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Biographies

Biographies are available for the following individuals, click on each name to see more information.

• George Edward George Edward Monckton-Arundell (1782-1834), 5th Viscount Galway
  The 5th Viscount, of Serlby in Nottinghamshire, succeeded to the Irish peerage in 1810. He married Catherine Elizabeth Handfield (d 1862) in 1804 and had eight children. He was one of the Irish aristocrats elected as Irish representative peers to sit in the British House of Lords.
• Rev. John Thomas Becher (1770-1848; justice of the peace and clergyman)
  His view that workhouses should be unpleasant enough to deter all but the most needy, was the basis of the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834, which set up Poor Law Unions across the country.
• Lord George Bentinck (1802-1848; politician and sportsman)
  Lord George’s early life was dominated by sporting and military pursuits. As a member of the 9th Lancers, he became embroiled in a dispute with his superior officer, Captain Ker, which led to an infamous duel between the two men in Paris in May 1821.
• Lord Henry Bentinck (1804-1870; sportsman and politician)
  Devoted the early part of his life to the pursuit of fox hunting. Despite an initial reluctance, he was drawn into politics in 1846 when his brother, Lord George Bentinck, was leading the Protectionist opposition to Sir Robert Peel.
• William Henry Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck, 4th Duke of Portland (1768-1854)
  In terms of his political beliefs, the 4th Duke became more and more liberal as time went on, and after his succession to the dukedom developed a close association with George Canning.
• Colonel Thomas Bernard (c.1769-1834; M.P.)
  Of Castle Bernard near Kinitty, King's County [co. Offaly], Colonel Bernard commanded a local volunteer corps called the 'Mountain Rangers' in the 1798 Irish Rebellion. Bernard was elected as the Tory M.P. for King's County in 1802, but was defeated by Nicholas Fitzsimon in the general election of December 1832 following the extension of the franchise.
• Sir Robert Howe Bromley (1778-1857; admiral)
  Sir Robert was active in local Nottinghamshire politics and used his influence to help bring in the Earl of Lincoln for the South Nottinghamshire constituency in 1832.
• Henry P. Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux (1778-1868; Lord Chancellor)
  Brougham was instrumental in ensuring that the Great Reform Act of 1832 was passed. However, he was mistrusted by many colleagues who suspected him of self-advancement at the expense of Whig policies.
• Sir John Fox Burgoyne, baronet (1782-1871, army officer)
  Had a lengthy military career with the Royal Engineers, beginning with service in the Napoleonic Wars. Also served in America, France and Portugal before in 1831 taking up a civil appointment as chairman of the Board of Public Works in Ireland.
• Thomas F.A. Burnaby (1808-1893; solicitor, of Newark, Nottinghamshire)
  Burnaby spent all his working life as a solicitor in Newark. He went into partnership with William E. Tallents, the pre-eminent solicitor in Newark, in around 1832.
• Charles William Bury, 1st Earl of Charleville (1764-1835)
  Came from a landed family based at Charleville Forest, county Offaly [formerly known as King's County]. He had political control of the borough of Carlow, and through this influence was created a Peer of Ireland in 1797 as Baron Tullamore.
• Charles William Bury, 2nd Earl of Charleville (1764-1835)
  Styled Lord Tullamore until he succeeded to the earldom in 1835, he was placed as an M.P. for his family's seat of Carlow, Ireland, from 1826.
• Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton, 1st Baronet (1786-1845; politician)
  Buxton was the MP for Weymouth from 1818 to 1837. He was already well-known as a philanthropist and activist on behalf of the poor in Spitalfields. In Parliament he took an interest in law reform and prisons, and campaigned for the abolition of slavery. Buxton was a co-founder and Vice-President of the Anti-Slavery Society. After Britain's abolition of slavery in 1834 he continued campaigning and writing on the issues of the continuing foreign slave trade, and the welfare of freed slaves. He was created a Baronet in 1840.
