Edward Birkbeck Vanity Fair 15 August 1885

Sir Edward Birkbeck, 1st Baronet (11 October 1838 – 2 September 1908) was a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom.

Biography

Birkbeck was born in 1838 and served as Conservative MP for

North Norfolk North Norfolk is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in Cromer, and the largest town is North Walsham. The district also includes the towns of Fakenham, Holt, Norfolk, Holt, Shering ...

from 1879 (being returned at a by-election following the death of Colonel Duff) to 1885 and for East Norfolk from 1885 to 1892. He was defeated in the 1892 general election by Sir Robert Price. He was created a baronet, of Horstead Hall, in the parish of Horstead, in the

County of Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and east, Cambridgeshire to the west, a ...

on 9 March 1886. The baronetage became extinct in 1908 on his death. Birkbeck resided at Horstead Hall, a mansion located in extensive and secluded grounds outside Horstead,

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

, remodelled in the Tudor style in 1835. He entertained

Lord Salisbury Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury (; 3 February 183022 August 1903), known as Lord Salisbury, was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United ...

there on at least one occasion (1887), and bred

Jersey cattle The Jersey is a British breed of small dairy cattle from Jersey, in the British Channel Islands. It is one of three Channel Island cattle breeds, the others being the Alderney – now extinct – and the Guernsey. The milk is high in butterf ...

there. Sir Edward greatly improved the farm buildings, adding, among other things, a watertower in the

Italian style Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

that remains a local landmark, cottages and one of the two lodges facing towards

Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the High Peak, Derbyshire, Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, in the East Midlands region of England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.Alston, Cumbria also claims this, but lacks a regu ...

. Sir Edward served as, among other things, President of the National Sea Fisheries Protection Association, and Chairman of the

Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest of the lifeboat (rescue), lifeboat services operating around the coasts of the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on s ...

. In June 1902 he was on board German torpedo boat ''S. 42'' when it sank off

Cuxhaven Cuxhaven (; ) is a town and seat of the Cuxhaven district, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town includes the northernmost point of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the shore of the North Sea at the mouth of the Elbe River. Cuxhaven has a footprint o ...

, after it was accidentally run over by the steam ship ''SS Frisby''. Sir Edward had been granted passage in the torpedo boat from

Heligoland Heligoland (; , ; Heligolandic Frisian: , , Mooring Frisian: , ) is a small archipelago in the North Sea. The islands were historically possessions of Denmark, then became possessions of the United Kingdom from 1807 to 1890. Since 1890, the ...

to Cuxhaven, returning from the Dover to Heligoland yacht race, and survived unharmed, though the captain and several German crew members drowned. Sir Edward Birkbeck died on 2 September 1908. The Horstead Hall estate passed to a collateral branch of the family. His wife survived him. A branch of the family still resides in the area, at Rippon Hall, a mansion in much the same style between

and Reepham.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Birkbeck, Edward 1838 births 1908 deaths Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom Deputy lieutenants of Norfolk Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892 People from Broadland (district)