Thomas Holmes, 1st Baron Holmes (2 November 1699 – 21 July 1764) was a British politician who was

Vice-Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of vic ...

and

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

(1763–4) and 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 1774. He managed elections in the government interest in the

during the 1750s and 1760s.

Early life

Holmes was baptized on 2 November 1699, the eldest son of Henry Holmes, MP, of Thorley, Yarmouth and his wife Mary, illegitimate daughter of Sir Robert Holmes, MP, of Thorley. He married Anne Apsley, widow of Colby Apsley, and daughter of Henry Player of Alverstone, Hampshire.

Career

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 ...

Holmes was returned as a Tory Member of Parliament for Newtown, where his family shared the electoral influence with the Worsleys. He voted against the Administration on the civil list on 23 April 1729 but was unseated on petition on 25 April 1729. He was returned unopposed for Newtown 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 voted against the Administration on the Spanish convention in 1739 and was absent from the division on the place bill in 1740. In 1738, on the death of his father, he succeeded to his estates and political interests on the Isle of Wight. 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 returned his brother General Henry Holmes for Newtown instead. Holmes then made an agreement with

Sir Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (; 26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745), known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British Whig statesman who is generally regarded as the ''de facto'' first Prime Minister of Great Britain, ser ...

to support the Government on condition he should become the Government's manager for Newtown, Newport and Yarmouth, the three Isle of Wight boroughs. After the fall of Walpole in 1742, he renewed the agreement with Pelham. It was accepted that he should have first use of the seats for himself and his family and at the 1747 general election, he was returned unopposed with his brother Henry, for Yarmouth. He did not have as much power as many borough-owners who could directly return MPs, but he exercised his influence in favour of government candidates. He was returned again as MP for Yarmouth in 1754 and 1761. He returned his brother Admiral Charles Holmes for Newport in 1758. Holmes was sufficiently valuable to the ministries of Pelham and

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...

that he was able to ask for and receive secret service payments for each seat he secured.Page 215,

Lewis Namier Sir Lewis Bernstein Namier (; 27 June 1888 – 19 August 1960) was a British historian of Polish-Jewish background. His best-known works were '' The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III'' (1929), ''England in the Age of the Ame ...

, ''

The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III ''The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III'' is the title of a book written by Lewis Namier. At the time of its first publication in 1929, it caused a historiographical revolution in understanding the 18th century by challenging t ...

'' (2nd edition - London: St Martin's Press, 1957) He was also given a

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

as Baron Holmes, of Kilmallock in the County of Limerick, on 11 September 1760. He was appointed

Governor of the Isle of Wight Below is a list of those who have held the office of Governor of the Isle of Wight in England. Lord Mottistone was the last lord lieutenant to hold the title governor, from 1992 to 1995; since then there has been no governor appointed. Governors ...

from 6 April 1763.

Family

Holmes first wife, Anne Player Apsley, died in 1743, and he married as his second wife Catherine Leigh, daughter of John Leigh of Shorwell, Isle.of Wight. He died in 1764 and was buried on 21 July. His only son by his first marriage predeceased him and the peerage became extinct on his death, but was revived in 1797 in favour of his nephew Leonard Holmes.

Genealogy

* Henry Holmes of Mallow,

Cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

** Colonel Thomas Holmes of

Kilmallock Kilmallock () is a town in south County Limerick, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, near the border with County Cork, 30 km south of Limerick city. There is a Dominican Priory in the town and King John's Castle (Kilmallock), King's Castle (or K ...

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

*** Henry Holmes (–1738) m. Mary Holmes (daughter of Admiral Sir Robert Holmes) **** Coronet of a British Baron

Thomas Holmes, 1st Baron Holmes (1699–1764) **** Lieutenant General Henry Holmes (1703–62) **** Rear Admiral Charles Holmes (1711–1761) **** Elizabeth Holmes m. Thomas Troughear ***** Leonard (Troughear) Holmes, 1st Baron Holmes (–1804) m. Elizabeth Tyrrell (d.1810) ****** The Hon. Elizabeth Holmes m. Edward Rushout ******* ''Descendants'' ** Admiral Sir Robert Holmes (–1692), English Admiral *** Mary Holmes (wife of Henry Holmes) ** Admiral Sir John Holmes (1640?–1683), English Admiral leader

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holmes, Thomas 1st Baron Holmes Holmes, Thomas Holmes, 1st Baron Holmes, Thomas Holmes, 1st Baron Members of Parliament for the Isle of Wight Holmes, Thomas Holmes, 1st Baron Peers of Ireland created by George II British MPs 1727–1734 British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1747–1754 British MPs 1754–1761 British MPs 1761–1768 Hereditary peers elected to the House of Commons