Sir John Crosse, 2nd Baronet (c. 1700 – 12 March 1762), of Millbank, Westminster, and Rainham, Essex, was a British 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 ...

between 1727 and 1754. Crosse was the second and younger of the two sons of Sir Thomas Crosse, 1st Baronet and his wife Jane Lambe, daughter of Patrick Lambe, of Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire. Cokayne, George Edward (1906)
Complete Baronetage
'. Volume V. Exeter: W. Pollard & Co. . p. 16 He entered

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 ...

on 10 January 1715, aged 14 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 21 February 1717, aged 16. Crosse was returned as Member of Parliament for Wootton Basset as an administration candidate at the

1727 British general election The 1727 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 7th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election was trigg ...

. He voted for the Government in all recorded divisions. At the

1734 British general election The 1734 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of Great Britain, House of Commons of the 8th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scot ...

, he stood for Great Marlow, and was defeated. He was returned unopposed for

Lostwithiel Lostwithiel (; ) is a civil parish and small town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom at the head of the estuary of the River Fowey. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,739, increasing to 2,899 at the 2011 census. The Lostwi ...

at a by-election on 19 May 1735. He succeeded his father 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 27 May 1738, his elder brother, Thomas, having died before him. He was returned again for Lostwithiel at the

1741 British general election The 1741 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 9th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw suppo ...

, when he also used his influence to support the government candidates at Westminster, rescuing one of them, Lord Sundon, from the mob in his coach. After the fall of Walpole in 1742, he was absent from the division on the Hanoverian troops in December 1742, and voted against them in December 1743 and January 1744. He returned to supporting the Administration, and voted for the Hanoverians in 1746 when he was classed as Old Whig. He did not stand at the

1747 British general election The 1747 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 10th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw Hen ...

. Crosse had been active in local affairs at Westminster since 1727, and the constituency had been represented by his father. Henry Pelham asked him to stand for

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

at the

1754 British general election The 1754 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 11th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. Owing to the exten ...

to which he agreed on condition he put up no more than £500 to the costs. He was returned as MP for Westminster, but there is no record of any speeches or votes by him. He declined to stand at the

1761 British general election The 1761 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 12th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. This was the first P ...

on grounds of ill health. Crosse married Mary Godfrey on 15 July 1746 at St John's, Westminster. They had no children and on his death at

Millbank Millbank is an area of central London in the City of Westminster. Millbank is located by the River Thames, east of Pimlico and south of Westminster. Millbank is known as the location of major government offices, Burberry headquarters, the Mill ...

on 12 March 1762 the baronetcy became extinct. He was buried on 2 April 1762, at

St Margaret's, Westminster The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret the Virgin, Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Pal ...

. His widow was buried in the same church on 25 September 1770.

References

1700s births 1762 deaths Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Baronets in the Baronetage of Great Britain British MPs 1727–1734 British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1754–1761 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for constituencies in Cornwall {{England-GreatBritain-MP-stub