Background and education
Born into an ancient and grand Welsh family, Williams-Wynn was the second son of Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 4th Baronet, by his second wife Charlotte Williams-Wynn (aristocrat), Charlotte Grenville, daughter of Prime Minister George Grenville. His great-great-grandfather William Williams (speaker), Sir William Williams, 1st Baronet, served as Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom), Speaker of the House of Commons from 1680 to 1685. On his mother's side he was the nephew of William Wyndham Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville and George Nugent-Temple-Grenville, 1st Marquess of Buckingham and the first cousin of Richard Temple-Grenville, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Chandos. Williams-Wynn was educated privately, at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford. He was called to the Bar, Lincoln's Inn, in 1798. At Westminster School Williams-Wynn became acquainted with the poet Robert Southey, whom he later supported financially.Political career
In 1797 he was elected to parliament for the notorious rotten borough of Old Sarum (UK Parliament constituency), Old Sarum, where he succeeded Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley, Richard Wellesley, 2nd Earl of Mornington. He resigned this seat in 1799, when he was elected for Montgomeryshire (UK Parliament constituency), Montgomeryshire, which constituency he would represent for the next 51 years. In 1806 he was appointed Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department in the Ministry of All the Talents led by his uncle William Wyndham Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville, Lord Grenville. He remained in this post until the government fell the following year. Williams-Wynn was an active member of parliament and considered an authority on the procedure of the British House of Commons, House of Commons. This led him to be nominated for the post of Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom), Speaker of the House of Commons in 1817. However, he was defeated by Charles Manners-Sutton, 1st Viscount Canterbury, Charles Manners-Sutton. During the late 1810s Williams-Wynn was leader of Grenvillites, a group of MPs that tried to establish a Third party (politics), third party in the House of Commons, acting on behalf of his cousin Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Chandos, Lord Buckingham. However, the third party never materialised and the group instead joined the Tory Party, Tories. In January 1822 Williams-Wynn was admitted to the Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, Privy Council and appointed President of the Board of Control, with a seat in the cabinet, in the Tory Party, Tory government of the Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool, Earl of Liverpool. He remained in this post also in the administrations of George Canning and Frederick John Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich, Lord Goderich. However, when the Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, Duke of Wellington became Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister in 1828, Williams-Wynn was not offered a position in the government. This drove him into opposition, and when the Whig Party (UK), Whigs came to power in November 1830 under Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, Lord Grey, Williams-Wynn was appointed Secretary at War, although without a seat in the cabinet. He only remained in this post until April the following year, and held no other position during the three remaining years of the Whig Party (UK), Whig government. In 1834 the Tory, Tories returned to office under Sir Robert Peel, and Wynn was appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, but again was not a member of the cabinet. The Peel government fell already in April 1835 and Wynn never held office again. However, he was said to have thrice rejected the post of Governor-General of India. Wynn remained Member of Parliament for Montgomeryshire (UK Parliament constituency), Montgomeryshire until his death, and from 1847 to 1850 he was Father of the House of Commons; at the time of his death, he was the final MP from the 18th century still in Parliament. He was elected as the first president, from 1823 to 1841, of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland and as a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1827.Family
Wynn married Mary Cunliffe, daughter of Sir Foster Cunliffe, 3rd Baronet and Harriet Kinloch, in 1806. They had seven children, two sons and five daughters. His eldest daughter Charlotte Williams-Wynn (diarist), Charlotte Williams-Wynn was a well-known diarist; his son, also named Charles Williams-Wynn (1822–1896), Charles, followed him into Parliament. Williams-Wynn died in September 1850, aged 74.References
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams-Wynn, Charles Watkin 1775 births 1850 deaths Chancellors of the Duchy of Lancaster Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Welsh constituencies Conservative Party (UK) MPs for Welsh constituencies British MPs 1796–1800 UK MPs 1801–1802 UK MPs 1802–1806 UK MPs 1806–1807 UK MPs 1807–1812 UK MPs 1812–1818 UK MPs 1818–1820 UK MPs 1820–1826 UK MPs 1826–1830 UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1835–1837 UK MPs 1837–1841 UK MPs 1841–1847 UK MPs 1847–1852 Younger sons of baronets Fellows of the Royal Society Presidents of the Royal Asiatic Society Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Presidents of the Board of Control