Peter Middleton (1603–1661) was an English merchant and 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 1659 and 1660.

Early life

Middleton was the fourth son of Margaret Mounsel (a daughter of merchant John Mounsel, of Weymouth) and

Robert Middleton Robert Middleton (born Samuel Abraham Messer; May 13, 1911 – June 14, 1977) was an American film and television actor known for his large size, beetle-like brows, and deep, booming voice (for which he was known as "Big Bob Middleton"), usua ...

, MP for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis and the

City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...

. After the death of his mother, his father married Eleanor ( Saltonstall) Harvie, the widow of Vincent Harvie and a daughter of

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the Mayors in England, mayor of the City of London, England, and the Leader of the council, leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded Order of precedence, precedence over a ...

Sir Richard Saltonstall. Her sister, Elizabeth Saltonstall, was married to Richard Wyche, and her brother, Peter Saltonstall, was equerry at the court of

James VI and I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 M ...

. Another sister, Hester Saltonstall, was married to Peter's uncle, Sir Thomas Myddelton, the parents of Thomas Myddelton, also an MP. Among his large family were uncles Thomas Myddelton, a

, William Myddelton, a poet and seaman who died at

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

in 1621, and Sir Hugh Myddelton, 1st Baronet, a merchant and clothmaker who was appointed Royal Jeweller by King

Career

In 1627 he became a Turkey merchant and joined the

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

and East India Companies. He was later living in Russia, where he was probably a buyer of furs. He held £1,000 stock in the East India Company, and was a member of the committee of the company from 1659 until his death. In 1659, Middleton was elected Member of Parliament for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis in the

Third Protectorate Parliament The Third Protectorate Parliament sat for one session, from 27 January 1659 until 22 April 1659, with Chaloner Chute and Thomas Bampfylde as the Speakers of the House of Commons. It was a bicameral Parliament, with an Upper House having a po ...

. He was re-elected MP for the constituency in 1660, when he was involved in a double return to the Convention Parliament but was accepted by the House on 5 May. He was one of the five MPs who were authorised to raise a loan of £2,000 in the City of London and who then funded the loan from their own pockets after they met with some difficulty. They received the thanks of the House on 25 May. He was a commissioner for assessment for London from August 1660. He stood for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis in 1661 but was defeated.

Personal life

After 25 July 1657, Middleton was married to Mary Parry, widow of Fulke Parry, merchant tailor of London. Middleton died at the age of about 58 and was buried at

St Dunstan-in-the-East St Dunstan-in-the-East was a Church of England parish church on St Dunstan's Hill, halfway between London Bridge and the Tower of London in the City of London. The church was largely destroyed in the Second World War and the ruins are now a publi ...

on 24 December 1661.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Middleton, Peter 1603 births 1661 deaths 17th-century English merchants

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

English MPs 1659 English MPs 1660 Burials at St Dunstan-in-the-East