Sir John Molesworth, 4th Baronet (1705–1766) of Pencarrow, Cornwall, 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 1734 and 1761. Molesworth was baptized on 28 February 1705, the eldest of Sir John Molesworth, 3rd Baronet, and his wife Jane Arscott daughter of John Arscott of Tetcott, Devon. In June 1723, 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 ...

and Pencarrow, on the death of his father. He married Barbara Morice, daughter of Sir Nicholas Morice, 2nd Baronet in 1728. 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 ...

Molesworth was returned unopposed as a Tory Member of Parliament for Newport on the interest of his brother-in-law, Sir William Morice. He did not stand 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 ...

but was returned as MP for

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

at a by-election on 12 December 1744 in succession to his wife's brother-in-law, Sir John St Aubyn, 3rd Baronet. He was returned unopposed again 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 ...

. He voted consistently against the Governments of Walpole and Pelham. Molesworth was alarmed at the threat of a contest 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 ...

but it did not materialize and he was returned unopposed. However he declined the prospect of a contest 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 ...

. Molesworth started the construction of Pencarrow in the 1760s, extending a large older house on the site. He died on 4 April 1766, leaving two sons and a daughter. He was succeeded in the baronetcy by his son

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

who completed the house at Pencarrow.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Molesworth, Sir John, 4th Baronet 1705 births 1766 deaths British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1747–1754 British MPs 1754–1761 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies 4

Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Newport (Cornwall)