• George Canning (1770-1827; Prime Minister)
  Though of humble origins, George Canning was taken under the wing of wealthy relatives who provided for his education at Eton and Oxford. Conscious of the need to secure an income, he initially pursued a legal career.
• George Spencer-Churchill, 6th Duke of Marlborough (1793-1857; politician)
  He opposed Catholic emancipation in 1829, and the Maynooth grant in 1845. He also opposed the repeal of the Corn Laws. However, he was not an orthodox Conservative, having proposed radical reform of the parliamentary system in 1830.
• Lord Charles Pelham Pelham-Clinton (1813-1884; M.P. and nobleman)
  Lord Charles was the second son of the 4th Duke of Newcastle under Lyne and served in the 1st Life Guards for 18 years. In 1835, unsuccessfully contested the seat for East Retford, Nottinghamshire.
• Henry Pelham Fiennes Pelham-Clinton, 4th Duke of Newcastle under Lyne (1785-1851; landowner and politician)
  After succeeding to his dukedom in 1795, at the relatively tender age of ten, the 4th Duke was educated at Eton but refrained from pursuing his studies further at university. Instead, in 1803, his mother and stepfather took him on a European Tour.
• Henry Pelham Fiennes Pelham-Clinton, 5th Duke of Newcastle under Lyne (1811-1864; politician)
  Known as Lord Lincoln until he inherited the dukedom in 1851. After completing his degree in 1832, the young earl became M.P. for South Nottinghamshire (1832-1846) and later for the Falkirk Burghs (1846-1851).
• Sir William Henry Clinton (1769-1846; army officer and administrator)
  In 1794 he became a Tory M.P. for the East Retford constituency in Nottinghamshire. He held the seat until 1796 but was hardly an active politician, speaking in the House of Commons only once.
• Lord Robert Renebald Pelham-Clinton (1820-1867; nobleman)
  The sixth son of the 4th Duke of Newcastle, Lord Robert entered Christ Church College, Oxford, in 1839. He was elected as the M.P. for North Nottinghamshire in 1852, retiring in 1865. He was 1st Lieutenant of the Nottinghamshire Yeomanry Cavalry (Sherwood Rangers) from 1853.
• Richard Cobden (1804-1865; manufacturer and politician)
  Cobden gained experience working for his uncle’s warehousing business before eventually setting up in partnership with his friends, Sheriff and Gillett. The firm soon moved into manufacturing, printing calicoes in Burnley. [more]
• William Sharman Crawford (1781-1861; Irish politician)
  As M.P. for Rochdale, Crawford was prominent in his campaigns relating to Irish issues. He proposed a federal union between Great Britain and Ireland in contrast to Daniel O'Connell's 'repeal' movement, but this did not receive much support. [more]
• John Wilson Croker (1780-1857; politician and essayist)
  Croker opposed the Reform Bill in 1832. In the 1840s he was a supporter of Peel, and wrote leaders in favour of the Maynooth Grant. However, his friendship with Peel ended over the latter's decision to repeal the Corn Laws. [more]
• Dr George Croly (1780-1860; writer and clergyman)
  Croly was born in Dublin and educated at Trinity College, Dublin. He took up a curacy in northern Ireland in 1804. In 1810 he moved to London and began a career as a reviewer and journalist. [more]
• John Cust, 1st Earl Brownlow (1779-1853)
  He was not active in the House of Commons and apparently did not speak in debate. His Commons career proved to be short-lived. In 1807 he succeeded his father to become 2nd Baron Brownlow and removed to the House of Lords. [more]
• George R. Dawson (1790-1856; M.P.)
