Sir John Conway, 2nd Baronet (c. 1662 – 1721) of Bodrhyddan Hall, Rhuddlan, Denbighshire was a British landowner and 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 1685 and 1721.

Early life

Conway was the eldest son of Sir Henry Conway, 1st Baronet of Bodrhyddan and his wife Mary Lloyd, daughter of Sir Richard Lloyd of Ecclesham, Denbighshire. He succeeded to 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 ...

on the death of his father in 1669.George Edward Cokayne ''Complete Baronetage, Volume 3'' 1900
/ref> He 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 ...

in 1678 and matriculated at

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

on 10 June 1679, aged 16.

Career

Conway became a freeman of Denbigh in 1679. At the 1685 general election he was returned as MP for

Flintshire Flintshire () is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, the Dee Estuary to the north-east, the English county of Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. ...

. He did not stand in 1687 as he was selected to be

High Sheriff of Flintshire This is a list of High Sheriffs of Flintshire. The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly, the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county, but over the centuries most of the responsibilities ...

in 1688 and was deputy lieutenant from 1689 to about 1696. He was commissioner for assessment for Denbighshire and Flintshire for the year 1689 to 1690. Conway was a Justice of the Peace by 1691 and after a break in 1696 remained on the bench from 1700 until his death. The Flintshire seat rotated among the local families and at the

1695 English general election The 1695 English general election was the first to be held under the terms of the Triennial Act 1694, which required parliament to be dissolved and fresh elections called at least every three years. This measure helped to fuel partisan rivalry ov ...

it was Conway's turn to be returned as MP for Flintshire. He voted against fixing the price of guineas at 22s and against the

attainder In English criminal law, attainder was the metaphorical "stain" or "corruption of blood" which arose from being condemned for a serious capital crime (felony or treason). It entailed losing not only one's life, property and hereditary titles, but ...

of Sir John Fenwick on 25 November 1696. He was returned again at the

1698 English general election After the conclusion of the 1698 English general election the government led by the Whig Junto believed it had held its ground against the opposition. Over the previous few years, divisions had emerged within the Whig party between the 'court' su ...

and in the first election of 1701 but stood down in the second. He was then returned as MP for Flint Boroughs on 2 February 1702 and voted for the motion of 26 February 1702 vindicating the Commons’ proceedings in impeaching the four Whig lords. In July 1702, he refused to stand aside under local convention and was defeated in the only contest he faced. He was returned as MP for Flintshire at the

1705 English general election The 1705 English general election saw contests in 110 United Kingdom constituencies, constituencies in England and Wales, roughly 41% of the total. The election was fiercely fought, with mob violence and cries of "Church in Danger" occurring in ...

and voted against the Court candidate for Speaker on 25 October 1705. At the 1708 general election he was returned as Tory MP for Flint Boroughs. He voted against the impeachment of Dr Sacheverell in 1710. He was returned again at the

1710 British general election The 1710 British general election produced a landslide victory for the Tories. The election came in the wake of the prosecution of Henry Sacheverell, which had led to the collapse of the previous government led by Godolphin and the Whig Junto. ...

and was listed among the ‘Tory patriots’ lwho voted for peace, and among the ‘worthy patriots’ who exposed the mismanagements of the previous ministry. By this time he was in serious financial difficulties. He let the Bodrhyddan estate and tried to sell other estates. He appealed to Robert Harley for assistance with mixed fortunes. He was returned for Flintshire again 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 ...

and voted in favour of the French commercial treaty on 18 June 1713. Conway was last returned for Flint Boroughs at the 1715 general election and held the seat without making any parliamentary contribution until his death.

Private life

Conway died at Bath on 27 April 1721, aged 58, and was buried at Rhuddlan. He married firstly Margaretta Maria Digby daughter of John Digby of Gayhurst, Buckinghamshire. Margaretta died in June 1690 and he married secondly Penelope Grenville, daughter of Richard Grenville of Wotton, Buckinghamshire in 1701. He left two daughters by each of his marriages but his son died and the baronetcy became extinct. Bodrhyddan passed to his daughter Penelope who married James Russell Stapleton.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conway, Sir John, 2nd Baronet 1660s births 1721 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford English MPs 1685–1687 English MPs 1695–1698 English MPs 1698–1700 English MPs 1701–1702 English MPs 1702–1705 English MPs 1705–1707 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Welsh constituencies British MPs 1708–1710 British MPs 1710–1713 British MPs 1713–1715 British MPs 1715–1722 Baronets in the Baronetage of England