Arthur Annesley, 5th Earl of Anglesey PC, PC (Ire) ( – 31 March 1737), of Farnborough, Hampshire, Bletchingdon, Oxfordshire, and Knockgrenan, near Camolin, county Wexford, was an

Anglo-Irish Anglo-Irish people () denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly the descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland, which was the establis ...

Tory politician who sat in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

and

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 65 ...

from 1702 to 1710 and in the

Irish House of Commons The Irish House of Commons was the lower house of the Parliament of Ireland that existed from 1297 until 1800. The upper house was the House of Lords. The membership of the House of Commons was directly elected, but on a highly restrictive fran ...

from 1703 to 1710. He then succeeded as 6th Viscount Valentia and 5th

Earl of Anglesey Earl of Anglesey was a title in the Peerage of England during the 17th and 18th centuries. History The first creation came in 1623 when Christopher Villiers was created Earl of Anglesey, in Wales, as well as Baron Villiers. He was the elder br ...

, joining both the

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

and Irish House of LordsIrish House of Lords. He served as Vice-Treasurer in Ireland from 1710 to 1716 and was a member of the regency commission upon the succession of George I.

Early life and family

Annesley was the third son of James Annesley, 2nd Earl of Anglesey and his wife Elizabeth Manners (died 1700), daughter of

John Manners, 8th Earl of Rutland John Manners, 8th Earl of Rutland (10 June 160429 September 1679), was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 until 1641 when he inherited the title Earl of Rutland on the death of his second cousin George Manners, 7t ...

. He was appointed a Gentleman of the Privy Chamber to William III in 1689, and began studies at

Eton College Eton College () is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI of England, Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. i ...

around 1693. He attained an MA from

Magdalene College, Cambridge Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Ma ...

in 1699, and was elected a fellow the next year. In 1724, he gave £200 to Magdalene College for the establishment of a librarian post for the

Pepys Library The Pepys Library of Magdalene College, Cambridge, is the personal library collected by Samuel Pepys which he bequeathed to the college following his death in 1703. Background Samuel Pepys was a lifelong bibliophile and carefully nurtured hi ...

. He married his cousin Mary Thompson (died 1719) on 6 January 1702, third daughter of

John Thompson, 1st Baron Haversham John Thompson, 1st Baron Haversham (c. 1648 – 1 November 1710), known as Sir John Thompson, Bt, between 1673 and 1696, was an English politician. Thompson was the son of Maurice Thomson (1601/4-1676), of St Andrew, Eastcheap, City of London ...

and Frances, daughter of

Arthur Annesley, 1st Earl of Anglesey Arthur Annesley, 1st Earl of Anglesey PC (10 July 16146 April 1686) was an Anglo-Irish royalist statesman. After short periods as President of the Council of State and Treasurer of the Navy, he served as Lord Privy Seal between 1673 and 1682 ...

Political life

Anglesey was returned at the

1702 English general election The 1702 English general election was the first to be held during the reign of Queen Anne, and was necessitated by the demise of William III. The new government dominated by the Tories gained ground in the election, with the Tory party winning ...

Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. The ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

for

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. In 1703, he was elected to represent

New Ross New Ross (, formerly ) is a town in southwest County Wexford, Ireland. It is located on the River Barrow, near the border with County Kilkenny, and is around northeast of Waterford. In 2016 it had a population of 8,040 people, making it t ...

, near his family estate in

County Wexford County Wexford ( ga, Contae Loch Garman) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was based on the historic Gaelic territory of Hy Kinsella (''Uí C ...

, for the Irish Parliament. He held both seats until the death of his brother

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

in 1710, when he succeeded as 6th Viscount Valentia and 5th

in the Irish and

peerages respectively. He was appointed to the

and Irish Privy Councils in 1710 and 1711 respectively. Anglesey became Vice-Treasurer and Paymaster General in Ireland, but in 1711, after spending a period in Ireland, he had ambitions to succeed the Duke of Ormond as Viceroy of Ireland. When the

Duke of Shrewsbury Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranked ...

replaced Ormond, he opposed the parliamentary confirmation of the commercial treaty with France and undermined Shrewsbury in Ireland. In July 1714 he was commissioned to remodel the

Irish Army The Irish Army, known simply as the Army ( ga, an tArm), is the land component of the Defence Forces of Ireland.The Defence Forces are made up of the Permanent Defence Forces – the standing branches – and the Reserve Defence Forces. The A ...

. However, following the death of Queen Anne in August he took his place on the regency commission for George I until his arrival from

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

. Following the publication of plans to reduce the Irish army, he lost his position in court by 1715, and in 1716 he was removed from office, expressed in public as voluntary. He served as High Steward of the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

from 1722 to 1737. The death of George I in 1727 saw Anglesey encourage Irish Torys to come to court, however, his appointment as Governor of

was one of only a few gains. Anglesey died from the effects of

gout Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of a red, tender, hot and swollen joint, caused by deposition of monosodium urate monohydrate crystals. Pain typically comes on rapidly, reaching maximal intens ...

on 31 March 1737 in

Farnborough, Hampshire Farnborough is a town in northeast Hampshire, England, part of the borough of Rushmoor and the Farnborough/Aldershot Built-up Area. Farnborough was founded in Saxon times and is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. The name is formed fro ...

, where he was buried. He and his wife had no children and he was succeeded as 6th Earl of Anglesey by his cousin Richard Annesley, 5th Baron Altham.

Footnotes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Anglesey, Arthur Annesley, 5th Earl Of 1678 births 1737 deaths 5 People educated at Eton College Alumni of Magdalene College, Cambridge Fellows of Magdalene College, Cambridge Tory members of the Parliament of Great Britain Members of the pre-1707 Parliament of England for the University of Cambridge Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Cambridge University British MPs 1707–1708 British MPs 1708–1710 Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801) for County Wexford constituencies Irish MPs 1703–1713 Members of the Privy Council of Ireland Members of the Privy Council of Great Britain

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more wi ...

English MPs 1702–1705 Gentlemen of the Privy Chamber