  While at Harrow he became friends with Robert Peel, who became his mentor throughout his political career. He was appointed as Peel's private secretary when Peel became Chief Secretary to Ireland in 1812. [more]
• John Evelyn Denison, Viscount Ossington (1800-1873; speaker of the House of Commons)
  Denison's most substantial political contribution lay in his role as Speaker of the House of Commons - a role for which he was a surprise candidate in 1857. He continued to serve in the position until his retirement in 1872. [more]
• Edward Granville Eliot, 3rd Earl of St Germans (1798-1877; politician and nobleman)
  In 1834 he was sent to Spain as envoy-extraordinary, and drew up the 'Eliot Convention' between the two sides in the Carlist War. He returned to Britain in 1837 and was elected as M.P. for East Cornwall. [more]
• Ernest Augustus I, King of Hanover (1771-1851; styled Duke of Cumberland and Teviotdale 1799-1837)
  The Duke was unpopular, and a series of scandals led to his voluntary exile on the Continent from 1818 to 1828. When he returned, he tried vigorously to prevent the proposed Catholic Emancipation bill from becoming law. [more]
• Nicholas Fitzsimon (fl 1832-1840; M.P.)
  Fitzsimon was a gentleman, of Castlewood, King's County [co. Offaly], and in favour of repealing the Act of Union between Great Britain and Ireland. In the general election in December 1832, benefiting from the extension of the franchise in King's County as a result of the Reform Act, Fitzsimon defeated the sitting Tory M.P. Colonel Thomas Bernard. Fitzsimon sat in the House of Commons until 1840.
• Henry Gally Knight (1786-1846; architectural writer and M.P.)
  Gally Knight was the only son of Henry Gally Knight of Langold Hall, Yorkshire. Following his education at Eton and Oxford, he turned his attention to the study of architecture and published several architectural studies. [more]
• William Ewart Gladstone (1809-1898; Prime Minster and author)
  Gladstone led a number of different seats during his time in parliament. His early political career was marked by a keen interest in all matters relating to Anglicanism, and by the publication of a number of books. [more]
• Edward Smith Godfrey (1768-1843; banker and solicitor, of Newark, Nottinghamshire)
  Edward Smith Godfrey was the son of John Godfrey (c.1738-1788), a Newark mercer and Alderman. Godfrey became a solicitor, and went into partnership with Job Brough of Newark. By 1805 he was in partnership with William Edward Tallents. [more]
• Sir James Graham, 2nd Baronet (1792-1861; politician)
  He was appointed as First Lord of the Admiralty in Earl Grey's government in 1830, but resigned in 1834 due to his opposition to the proposed reform of the Irish Church. [more]
• Charles Grant, 1st Baron Glenelg (1783-1866; politician)
  Grant was educated at Cambridge and entered Lincoln’s Inn in 1807. His political career began in 1811 when he was elected as Tory M.P. for the Inverness burghs. From 1818 to 1835 he was the member for Inverness-shire. [more]
• Richard Plantagenet Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (1797-1861; politician)
  Chandos was a strong opponent of Catholic emancipation in the 1820s and an advocate of parliamentary reform. His support of the Corn Laws and the agricultural interest gained him much support among farmers. [more]
• Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey (1764-1845; Prime Minister)
  Charles Grey was elected to the House of Commons as member for the county of Northumberland and, contrary to family tradition, he became a member of the Whig party. He was extremely active in opposition. [more]
• Richard Grier (fl 1828; Irish clergyman and writer)
  Grier wrote a number of pamphlets attacking the Roman Catholic church, and was a fierce opponent of Catholic Emancipation in Ireland. [more]
• Alexander Douglas-Hamilton, 10th Duke of Hamilton (1767-1852; aristocrat)
  Hamilton spent a significant part of his early years in Italy. In 1802 he entered political life, becoming Whig M.P. for Lancaster, though he was summoned to the House of Lords in his father’s barony of Dutton in 1806. [more]
• Sidney Herbert, 1st Baron Herbert (1810-1861; politician)
  Herbert swiftly rose to office, holding positions including Secretary of the Board of Control, Secretary to the Admiralty, and Secretary at War. He held the latter position during the Crimean War. [more]
• Thomas Blackborne Thoroton-Hildyard (1821-1888; M.P.)
