a Court supporter, was absent from the division on the

exclusion bill The Exclusion Crisis ran from 1679 until 1681 in the reign of King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland. Three Exclusion Bills sought to exclude the King's brother and heir presumptive, James, Duke of York, from the thrones of England, S ...

. He did not stand again in the fall 1679 election. In 1680, he left the Devon committee for assessment; he was already a colonel of militia foot by this time. He stood for

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

in the 1681 election but was defeated. Appointed a justice of the peace and an alderman for Tiverton in 1683, he was returned to Parliament for that constituency as a Tory in

1685 Events January–March * January 6 – American-born British citizen Elihu Yale, for whom Yale University in the U.S. is named, completes his term as the first leader of the Madras Presidency in India, administering the colony ...

, and elected mayor of the town the following year. He was also appointed a JP for

South Molton South Molton is a town and civil parish in the North Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. The town is on the River Mole. In 2021 it had a population of 6225. South Molton is a market town trading mostly in sheep and cattle. There wa ...

in 1684. After the collapse of the

Monmouth Rebellion The Monmouth Rebellion in June 1685 was an attempt to depose James II of England, James II, who in February had succeeded his brother Charles II of England, Charles II as king of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland and ...

, he was appointed a commissioner for rebels' estates. Once again, he was largely inactive in Parliament, serving on the committee to prevent the export of wool. In 1687, the Tiverton corporation was remodelled by

quo warranto In the English-American common law, ''quo warranto'' (Medieval Latin for "by what warrant?") is a prerogative writ issued by a court which orders someone to show what authority they have for exercising some right, power, or franchise they clai ...

proceedings and he was removed from his offices there. In July 1688 he joined with many of the Devonshire gentry in repeating the temporizing answer given by Sir Edward Seymour to the "Three Questions" of James II, and was consequently dismissed from his county offices. Acland was reappointed a JP for Devon in October 1688 and served on the commission for assessment again from 1689 to 1690. He was

High Sheriff of Devon The High Sheriff of Devon is the Kings's representative for the County of Devon, a territory known as his/her bailiwick. Selected from three nominated people, they hold the office for one year. They have judicial, ceremonial and administrative f ...

in 1690. He refused to sign the

Association Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

in 1696 and was removed from the bench at this time. Reappointed in 1700, he apparently refused a deputy lieutenancy in 1701 due to a quarrel with Sir Edward Seymour. Off the bench again in 1702, he was appointed to the deputy lieutenancy again in 1703 and a JP for the third time in about 1704. He continued to serve in these posts throughout the reign of Queen Anne, and died on 9 March 1714.

Family

He married Anne, daughter of Sir Thomas Daniel of Beswick Hall, Yorkshire, on 19 March 1674 and had seven children: * John Acland (c. 1674 – 1703) *Hugh Acland *Rev. Thomas Acland (d. 11 September 1735), rector of

South Brent South Brent is a large village on the southern edge of Dartmoor, England, in the valley of the River Avon. The parish includes the small hamlets of Aish, Harbourneford, Lutton, Brent Mill, and many scattered farmhouses. It is five miles (8& ...

and

prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Catholic Church, Catholic or Anglicanism , Anglican clergy, a form of canon (priest) , canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in part ...

of Exeter, married Catherine Wilcocks on 12 February 1712 and had issue *Arthur Daniel Acland (d. 1690–1), died without issue *Charles Acland (d. 1713) *Francis Acland (d. 1719), a merchant in Coimbra, died without issue *Elizabeth Acland (d. 1694) On his death in 1714 he was succeeded in the baronetcy by his grandson, his eldest son John having predeceased him. He was buried on 9 March 1713 or 1714 at

Broadclyst Broadclyst is a village and civil parish in the East Devon local government district. It lies approximately northeast of the city of Exeter, Devon, England, on the B3181. In 2011 its population was 1,467, reducing at the 2021 Census to 1,552. ...

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Acland, Hugh 1630s births 1714 deaths

201 Year 201 ( CCI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Fabianus and Arrius (or, less frequently, year 954 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 201 for this yea ...

Hugh 1639 Alumni of Exeter College, Oxford Year of birth uncertain Deputy lieutenants of Devon High sheriffs of Devon Members of the Parliament of England (pre-1707) for Barnstaple English MPs 1679 English MPs 1685–1687 English justices of the peace