Sir John Goodricke, 5th Baronet (1708–1789), was a British diplomat and 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 1774 and 1789.

Early life

Goodricke was the son of Sir Henry Goodricke, 4th Baronet of Ribston Hall and his wife Mary Jenkyns daughter of Tobias Jenkyns of Grimston and was born on 20 May 1708. In 1725, he entered

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 ...

. He married Mary Benson, illegitimate daughter of

Robert Benson, 1st Baron Bingley Robert Benson, 1st Baron Bingley, (9 April 1731) was an English Tory politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons from 1702 until 1713 when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Bingley and sat in the House of Lords. He serve ...

on 28 September 1731. He succeeded his father in 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 21 July 1738.

Diplomatic career

Goodricke became a diplomat. He was resident at the court of Brussels in 1750 although he did not go there. In 1758 he was appointed minister to Sweden, but remained at Copenhagen until he was admitted to Sweden in April 1764, and was there as envoy from 1764 to 1773. He relinquished his Stockholm appointment in 1773 when he inherited a life interest in the

Bramham Park Bramham Park is a Grade I listed 18th-century country house in Bramham, between Leeds and Wetherby, in West Yorkshire, England. The house, constructed of magnesian limestone ashlar with stone slate roofs in a classical style, is built to a l ...

estate from his wife's brother in law George Fox Lane.

Political career

In the 1774 general election Goodricke was returned as Member of Parliament for

Pontefract Pontefract is a historic market town in the City of Wakefield, a metropolitan district in West Yorkshire, England. It lies to the east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the ...

but did not stand again in 1780. In a by-election in 1787 he was elected MP for

Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Within the boundaries of the historic West Riding of Yorkshire, the ...

which he held until his death in 1789.

Fraud victim

Shortly before his death, Goodricke was the victim of a fraudulent transaction at his bank

Hoare's Bank C. Hoare & Co., also known as Hoares, is a British private bank, founded in 1672 by Richard Hoare (banker), Sir Richard Hoare; it is a twelfth generation family business and is owned by eight of Sir Richard's direct descendants. It is the oldest ...

. A young man tendered a Bill of Exchange signed “J Goodricke”. The clerk was suspicious, but the drawer was familiar and it was thought possible that Goodricke's signature may have been affected by gout. The bill was subsequently proved to be a forgery and in the meantime a couple had opened an account using the money at another bank. When a woman arrived at that bank with a draft on the new account she was detained and her partner was discovered by the

Bow Street Runners The Bow Street Runners were the law enforcement officers of the Bow Street Magistrates' Court in the City of Westminster. They have been called London's first professional police force. The force originally numbered six men and was founded in 1 ...

in a waiting carriage. The young man was quickly brought before the Bow Street magistrate, but Goodricke was surprised to discover he was the son of one of his gardeners in Yorkshire for whom he had procured a post at India House and given a sum of money. The felon became insane and died in

Newgate Prison Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey, just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, the pr ...

while awaiting trial on 2 August 1789.

Later life and legacy

Goodricke died on 3 August 1789 the day after the felon who tried to cheat him. He had one son and two daughters. His son

Henry Henry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters * Henry (surname) * Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone Arts and entertainmen ...

was MP for Lymington, but predeceased him. He was succeeded in the baronetcy by his grandson Henry.

References