  In 1846 he was elected as Conservative M.P. for South Nottinghamshire. He was strongly supported by the 4th Duke of Newcastle under Lyne in spite of the fact that Newcastle’s son, the Earl of Lincoln, was his opponent. [more]
• William Hirst (fl 1818-1839; solicitor and postmaster of Boroughbridge, Yorkshire)
  William Hirst moved to Boroughbridge to start work as an attorney there in 1818. He was recommended to the Duke of Newcastle by Edward Lascelles, Baron Harewood, of Harewood House near Leeds. Hirst had presumably lived in the Harewood area up to this time. Hirst acted as the steward of the Duke of Newcastle's manors of Aldborough and Boroughbridge, and worked as a general agent for the 4th Duke of Newcastle in relation to his tenants and elections.
• George William Frederick Howard, 7th Earl of Carlisle (1802-1864; politician)
  Styled Lord Morpeth from 1825 to 1848, he was a supporter of religious tolerance, Catholic emancipation, and parliamentary reform. In 1835 he was appointed as Chief Secretary to Ireland. [more]
• Richard William Penn Curzon-Howe, 1st Earl Howe (1796-1870)
  Between 1829 and 1830 he was a Lord of the Bedchamber and he later acted as Lord Chamberlain to Queen Adelaide - losing that office for a brief period on account of his voting against the Reform Bill. [more]
• Sir Robert Harry Inglis, 2nd Baronet (1786-1855; M.P.)
  Inglis was a strong opponent of Catholic emancipation, and defeated Peel over the issue at the Oxford University by-election in 1829. [more]
• John Kaye (1783-1853; Bishop of Lincoln)
  Kaye worked hard to tighten up procedures in his diocese, encourage church attendance and church schools, and strengthen the church against dissenters, evangelicals, and Anglo-Catholics. [more]
• William Hastings Kelk (1803-1865; clergyman)
  Born at Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire, Kelk was the son of a clergyman. He went up to Jesus College, Cambridge, and graduated B.A. in 1828. He became a deacon in 1831 and a priest in 1833. In 1836 he was inducted as Rector of Osgathorpe in Leicestershire. From 1840 to 1860 he was rector of Drayton Beauchamp, Buckinghamshire. He was the author of a number of books and articles, including Britain's Ancient Church and Rome's Usurpations.
• George Kenyon, 2nd Baron Kenyon (1776-1855; activist against Catholic emancipation)
  Keynon was the second son of the 1st Baron Kenyon. His elder brother died in 1801, so Kenyon succeeded his father in 1802. He is best known for his vehement opposition to Catholic emancipation. He became a member of the Orange Order in 1808, and was the author of Observations on the Roman Catholic Question, published in 1810. Kenyon was at the heart of the campaign against the proposed Catholic emancipation in the late 1820s, and continued to be active on Protestant issues until the probity of the Orange Order was called into question in 1836.
• John Lawless (c.1773-1837; Irish nationalist, called 'Honest Jack Lawless')
  Lawless was born in Dublin and was the son of a brewer. He later moved to northern Ireland and became editor of the Ulster Register and the Belfast Magazine and a prominent member of the Liberal party. As a member of the committee of the Catholic Association in the 1820s he campaigned strongly for Catholic emancipation. His radical views were distrusted both by the government, who ordered copies of his 1818 book on Belfast politics to be burnt, and by Daniel O'Connell who referred to him as 'Mad Lawless'.
• Sir Harcourt Lees, 2nd baronet (1776-1852; political pamphleteer)
  The son of John Lees, Secretary to the Post Office in Ireland, Lees was educated at Trinity College, Dublin and Trinity College, Cambridge. He was instituted as rector and vicar of Killaney, co. Down, following his graduation in 1802. His father was created a baronet in 1804; Lees succeeded him in 1811. Lees is best known for his strongly-worded pamphlets attacking Roman Catholicism.
