John Hiley Addington (August 1759 – 11 June 1818)[1] was a British Tory party politician. He served as a Member of Parliament for various constituencies between 1787 and 1818.
Background and education
editAddington was the second son of Anthony Addington and his wife Mary, daughter of Haviland John Hiley.[2] His older brother was Henry Addington, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and under whose lifelong influence and patronisation he was.[3] He was educated at Cheam School and then at Winchester College.[4] Addington studied in Ealing until 1776 and afterwards at Brasenose College, Oxford.[4]
Political career
editAddington entered the British House of Commons in 1787, having been elected for Truro.[5] He represented the constituency until 1790 and after a break of four years was returned to Parliament for Winchelsea until 1796.[5] In the following general election Addington stood successfully for Wendover.[5] He held that seat until the Act of Union 1801 and then became a member of the newly established Parliament of the United Kingdom.[5] In 1802 Addington won the election for Bossiney, however he resigned his seat the following year.[5] Instead he ran for Harwich in a by-election, which had been triggered by the death of his predecessor.[5] Addington sat for the constituency for the rest of his life.[5]
During his time as Member of Parliament, he was appointed a Lord of the Treasury in December 1800, by the then Prime Minister William Pitt.[5] In March of the following year he became a Secretary to the Treasury until 1802, when on his own request he returned to his former office.[5] Addington was made Paymaster of the Forces in 1803 and on this occasion was sworn of the Privy Council.[6] When in the next year his brother Henry's government failed, he was replaced as Paymaster.[6] In 1806, Addington joined the Board of Control as a commissioner, however left it after a year.[6] He accepted an appointment as Under-Secretary of State for Home Affairs in 1812, retiring after a collapse in 1818.[7]
In 1803 Addington was nominated High Steward of Harwich and lieutenant-colonel of the Mendip Volunteers.[5]
Family and death
editIn 1785, Addington married Mary, daughter of Henry Unwin.[2] The couple had two sons and a daughter.[8] Addington died at Longford Court in 1818 from complications after an operation on his stomach.[1] He was survived by his wife until 1833.[8] His younger son Henry was a diplomat and civil servant.[8]
The writer Hannah More was a close friend of Addington and his family.[9]
Notes
edit- ^ a b Urban (1818), p. 574
- ^ a b Lodge (1859), p. 450
- ^ Thorne (1986), p. 51
- ^ a b The Annual Obituary (1819), p. 361
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Thorne (1986), p. 47
- ^ a b c Thorne (1986), p. 48
- ^ Thorne (1986), p. 49
- ^ a b c Urban (1833), p. 285
- ^ "Hannah More: The First Victorian". California State University, Long Beach. Retrieved 17 January 2010.
References
edit- Thorne, R. G. (1986). The House of Commons, 1790–1820. Vol. I. London: Secker & Warburg. ISBN 0-436-52101-6.
- Lodge, Edmund (1859). The Peerage and Baronetage of the British Empire (28th ed.). London: Hurst and Blackett.
- The Annual Biography and Obituary for the Year 1819. Vol. III. London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown. 1819.
- Sylvanus, Urban (1818). The Gentleman's Magazine. Vol. part I. London: Nichols, Son and Bentley.
- Sylvanus, Urban (1833). The Gentleman's Magazine. Vol. part II. London: John Bowyer Nichols and Son.
