William Nassau de Zuylestein, 2nd Earl of Rochford (1682 – 27 July 1710), styled Viscount Tunbridge from 1695 to 1709, was a

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

officer and Whig politician who sat in the Irish House of Commons from 1705 and in the British House of Commons from 1708 until 1709 when he succeeded to the peerage and sat in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

. He was killed in battle. William Nassau de Zuylestein was baptized on 9 July 1682, the eldest son of William Henry Nassau de Zuylestein, 1st Earl of Rochford, and his wife Jane Wroth, daughter of Sir Henry Wroth of Durrants, Enfield, Middlesex. Tunbridge was an aide-de-camp to John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough in

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

in 1704, and was commissioned a lieutenant-colonel in the 32nd Regiment of Foot in January 1706. On 12 April, he received a commission as the colonel of a new regiment of foot, part of the Irish army, and on 1 February 1707, he was appointed colonel of the 3rd Regiment of

Dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat wi ...

s (succeeding the late Lord Cutts), which embarked for Spain in 1708. Tunbridge was returned for the Whig party as an Irish Member of Parliament for Kilkenny City in 1705. He was returned as Member of Parliament for Steyning at the 1708 British general election. In January 1709, he succeeded his father as Earl of Rochford, and vacated his seat in the House of Commons to sit in the House of Lords. He was commissioned a brigadier general in January 1710. Rochford was killed on 27 July 1710 at the Battle of Almenar while leading his regiment, aged 28. He was succeeded by his brother

Frederick Nassau de Zuylestein, 3rd Earl of Rochford Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Given name Nobility = Anhalt-Harzgerode = * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) = Austria = * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...

References

*''

Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

'', in article on his father. 1682 births 1710 deaths 32nd Regiment of Foot officers British military personnel of the War of the Spanish Succession Tunbridge, William Nassau de Zuylestein, Viscount Tunbridge, William Nassau de Zuylestein, Viscount Irish MPs 1703–1713 Tunbridge, William Nassau de Zuylestein, Viscount Tunbridge, William Nassau de Zuylestein, Viscount Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Kilkenny constituencies Earls of Rochford British military personnel killed in the War of the Spanish Succession {{England-earl-stub