John Petty, 1st Earl of Shelburne
John Petty, 1st Earl of Shelburne PC (Ire) (1706 – 14 May 1761), known as John FitzMaurice until 1751 and as The Viscount FitzMaurice between 1751 and 1753, was an Anglo-Irish peer and politician. He was the father of William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Background and education
Born John FitzMaurice, Lord Shelburne was the second son of Thomas FitzMaurice, 1st Earl of Kerry, and Anne, daughter of Sir William Petty. He was the younger brother of William FitzMaurice, 2nd Earl of Kerry, and the nephew of Charles Petty, 1st Baron Shelburne and Henry Petty, 1st Earl of Shelburne. He was educated at Westminster School and was called to the Bar, Middle Temple, in 1727.[1]
Political career
FitzMaurice was High Sheriff of Kerry in 1732.[1] In 1743 he entered the Irish House of Commons as one of two representatives for County Kerry, a seat he held until 1751.[1][2] The latter year he succeeded to the estates of his uncle the Earl of Shelburne (who had died childless) and assumed by Royal license the surname of Petty in lieu of his patronymic. Later the same year he was raised to the Peerage of Ireland as Baron Dunkeron and Viscount FitzMaurice. Two years later the earldom of Shelburne was revived in his favour when he was made Earl of Shelburne, in the County of Wexford, in the Irish peerage. He was Governor of County Kerry in 1754[1] and the same year he was returned to the British House of Commons for Wycombe, a seat he held until 1760.[3] He was sworn of the Irish Privy Council in 1754[1][4] and in 1760 he was created Lord Wycombe, Baron of Chipping Wycombe, in the County of Buckingham, in the Peerage of Great Britain, which entitled him to a seat in the English House of Lords.[5]
Family
Lord Shelburne married his first cousin, Mary, daughter of the Hon. William FitzMaurice, in 1734. Their younger son the Hon. Thomas FitzMaurice married Mary O'Brien, later suo jure Countess of Orkney. Lord Shelburne died in May 1761 and was buried in Bowood, Wiltshire. He was succeeded in the earldom by his eldest son, William, who became Prime Minister of Great Britain and was created Marquess of Lansdowne in 1784. The Countess of Shelburne died in 1780.[1]
References
| Parliament of Ireland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for County Kerry 1743–1751 With: Sir Maurice Crosbie |
Succeeded by Sir Maurice Crosbie John Blennerhassett |
| Parliament of Great Britain | ||
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for Wycombe 1754–1760 With: John Waller 1754–1757 Edmund Waller 1757–1760 |
Succeeded by Edmund Waller Viscount FitzMaurice |
| Peerage of Ireland | ||
| New creation | Earl of Shelburne 1753–1761 |
Succeeded by William Petty |
| Viscount FitzMaurice 1751–1761 |
||
| Peerage of Great Britain | ||
| New creation | Baron Wycombe 1760–1761 |
Succeeded by William Petty |
- 1706 births
- 1761 deaths
- British MPs 1754–61
- Earls in the Peerage of Ireland
- Irish MPs 1727–60
- Members of the Middle Temple
- Members of the Privy Council of Ireland
- People educated at Westminster School, London
- Younger sons of earls
- Petty-Fitzmaurice family
- High Sheriffs of Kerry
- Members of the Parliament of Ireland (pre-1801)
- Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for English constituencies
