Richard Eliot (1694–1748), of St. Giles-in-the-Fields, Middlesex, was a British diplomat, official 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 ...

from 1733 to 1748. Eliot was baptized on 28 October 1694, the second son of William Eliot, and a great grandson of Sir John Eliot (1592-1632). He matriculated at

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...

in 1712. He was appointed secretary of the Embassy to Lord Carteret in Sweden in 1719, receiving £200 p.a. with no extraordinaries as he was to live with the ambassador. After the death of his brother Edward Eliot (1684–1722) in 1722, he managed the estates and parliamentary interest of his young nephew James Eliot at

Port Eliot Port Eliot in the parish of St Germans, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, is the ancestral seat of the Eliot family, whose present head is Albert Eliot, 11th Earl of St Germans. Port Eliot comprises a stately home with its own church, which ...

, whom he succeeded in 1742. In 1722, he was appointed Commissioner of excise. He married Harriot, who was the illegitimate daughter of James Craggs and the actress

Hester Santlow Hester Santlow (married name Hester Booth; c. 1690 – 1773) was a British ballerina and actress, who has been called "England's first ballerina". She was influential in many spheres of theatrical life. Life Hester Santlow was born circa 1690. ...

on 10 March 1726. After he ceased to be Commissioner of Excise in May 1729, he was appointed surveyor general of the

Duchy of Cornwall A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between "sovereign ...

in January 1730. Eliot was returned as Member of Parliament for St Germans at a by-election on 29 January 1733. He voted with the Administration on the

Excise Bill The Excise Bill of 1733 was a proposal by the British government of Robert Walpole to impose an excise tax on a variety of products. This would have allowed Excise officers to search private dwellings to look for contraband untaxed goods. The per ...

in 1733 and the repeal of the Septennial Act in 1734. At the

1734 British general election The 1734 British general election returned members to serve in the House of Commons of Great Britain, House of Commons of the 8th Parliament of Great Britain to be summoned, after the merger of the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scot ...

he was returned as MP for

Liskeard Liskeard ( ; ) is an ancient stannary and market town in south-east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Plymouth, west of the Devon border, and 12 miles (20 km) east of Bodmin. Th ...

. In 1738 he went into opposition with

the Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

and his post was exchanged for that of Receiver General of the Duchy. He voted against the Spanish convention in 1739, and for the place bill in 1740. He withdrew on the motion to dismiss Walpole in February 1741. At the

1741 Events January–March * January 13 ** Lanesborough, Massachusetts is created as a township. ** Conventicle Act of 1741 is introduced in Denmark-Norway. *February 13 – Sir Robert Walpole, the Prime Minister of Great Britain ...

, he was returned again for Liskeard. He continued to act with the Prince of Wales's party, voting against the Administration on the chairman of the elections committee in December 1741. He was mayor of Liskeard for the year 1741 to 1742. After the fall of Walpole in 1742 he went over to the Administration. After losing out to John Carew in 1743, he was Mayor of Liskeard again for 1746 to 1747. In 1747, he reverted to opposition with the Prince again. 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 ...

, he was returned again for St Germans. Eliot died on 19 November 1748 leaving three sons and six daughters including

Edward Craggs-Eliot, 1st Baron Eliot Edward Craggs-Eliot, 1st Baron Eliot (London, 8 July 1727 – 17 February 1804, Port Eliot, Cornwall) was an English official and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1748 to 1784, when he was raised to the peerage as Baron Eliot ...

. He was in financial difficulties which were caused according to his wife by his Duchy office, which had cost him ‘£7,000 and contributed to his death. Harriot married secondly in 1749 John Hamilton, by whom she had a son,

John Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Abercorn John James Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Abercorn (2 July 1756 – 27 January 1818) was an Anglo-Irish peer and politician. Background and education John James was born in July 1756 in London, the posthumous son of John Hamilton (Royal Navy offic ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eliot, Richard 1694 births 1748 deaths Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for St Germans British MPs 1727–1734 British MPs 1734–1741 British MPs 1741–1747 British MPs 1747–1754 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Liskeard