• Lord Lincoln
  See entry for Henry Pelham Fiennes Pelham-Clinton, 5th Duke of Newcastle under Lyne.
• Thomas Babington Macaulay, Baron Macaulay (1800-1859; historian, essayist, and poet)
  Macaulay was the son of Zachary Macaulay, a campaigner against the slave trade. He was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, and trained as a barrister. [more]
• John Henry Manners, 5th duke of Rutland (1778-1857)
  John Henry Manners was born in 1778. He became the 5th Duke of Rutland in 1787 on the death of his father Charles (1754-1787), the 4th Duke. John Henry married Lady Elizabeth Howard, daughter of the 5th Earl of Carlisle. He was a colonel of the Leicestershire militia, recorder for Grantham, Cambridge and Scarborough and a trustee of the British Museum. He was succeeded on his death in 1857 by his eldest son, Charles Cecil. John Henry lived at Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire.
• John James Robert Manners, 7th Duke of Rutland (1818-1906; politician)
  Manners was a member of the Young England group of Conservatives, and was a supporter of the 10-hour day in factories. [more]
• William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne (1779-1848; Prime Minister)
  Although not a great supporter of parliamentary and social reform, Melbourne dealt with outbreaks of unrest in the early 1830s judiciously, urging local authorities to use their existing powers rather than to bring in armed forces. [more]
• William Eaton Mousley (d 1853; solicitor, of Derby)
  Mousley was a prominent solicitor in the town of Derby and a partner in the firm of Mousley and Barber. He was a magistrate and Alderman, and owner of a substantial amount of local property. He was Mayor of Derby from 1845-47. In addition to his work as an adviser and trustee of the 4th Duke of Newcastle, he was steward and solicitor to the Earl of Chesterfield and Master of several Barmote courts in north Derbyshire. He lived at Exeter House in Derby.
• Sir Richard Musgrave, 1st Baronet (c.1755-1818; political writer and politician)
  Musgrave, of Tourin, co. Waterford, was a member of the Irish House of Commons and connected to the Dukes of Devonshire by marriage. He held fiercely anti-Catholic views. [more]
• William Smith O'Brien (1803-1864; Irish nationalist)
  In the summer of 1848 O'Brien half-heartedly led an insurrection in the southern counties of Ireland. Convicted of high treason at Clonmel courthouse, his sentence of death was commuted to transportation to Van Diemen's Land [Tasmania]. [more]
• Daniel O'Connell (1775-1847; Irish nationalist leader)
  O'Connell was a popular and successful barrister, and used his celebrity to promote his political views. He was an opponent of the Union of Great Britain and Ireland, and a fierce critic of the restrictions imposed on Catholics. [more]
• Morgan John O'Connell (1804-1885; soldier and politician)
  Morgan was the second son of Daniel O'Connell. Following a military career in the Irish South American Legion and the Austrian army, he returned to Ireland in 1830. He sat as M.P. for Meath from 1832 to 1840 and campaigned with his father for repeal of the Act of Union. O'Connell was then employed as assistant registrar, and later registrar of deeds in Ireland until his retirement in 1869.
