The Honourable ''The Honourable'' (Commonwealth English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific Style ...

Richard Watson (6 January 1800 – 24 July 1852) was a British Whig politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) for

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...

from 1830 to 1835 and briefly in 1852 for

Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...

. Watson was the fourth and youngest son of Lewis Thomas Watson, 2nd Baron Sondes (1794–1874), by his marriage to the heiress Mary Elizabeth Milles of

North Elmham North Elmham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It covers an area of and is located about north of East Dereham, on the west bank of the River Wensum. Including Gateley, the civil parish had a population of 1,4 ...

. His elder brother changed his name to Milles.

Sylvanus Urban Edward Cave (27 February 1691 – 10 January 1754) was an English printer, editor and publisher. He coined the term "magazine" for a periodical, founding ''The Gentleman's Magazine'' in 1731, and was the first publisher to successfully fashi ...

, ed., ''The Gentleman's Magazine'', vol. 38
p. 307
/ref> Watson was commissioned into the

11th Hussars The 11th Hussars (Prince Albert's Own) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army established in 1715. It saw service for three centuries including the First World War and Second World War but then amalgamated with the 10th Royal Hussars (Pri ...

, a

cavalry regiment Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

, and served in the

Peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

. He first stood for parliament at the 1826 general election in

, where he was nominated in his absence by the Reformers and polled just 107 votes. However, at the 1830 general election he topped the poll at Canterbury, with 1,334 votes, was returned unopposed in

1831 Events January–March * January 1 – William Lloyd Garrison begins publishing '' The Liberator'', an anti-slavery newspaper, in Boston, Massachusetts. * January 10 – Japanese department store, Takashimaya in Kyoto estab ...

, and again won a contested election in

1832 Events January–March * January 6 – Abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison founds the New-England Anti-Slavery Society. * January 13 – The Christmas Rebellion of slaves is brought to an end in Jamaica, after the island's white pla ...

, when one of the other candidates was the madman

John Nichols Thom John Nichols Tom (sometimes spelt Thom; 1799 – 31 May 1838) was a Cornish merchant and maltster who re-invented himself as Sir William Courtenay, stood for parliament in Canterbury, was convicted of perjury in a smuggling case, spent three ye ...

, calling himself Sir William Courtenay, otherwise 'Tom of Truro', who gained 375 votes. Watson was so dismayed by the support given to this opponent that he declined to stand again at the 1835 general election. On 21 December 1839 Watson married Lavinia Jane, a daughter of Lord George Quin, granddaughter of

Thomas Taylour, 1st Marquess of Headfort Thomas Taylour, 1st Marquess of Headfort (18 November 1757 – 24 October 1829), styled Viscount Headford from 1766 to 1795, and known as The Earl of Bective from 1795 to 1800, was an Irish peer and politician. Early life Taylour was born on 1 ...

, and great-niece of

George Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer George John Spencer, 2nd Earl Spencer, (1 September 1758 – 10 November 1834), styled Viscount Althorp from 1765 to 1783, was a British Whig politician. He served as Home Secretary from 1806 to 1807 in the Ministry of All the Talents. He was ...

. They had three sons and two daughters, the last of whom was posthumous: *George Lewis Watson, married Laura Maria (d. 1893), daughter of Sir John Hobart Culme-Seymour, 2nd Baronet, in 1867, without issue *Edward Spencer Watson (d. January 1889), married Mary Blanche Hall on 28 September 1871 and had issue *Rev. Wentworth Watson (1 March 1848 – 5 July 1925), vicar of Monmouth, St. Thomas', Oxford, and Abingdon, married Eveleen Frances Stopford, sister of Albert Stopford, on 23 April 1903 *Mary Georgiana Watson, married

Sir Michael Culme-Seymour, 3rd Baronet Admiral Sir Michael Culme-Seymour, 3rd Baronet, (13 March 1836 – 11 October 1920) was a senior Royal Navy officer. On 17 September 1880 he became 3rd Baronet, on the death of his father. The Culme-Seymours were relatives of the Seymour family ...

on 16 October 1866 *Lavinia Grace Watson (1852–1933), married Baron Eugen von Roeder (1847–1938) on 14 July 1875 and had issue In 1849, he inherited from his childless brother Henry the remaining

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

estates of the family, centered on

Rockingham Castle Rockingham Castle is a former royal castle and Hunting and shooting in the United Kingdom#Hunting lodge, hunting lodge in Rockingham Forest, approximately two miles from the town centre of Corby, Northamptonshire, England. History 11th – 14t ...

, where he had lived since 1836. On 7 July 1852 he was returned at the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

to the

Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons ...

as MP for

, but died a few weeks later on 24 July 1852, at the age of 52, at the Baths in

Bad Homburg Bad Homburg vor der Höhe (, ) is the district town of the Hochtaunuskreis, Hesse, Germany, on the southern slope of the Taunus mountains. Bad Homburg is part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area. The town's official name is ''Bad Homburg ...

, near

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

. His body was brought home to England and buried at

Rockingham, Northamptonshire Rockingham is a village and civil parish in North Northamptonshire, England. Close to the border of Leicestershire and Rutland, the village is largely connected to the town of Corby where various local organisations utilise the ''Rockingham'' na ...

. In 1850, Charles Dickens dedicated his novel, David Copperfield: "Affectionately Inscribed to The Hon. Mr and Mrs Richard Watson, of Rockingham, Northhampshire"

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Richard 1800 births 1852 deaths Whig (British political party) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1830–1831 UK MPs 1831–1832 UK MPs 1832–1835 UK MPs 1852–1857 11th Hussars officers Younger sons of barons