Thomas Southwell, 2nd Baron Southwell PC (Ire), FRS (7 January 1698 – 19 November 1766), styled The Honourable from 1717 until 1720, was an Irish peer, politician and freemason.

Background

He was the oldest son of Thomas Southwell, 1st Baron Southwell and his wife Lady Meliora Coningsby, eldest daughter of Thomas Coningsby, 1st Earl Coningsby. His uncles were William Southwell and Richard Southwell, his younger brother was Henry Southwell. In 1743, Southwell became Grand Master of the

Grand Lodge of Ireland The Grand Lodge of Ireland is the second most senior Grand Lodge of Freemasons in the world, and the oldest in continuous existence. Since no specific record of its foundation exists, 1725 is the year celebrated in Grand Lodge anniversaries, as ...

, a position he held until the following year.

Career

In 1717, Southwell entered the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until the end of 1800. The upper house was the Irish House of Lords, House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, ...

for

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

, the same constituency his father had represented before, and sat for it until 1720, when he succeeded him also as baron. In 1726, Southwell was sworn of the

Privy Council of Ireland His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal executi ...

. He became 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 1735 and was Governor of County Limerick until his resignation in 1762.

Family

In March 1719, he married Mary Coke, eldest daughter of Thomas Coke, and by her he had three sons. Southwell died at Craig's Court,

Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Since the early 19th century, Charing Cross has been the notional "centre of London" and became the point from which distances from London are measured. ...

, aged 68 and was succeeded in his titles by his eldest surviving son

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

. His younger brother, Edmund Southwell, "lived in intimacy with"

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson ( – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, literary critic, sermonist, biographer, editor, and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

for many years, and was the first to introduce the great Shakespearean scholar

Edmond Malone Edmond Malone (4 October 174125 May 1812) was an Irish barrister, Shakespearean scholar and Literary editor, editor of the works of William Shakespeare. Assured of an income after the death of his father in 1774, Malone was able to give up his ...

to him.

References

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Sources

* * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Southwell, Thomas Southwell, 1st Baron 1698 births 1766 deaths Barons in the Peerage of Ireland Fellows of the Royal Society Irish MPs 1715–1727 Politicians from County Limerick Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Limerick constituencies Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Mayors of Limerick (city)