• Feargus O’Connor (1796?-1855; Chartist leader)
  An Irish landowner and lawyer, O'Connor was elected as M.P. for Cork in 1832. He became an independent agitator for radical reform in England and in effect the leader of the burgeoning Chartist movement. [more]
• Richard Oastler (1789-1861; factory reformer)
  Took the lead in forming local committees of workers agitating for a 10-hour day. A bill limiting working hours in some factories (Althorp's Act) was passed in 1833 but did not go far enough for Oastler, who became known as the 'Factory King'. [more]
• Henry William Paget, 1st Marquess of Anglesey (1768-1854; army officer and politician)
  Anglesey was a liberal Lord Lieutenant, who found common cause with many of Daniel O'Connell's demands for reform. His greatest achievement as Lord Lieutenant was the establishment of a national education system. [more]
• Lawrence Parsons, 2nd Earl of Rosse (1758-1841; politician)
  Parsons was in favour of moderate reform in Ireland, and opposed the Act of Union. In 1801 he was elected as M.P. for King's County in the parliament of Great Britain and Ireland, after which his views became less radical. [more]
• William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse (1800-1867; astronomer)
  He was elected as an Irish Representative Peer in 1845. Is best known for his achievements in astronomy. The telescope he built at Birr Castle in 1844, known as the 'Leviathon', was the largest in the world. [more]
• Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet (1788-1850; Prime Minister)
  Political life in the 1830s was marked by the increasing division amongst the Tories. Peel trod a careful path and eventually emerged to lead the new Conservatives. [more]
• Richard Pennefather (1806-1849; civil servant)
  Born in Dublin, but educated at Balliol College, Oxford, and at Lincoln's Inn, Pennefather returned to Ireland after his legal training. In 1845 he was appointed as under-secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, based at Dublin Castle. He was High Sheriff of co. Tipperary in 1848 and was involved in the bringing to trial of William Smith O'Brien and the other prisoners at Clonmel accused of high treason.
• Dr Henry Phillpotts, Bishop of Exeter (1778-1869)
  In the House of Lords, Phillpotts opposed the 1832 Reform Bill and most other Whig reforms. He was a high-church reformer in his own diocese, aiming to increase the prestige, efficiency and orthodoxy of the church organisation. [more]
• Thomas Spring Rice, 1st Baron Monteagle of Brandon (1790-1866; politician)
  Spring Rice was the son of Irish gentleman from co. Limerick. His opinions were conservative, and he was a supporter of the union between Great Britain and Ireland. [more]
• William Rickford (1768-1854; banker and M.P. of Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire)
  William Rickford's father, also called William Rickford, established the Aylesbury Old Bank in 1795. Rickford became the sole proprietor on his father's death in 1803. He continued running the bank until his death in 1854. Between 1818 and 1841 Rickford was the M.P. for Aylesbury. He was a Whig, and campaigned in favour of the Reform Act in 1832.
• John Russell, 1st Earl Russell (1792-1878; Prime Minister)
  Russell was one of the four men who drafted the Great Reform Bill and was singly responsible for introducing it into Parliament three times in 1831 and 1832, and amending the final version which was finally granted Royal Assent in June 1832. [more]
• Richard Ryder (1766-1832; lawyer and politician)
  In 1809 he was appointed as Secretary of State for the Home Department. Some historians have suggested that Ryder felt unable to cope with the demands of the job, which included responsibility for dealing with the Luddite attacks in 1811 and 1812.
• Michael Thomas Sadler (1780-1835; social reformer and political economist)
  Sadler's parliamentary interests were social and economic and he became sponsor of the Ten Hours Bill (for factories), ultimately chairing the committee of enquiry on factory reform.
• Robert Campbell Scarlett, 2nd Baron Abinger (1794-1861; politician)
  Scarlett was the son of the judge and M.P. James Scarlett, of Abinger Hall in Surrey. He was educated at Eton College and Trinity College, Cambridge, and trained as a barrister. He was M.P. for Norwich from 1835 to 1838, and for Horsham between 1841 and 1844. In 1844 he succeeded his father as 2nd Baron Abinger.
• John Scott, 1st Earl of Eldon (1751-1838; Lord Chancellor)
  Eldon was vigorously opposed to Catholic emancipation and to the repeal of the Test and Corporation Acts, thanks to his political support for the primacy of Anglican state protestantism rather than through any religious prejudice.
• Richard Lalor Sheil (1791-1851; playwright and politician)
  Sheil was a leading figure in the agitation in favour of Catholic emancipation in the 1810s, but disagreed with Daniel O'Connell over offering concessions to Protestants in order to persuade them to accept the proposals.
• William Sherbrooke (1768-1831; J.P.)
