Jacob Houblon (31 July 1710 – 1770), of Hallingbury, Essex, was a British landowner and Tory politician who sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

between 1735 and 1768. Houblon was the only surviving son of Charles Houblon, Portugal merchant, of Bubbingworth Hall, Essex and his wife Mary Bate, daughter of Daniel Bate, London merchant, of Barton Court, Abingdon, Berkshire. The Houblons came from Flanders as Protestant refugees in Queen Elizabeth's time, and became significant London merchants. Houblon succeeded his father who died on 20 March 1711. He also succeeded his father's first cousin, Sir Richard Houblon, on 13 October 1724, who ordered that his personal estate should be laid out in the purchase of entailed lands. Houblon was admitted at

Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus") is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th c ...

in 1725 and migrated to

Emmanuel Immanuel or Emmanuel (, "God swith us"; Koine Greek: ) is a Hebrew name that appears in the Book of Isaiah (7:14) as a sign that God will protect the House of David. The Gospel of Matthew ( Matthew 1:22 –23) interprets this as a prophecy of ...

on 9 February 1730. In 1729, the estate of Hallingbury on the Essex and Hertfordshire border, was bought for Houblon by Sir Richard Houblon's trustees. Houblon become a Tory squire and severed his family's Whig and city of London connections. He became connected with the extreme Tories by his marriage to Mary Hynde Cotton, daughter of

Sir John Hynde Cotton, 3rd Baronet Sir John Hynde Cotton, 3rd Baronet (bapt. 7 April 1686 – 4 January 1752) was an English landowner and Tory politician who sat in the British House of Commons from 1708 to 1752. British historian Eveline Cruickshanks called him "one of the mos ...

of Madingley Hall, Cambridgeshire on 31 July 1735. Houblon was returned as Tory Member of Parliament for

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in northeastern Essex, England. It is the second-largest settlement in the county, with a population of 130,245 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 Census. The demonym is ''Colcestrian''. Colchester occupies the ...

at a by-election on 20 March 1735. At the

1741 British general election The 1741 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 9th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw suppo ...

he was returned as MP for

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

During his first 12 years in Parliament he regularly voted against the Government, except on the motion for Walpole's removal in 1741, when he was among the Tories who walked out. As a Tory, he joined the Cocoa Tree Club. He did not stand at the

1747 British general election The 1747 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of the 10th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland in 1707. The election saw Hen ...

. Houblon was

High Sheriff of Hertfordshire The High Sheriff of Hertfordshire was an ancient Sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the foundation of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around a thousand years. On 1 April 1974, under the provi ...

for the year 1757 to 1758. In 1761 he stood at Hertfordshire on a joint interest with

Charles Gore Charles Gore (22 January 1853 – 17 January 1932) was a Church of England bishop, first of Worcester, then Birmingham, and finally of Oxford. He was one of the most influential Anglican theologians of the 19th century, helping reconcile the ...

, a Pelhamite and was returned without Gore. He remained an independent. He voted against the repeal of the Stamp Act, on 22 February 1766 and against the Chatham Government over the land tax, 27 February 1767. There is no record of his having spoken in the Parliament. He did not stand again at the

1768 Events January–March * January 9 – Philip Astley stages the first modern circus, with acrobats on galloping horses, in London. * February 11 – Samuel Adams's circular letter is issued by the Massachusetts House of Re ...

. Houblon died on 15 February 1770, leaving three sons and two daughters.

References

External links

Parks&Gardens Hallingbury Park (also known as Hallingbury Place)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Houblon, Jacob 1710 births 1770 deaths Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Hertfordshire British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1761–1768