Robert Myddelton Biddulph (1761–1814)
Robert Biddulph, later Myddelton Biddulph (March 1761 – 30 August 1814) was a British Member of Parliament (MP).
The first son of Michael Biddulph of Ledbury in Herefordshire and Cofton Hall in Worcestershire, he made a fortune in Bengal before returning to England in 1795. He served as Recorder of Denbigh from 1795 to 1796, then entered politics under the patronage of the Whig Duke of Norfolk. He became a member of Brooks's on 26 April 1796, and was an unsuccessful candidate for Leominster before being elected to the House of Commons for Herefordshire the same year, replacing Sir George Cornewall. In Parliament he acted with the Foxite Whigs.
Biddulph succeeded his father in 1800, and also succeeded his uncle Francis Biddulph as partner in the bank Cocks, Biddulph & Co. On 24 December 1801 he married Charlotte, daughter of Richard Myddelton and sister of Richard Myddelton, of Chirk Castle. He adopted the additional name of Myddelton on 29 December 1801 after his wife had inherited Chirk Castle in 1796 from her unmarried brother. They had two sons and one daughter.
In the 1802 general election Myddelton Biddulph was defeated by Cornewall and left Parliament, but resumed the office of Recorder of Denbigh (which he held until his death) and became a common councilman of the borough. In 1803 he was Lieutenant-Colonel commanding the Chirk Volunteers. His wife's family had long represented Denbigh in Parliament, and in 1806 he succeeded her brother-in-law Frederick West as Member for Denbigh Boroughs.
In his second time in Parliament Myddelton Biddulph sat as an independent, in opposition to the government. He fell out with his wife's brother-in-law West in 1811 and was not re-elected in 1812.
His children were Robert Myddelton Biddulph MP and General Sir Thomas Myddelton Biddulph
References
- J. W. Anderson and R. G. Thorne, BIDDULPH (afterwards MYDDELTON BIDDULPH), Robert (1761-1814), of Cofton Hall, Worcs. in The House of Commons 1790–1820, History of Parliament, 1986.
External links
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by Robert Myddelton Biddulph
| Parliament of Great Britain | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Thomas Harley George Cornewall |
Member of Parliament for Herefordshire 1796 – 1800 With: Thomas Harley |
Succeeded by Parliament of the United Kingdom |
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by Parliament of Great Britain |
Member of Parliament for Herefordshire 1801 – 1802 With: Thomas Harley |
Succeeded by George Cornewall John Cotterell |
| Preceded by Frederick West |
Member of Parliament for Denbigh Boroughs 1806 – 1812 |
Succeeded by Viscount Kirkwall |