  Sherbrooke was Chairman of the Nottinghamshire Quarter Sessions for a number of years, and High Sheriff in 1803. Additionally, he served in the Nottinghamshire Militia in the first decade of the nineteenth century, resigning in 1812.
• George Stanhope, 6th Earl of Chesterfield (1805-1866)
  George Stanhope was educated at Eton and then Oxford, having succeeded his father as 6th Earl of Chesterfield in 1815. His politics were Tory, though he was a consistent supporter of Catholic emancipation.
• Edward George Geoffrey Smith Stanley, 14th Earl of Derby (1799-1869; prime minister)
  Responsible for introducing a number of reforms in Ireland, in the areas of education, transport, tithes and the electoral franchise. By 1833 he had been moved to the Colonial Office, where he was responsible for drawing up the Abolition of Slavery Bill.
• Joseph Sturge (1793-1859; philanthropist and reformer)
  A Quaker who organised campaigns to end slavery. He travelled in the Caribbean and the United States campaigning for emancipation, and founded the British and Foreign Anti-Slavery Society in 1839.
• James Sweet (fl 1838-1879; Nottingham shopkeeper and Chartist)
  He was a committed Chartist, but deeply opposed to the New Poor Law, and therefore supported the Tory candidate Walter in the 1841 Nottingham election against the Whigs.
• Godfrey Tallents (1811-1877; solicitor and agent of the Duke of Newcastle; of Newark, Nottinghamshire)
  He trained as a lawyer and in 1834 was appointed a Master Extraordinary in the Court of Chancery. He then joined the Newark law firm which had been established by his grandfather Philip Tallents (1741-1789) and continued by his father.
• James Towle (d 1816; Luddite)
  A member of the Luddite gang which carried out an attack on Heathcoat and Boden's lace mill in Loughborough on June 28th 1816. One guard, John Asher, was shot and wounded. Towle was arrested a few days later.
• Edward Unwin (1797-1841; J.P.)
  Unwin acted as a magistrate for a number of years, was opposed to Reform, and was involved with the maintenance of order during the Chartist period in the late 1830s. [more]
• Granville Edward Harcourt Vernon (1816-1861; politician)
  Vernon was a proponent of ‘Liberal-Conservative’ politics. He was elected M.P. for Newark in 1842, and sat for the constituency until his retirement in 1857. [more]
• Henry Warburton (1784-1858; politician)
  A radical who worked closely with Daniel O'Connell to co-ordinate opposition to Peel's government. Warburton had many political interests but was particularly known for his work relating to the reform of medical matters. [more]
• Richard Wellesley, Marquess Wellesley (1760-1842; statesman)
  He entered the British House of Commons in 1784 as a liberal Whig M.P. He was in favour of free trade, Catholic emancipation, the abolition of slavery, and (from the 1820s) parliamentary reform. [more]
• Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769-1852; army officer and Prime Minister)
  After the end of the Napoleonic Wars, Wellington took various ceremonial and governmental offices. He became Prime Minister in 1828 and, despite his personal beliefs, steered through Catholic Emancipation. [more]
• Warner William Westenra, 2nd Baron Rossmore (1765-1842)
  Lord Rossmore succeeded to the Irish barony of Rossmore of Monaghan in 1801. In the 1820s he championed the cause of Catholic emancipation. He also spearheaded a campaign to reform the representative peerage in Scotland and Ireland, and sought to be nominated himself. From 1831 to 1838 he was Lord Lieutenant of co. Monaghan, being succeeded by his son, the Whig M.P. the Hon. Henry R. Westenra (1792-1860). In 1838, Rossmore was created a Baron of the United Kingdom and took his seat in the House of Lords.
• George Wingfield (fl 1837-1842; of Breadsall, Derbyshire)
  George Wingfield appears in Pigot's Directory of Derbyshire (1842) as a gentleman or clergyman living in the parish of Breadsall. In Bagshaw's Directory (1846), a George Wingfield is listed as a farmer in the parish. Nothing further is at present known about George Wingfield.

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