James Townsend (Lord Mayor of London)

James Townsend, 1772 engraving.

James Townsend (1737–1787) was an English Whig politician and Lord Mayor of London in 1772.[1] Initially a strong supporter of John Wilkes, he later became a determined opponent.

Life

He was the son of Chauncy Townsend and educated at Hertford College, Oxford.

In politics James Townsend was closely linked from the 1760s with William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne. Supported by Shelburne, he entered Parliament as Member for West Looe at a by-election in 1767, holding the seat until 1774.[1]

In 1769 he was Sheriff of the City of London with John Sawbridge, and together they opposed Sir James Eyre on the place of execution of convicted weavers.[2] In the same year Townsend followed John Horne in breaking away from the supporters of John Wilkes, founding the Constitutional Society.[3]

Satirical print from 1773 about the schism in the Wilkesite group. Townsend is upper right whipping the girl with sticks: a story to this effect had been publicised by Wilkes, though in reality it was two six-year-olds.[4] The bull stands for Frederick Bull.

In 1781 he presented a petition for electoral reform from the Tiverton activist Martin Dunsford.[5] In 1782 Shelburne arranged for his election to Parliament for Calne. As a member he backed some calls for reform, but mainly supported William Pitt the Younger. Shortly before his death in office he had opposed the impeachment of Warren Hastings.[1]

Family

He married in 1763 Rosa du Plessis, illegitimate daughter of Henry Hare, 3rd Baron Coleraine. She was her father's heiress, but the estate had escheated to the Crown, because she was an alien. By means of his father's influence with Henry Fox, Townsend had the estate restored to him by a private Act of Parliament. They had one son, Henry Hare Townsend, and one daughter.[1]

Henry Hare Townsend married Charlotte Lake, daughter of Sir James Lake, bart.,[6] and was father of Chauncy Hare Townsend.[7]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Townsend, James (1737-87), of Bruce Castle, Tottenham, Mdx.". historyofparliamentonline.org. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  2. ↑ Hay, Douglas. "Eyre, Sir James". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/9032. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  3. ↑ Thomas, Peter D. G. "Wilkes, John". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/29410. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  4. ↑ Peter David Garner Thomas (25 July 1996). John Wilkes: a friend to liberty. Oxford University Press. pp. 259 note 45. ISBN 978-0-19-820544-9. Retrieved 21 March 2012.
  5. ↑ Sweet, R. H. "Dunford, Martin". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/64839. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  6. ↑ Philological Society (Great Britain) (1790). The European magazine, and London review. Philological Society of London. pp. 77–. Retrieved 21 March 2012.
  7. ↑ V&A page, Reverend Chauncey Hare Townshend (1798-1868), Donor of the Townshend Bequest, and his Sister Charlotte (afterwards Mrs Elrington) as Children.
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