Richard Vaughan MP (c. 1655–October 1724) of Derwydd, Carmarthenshire was a Welsh lawyer and Whig politician who sat in the English and

British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 memb ...

for nearly 40 years from 1685 to 1724. Vaughan was the eldest son of John Vaughan of Court Derllys and his wife Rachel Vaughan, daughter of Sir Henry Vaughan of Derwydd, Carmarthenshire. He matriculated at

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship ...

23 May 1672, aged 16. He was admitted at

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

in 1673, was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1680 and made a

bencher A bencher or Master of the Bench is a senior member of an Inn of Court in England and Wales or the Inns of Court in Northern Ireland, or the Honorable Society of King's Inns in Ireland. Benchers hold office for life once elected. A bencher c ...

in 1706. He succeeded his uncle Sir Henry Vaughan, to Derwydd Mansion, near Llandybie in 1676. Vaughan was appointed Recorder of Carmarthenshire for 1683-86 and 1688-1722 and a circuit judge on the Carmarthenshire circuit on 1715, serving as such until his death. Vaughan was elected Member of Parliament for

Carmarthen Carmarthen (, ; , 'Merlin's fort' or possibly 'Sea-town fort') is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community (Wales), community in Wales, lying on the River Towy north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. At the 2021 United Kingdom cen ...

for 1685–87 and 1689 to his death in 1724. His monument in

Parish Church was sculpted by William Palmer.Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851 by Rupert Gunnis p.288 He is now reckoned to have been

Father of the House Father of the House is a title that has been traditionally bestowed, unofficially, on certain members of some legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the title refers to the longest continuously ...

from 1718 to his death, although it is not clear that he was regarded as such at the time. He married, in 1692, Arabella, the daughter of Sir Erasmus Philipps, 3rd Baronet, M.P., of Picton Castle, Pembrokeshire. They had no children and his estate passed to his niece, the wife of John Vaughan, MP for

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire (; or informally ') is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaughan, Richard 1650s births 1724 deaths People from Carmarthen Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford Members of Gray's Inn Whig (British political party) MPs for Welsh constituencies English MPs 1685–1687 English MPs 1689–1690 English MPs 1690–1695 English MPs 1695–1698 English MPs 1698–1700 English MPs 1701–1702 English MPs 1702–1705 English MPs 1705–1707 Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Welsh constituencies British MPs 1707–1708 British MPs 1708–1710 British MPs 1710–1713 British MPs 1713–1715 British MPs 1715–1722 British MPs 1722–1727