Sir Richard Clayton, 1st Baronet (1745–1828) was an English barrister and diplomat, remembered as a translator.

Life

He was the son of John Clayton of Northall, Lancashire by Elizabeth, daughter of the Rev. Dr. Goodwin, rector of Tankersley, Yorkshire. He was the nephew of Richard Clayton,

Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas The chief justice of the Common Pleas for Ireland was the presiding judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Ireland, which was known in its early years as the Court of Common Bench, or simply as "the Bench", or "the Dublin bench". It was one of the ...

, who by his will, dated 16 March 1770, left him via Goodwin his manors of

Adlington, Cheshire Adlington is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is known as ''Eduluintune'' in the Domesday Book. According to the 2001 census the civil parish had a populati ...

, (including

Adlington Hall Adlington Hall is a country house near Adlington, Cheshire. The oldest part of the existing building, the Great Hall, was constructed between 1480 and 1505; the east wing was added in 1581. The Legh family has lived in the hall and in previo ...

), and Worthington, near Wigan. Clayton studied at

Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The l ...

.''Clayton; Sir; Richard (c 1745 - 1828)''.
/ref> He was a member of the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional association for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practice as a barrister in England and Wa ...

, where he was admitted in 1762,

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1771, and reader in 1811. He was created a

baronet 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 3 May 1774, elected a fellow of the

Society of Antiquaries of London The Society of Antiquaries of London (SAL) is a learned society of historians and archaeologists in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1707, received its royal charter in 1751 and is a Charitable organization, registered charity. It is based ...

and a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

in 1806. He was

recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a newsp ...

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...

(1815–28),

Constable of Lancaster Castle Lancaster Castle is a medieval castle and former prison in Lancaster in the English county of Lancashire. Its early history is unclear, but it may have been founded in the 11th century on the site of a Roman fort overlooking a crossing of ...

, and British consul at

Nantes Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city in the Loire-Atlantique department of France on the Loire, from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, sixth largest in France, with a pop ...

, where he died on 29 April 1828.

Works

Clayton published the following translations and other works: * "On the Cretins of the Vallais", a paper in the ''Memoirs'' of the

Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society The Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, popularly known as the Lit. & Phil., is one of the oldest learned societies in the United Kingdom and second oldest provincial learned society (after the Spalding Gentlemen's Society). Promi ...

, 1790. * ''Connubia Florum Latino carmine demonstrata; auctore D. De la Croix, notas et observationes adjecit'', Bath, 1791. * ''A Critical Inquiry into the Life of Alexander the Great by the Ancient Historians, translated from the French of the Baron de St. Croix'', Bath, 1793; which he made additions. * ''Memoirs of the House of Medici, from the French of M. Tenhove, with notes and observations'', Bath, 1797, 2 vols. * ''The Science of Legislation, from the Italian of Filangieri'', 1806. * ''A Treatise on Greyhounds'', in ''

The Pamphleteer ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The' ...

'', vol. ix. 1817.

Family

Clayton married in 1780 Ann, daughter of Charles White, an eminent surgeon of Manchester, and left an only daughter, who married Lieutenant-general Robert Browne. Lady Clayton died at Cheltenham on 23 November 1837.

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Clayton, Richard 1745 births 1828 deaths Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford Members of the Inner Temple English barristers Consuls for the United Kingdom 18th-century English translators Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of London Fellows of the Royal Society Baronets in the Baronetage of Great Britain