Willoughby Bertie, 3rd Earl of Abingdon

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Willoughby Bertie, 3rd Earl of Abingdon (28 November 1692 – 10 June 1760), of Wytham Abbey, Berkshire and Rycote, Oxfordshire, was an English landowner and Tory politician who sat briefly in the House of Commons in 1715.

Early life[edit]

Bertie was the son of James Bertie of Stanwell in Middlesex and Elizabeth Willoughby, and nephew of Montagu Venables-Bertie, 2nd Earl of Abingdon. He matriculated at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge on 27 November 1707.[1]

Career[edit]

The Berties were Tories, with a strong electoral interest in Westbury, where the Earls of Abingdon were lords of the manor. At the 1715 general election in January, Bertie stood for one of the two seats; the mayor of Westbury as returning officer returned two Tories, Bertie and Francis Annesley, while the constable returned two Whigs, George Evans and Charles Allanson.[2] The Whigs had been sponsored by Lord Cowper to challenge the Bertie interest.[3] The return for Bertie and Annesley was initially accepted on 28 March 1715 and they were declared elected, but on petition, a number of their voters were disfranchised, and Evans (who had since been created Baron Carbery) and Allanson were declared elected on 1 June. Bertie did not stand for Parliament again, although at the 1722 election, his father James was returned with Annesley.[2][4]

Later life and legacy[edit]

Bertie married Anna Maria Collins in August 1727 in Florence. In 1743, he succeeded his uncle as Earl of Abingdon. He remained a staunch Tory, as he declined to join the Oxfordshire association in defence of the Hanoverian succession during the Jacobite rising of 1745.[4]

Bertie died on 10 June 1760. He and his wife had nine children:

  1. Lady Elizabeth Peregrine Bertie (1728–1804), married Sir John Gallini
  2. Lady Jane Bertie (c. 1730 – 25 February 1791), married Thomas Clifton of Westby, Clifton and Lytham
  3. Lady Bridget Bertie (1732 – 9 December 1760), unmarried
  4. James Bertie, Lord Norreys (25 September 1735 – 12 October 1745), killed in a fire at Rycote
  5. Lady Anne Eleanora Bertie (c. 1737 – 19 April 1804), married Philip Wenman, 7th Viscount Wenman
  6. Willoughby Bertie, 4th Earl of Abingdon (1739/40–1799)
  7. Hon. Peregrine Bertie (of Weston-on-the-Green) (1741–1790)
  8. Lady Mary Bertie (12 November 1746 – 22 July 1826), married Miles Stapleton (d. 1809)
  9. Lady Sophia Bertie (6 November 1748 – 1760), unmarried

In 1764, the trustees of his estate sold some of his manors in Oxfordshire: Wendlebury to Sir Edward Turner, 2nd Baronet,[5] and Chesterton to George Spencer, 4th Duke of Marlborough.[6] In Wiltshire, Marden was sold to George Willy[7] and Patney to Robert Amor.[8]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Foster, Joseph, ed. (1891). Alumni Oxonienses 1500-1714. Oxford. pp. 106–141.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. ^ a b Lea, R. S. (1970). "Westbury". In Sedgwick, Romney (ed.). The House of Commons 1715-1754. The History of Parliament Trust.
  3. ^ Lea, R. S. (1970). "Allanson, Charles (?1662-1729), of St. Andrew's, Holborn.". In Sedgwick, Romney (ed.). The House of Commons 1715-1754. The History of Parliament Trust.
  4. ^ a b Lea, R. S. (1970). "BERTIE, Willoughby (1692-1760), of Wytham Abbey, Berks. and Rycote, Oxon.". In Sedgwick, Romney (ed.). The House of Commons 1715-1754. The History of Parliament Trust.
  5. ^ Lobel, Mary D, ed. (1959). "Parishes: Wendlebury". A History of the County of Oxford. Vol. 6, Ploughley Hundred. London: Victoria County History. pp. 338–346. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  6. ^ Lobel, Mary D., ed. (1959). "Parishes: Chesterton". A History of the County of Oxford. Vol. 6, Ploughley Hundred. London: Victoria County History. pp. 92–103. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  7. ^ Baggs, A P; Crowley, D A; Pugh, Ralph B; Stevenson, Janet H; Tomlinson, Margaret (1975). "Parishes: Marden". In Crittall, Elizabeth (ed.). A History of the County of Wiltshire. Vol. 10. London: Victoria County History. pp. 119–125.
  8. ^ Baggs, A P; Crittall, Elizabeth; Freeman, Jane; Stevenson, Janet H (1980). "Parishes: Patney". In Crowley, D A (ed.). A History of the County of Wiltshire. Vol. 11, Downton Hundred, Elstub and Everleigh Hundred. London: Victoria County History. pp. 203–208.
Parliament of Great Britain
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Westbury
1715
With: Francis Annesley 		Succeeded by
Peerage of England
Preceded by Earl of Abingdon
1743–1760 		Succeeded by
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