Thomas Thynne, 1st Marquess of Bath (13 September 173419 November 1796), of Longleat in Wiltshire, was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

politician who held office under King

George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

. He served as Southern Secretary, Northern Secretary and

Lord Lieutenant of Ireland Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (), or more formally Lieutenant General and General Governor of Ireland, was the title of the chief governor of Ireland from the Williamite Wars of 1690 until the Partition of Ireland in 1922. This spanned the K ...

. Between 1751 and 1789, he was known as the 3rd Viscount Weymouth. He is possibly best known for his role in the Falklands Crisis of 1770.

Early life

He was born on 13 September 1734, the eldest son and heir of Thomas Thynne, 2nd Viscount Weymouth (1710–1751) by his wife Louisa Carteret (c. 1712–1736), a daughter of John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville, 2nd Baron Carteret (1690–1763). On her father's side, she was a great-granddaughter of John Granville, 1st Earl of Bath (1628–1701), and her father's first-cousin was William Granville, 3rd Earl of Bath (1692–1711), on whose death the Earldom of Bath became extinct.

Family origins

The Thynnes are descended from Sir John Thynne (c. 1515–1580), the builder of Longleat House, the family seat in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, who acquired vast estates after the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Sir John owed his wealth and position to the favour of his master, the

Lord Protector Lord Protector (plural: ''Lords Protector'') is a title that has been used in British constitutional law for the head of state. It was also a particular title for the British heads of state in respect to the established church. It was sometime ...

Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, 1st Earl of Hertford, 1st Viscount Beauchamp (150022 January 1552) was an English nobleman and politician who served as Lord Protector of England from 1547 to 1549 during the minority of his nephew King E ...

.'Parliamentary history : 1529–1629', in '' A History of the County of Wiltshire'', vol. 5 (1957)
pp. 111–132
accessed 7 July 2011 He was comptroller of the household of the future Queen

Elizabeth I of England Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

. Another famous ancestor was Thomas Thynne (1648–1682), called on account of his wealth "Tom of Ten Thousand" and celebrated by Dryden as

Issachar Issachar () was, according to the Book of Genesis, the fifth of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's ninth son), and the founder of the Israelites, Israelite Tribe of Issachar. However, some Biblical criticism, Biblical scholars view this as ...

in '' Absalom and Achitophel'', who was murdered in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in February 1682.

Career

He succeeded his father as 3rd Viscount Weymouth in January 1751 and served as

for a short time during 1765, although he never visited that country. Having become prominent in British politics, he was appointed

Secretary of State for the Northern Department The secretary of state for the Northern Department was a position in the Cabinet (government), Cabinet of the government of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain up to 1782. Following this, the Northern Department became the Foreign Office, a ...

in January 1768 and acted with great promptitude during the unrest caused by

John Wilkes John Wilkes (17 October 1725 – 26 December 1797) was an English Radicalism (historical), radical journalist and politician, as well as a magistrate, essayist and soldier. He was first elected a Member of Parliament in 1757. In the Middlese ...

and the

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

election of 1768. He was then attacked and libeled by Wilkes, who was consequently expelled from 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 ...

Falklands Crisis

Before the close of 1768, he was transferred from the Northern Department to become

Secretary of State for the Southern Department The secretary of state for the Southern Department was a position in the Cabinet (government), cabinet of the government of the Kingdom of Great Britain up to 1782, when the Southern Department (Great Britain), Southern Department became the H ...

, but he resigned in December 1770 in the midst of the " Falklands Crisis", a dispute with

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

over the possession of the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; ), commonly referred to as The Falklands, is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and from Cape Dub ...

American War of Independence

In November 1775, Weymouth returned to his former office of Secretary of State for the Southern Department, undertaking in addition the duties attached to the northern department for a few months in 1779, but he resigned both positions in the autumn of that year. This period covered the American War of Independence.

Later life

He was High Steward of the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield from 1781 until his death in November 1796, having been created

Marquess of Bath Marquess#United Kingdom, Marquess of Bath is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1789 for Thomas Thynne, 1st Marquess of Bath, Thomas Thynne, 3rd Viscount Weymouth. The Marquess holds the subsidiary titles Baron#Britain an ...

in 1789. The title of Earl of Bath that had been held by his Granville ancestor was then unavailable, as it had been recreated for a member of the Pulteney family.

Marriage and issue

In 1759, he married Lady Elizabeth Bentinck, daughter of William Bentinck, 2nd Duke of Portland and the art collector

Margaret Bentinck, Duchess of Portland Margaret Cavendish Bentinck, Duchess of Portland (11 February 1715 – 17 July 1785) was the richest woman in Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain of her time, styled Lady Margaret Harley before 1734, Duchess of Portland from 1734 to her ...

, with whom he had three sons and five daughters, including: * Lady Louisa Thynne (born 25 March 1760) * Lady Henrietta Thynne (born 16 November 1762) *Lady Sophia Thynne (born 18 December 1763) *

Thomas Thynne, 2nd Marquess of Bath Thomas Thynne, 2nd Marquess of Bath (25 January 1765 – 27 March 1837), styled Viscount Weymouth from 1789 until 1796, was a British peer. Life Early life Thynne was the eldest son of Thomas Thynne, 1st Marquess of Bath, and Elizabeth Thy ...

(25 January 1765 – 27 March 1837), eldest son and heir. * Lady Maria Thynne (born 1 August 1767, died March 1768) *Lady Isabella Thynne (born 1 October 1768) * George Thynne, 2nd Baron Carteret (23 January 1770 – 19 February 1838), who inherited the title Baron Carteret by special remainder from his paternal uncle Henry Carteret, 1st Baron Carteret (1735–1826) (born Henry Thynne), of Haynes Park in Bedfordshire and of

Stowe House Stowe House is a grade I listed building, listed country house in Stowe, Buckinghamshire, Stowe, Buckinghamshire, England. It is the home of the Private schools in the United Kingdom, private Stowe School and is owned by the Stowe House Preserv ...

, Kilkhampton in Cornwall, the seat of his ancestor John Granville, 1st Earl of Bath (1628–1701), which descended via the Carteret family.

Legacy

Weymouth Street in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...

is named after him. His wife's family once owned the land on which the street was later built.

References

Attribution: * Thomas {{DEFAULTSORT:Bath, Thomas Thynne, 1st Marquess of 1734 births 1796 deaths Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge Secretaries of state for the Northern Department Secretaries of state for the Southern Department Grooms of the Stool Knights of the Garter Lords Lieutenant of Ireland 1 Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain Leaders of the House of Lords Court of George III