Sir John Egerton 3rd Earl of Bridgwater [57143]

  General Notes:

http://www.thepeerage.com/p1003.htm#i10022


Egerton, John, third Earl of Bridgewater 1646-1701, was the eldest surviving son of the second earl [qv.], by his wife, the Lady Elizabeth Cavendish, daughter of the first Duke of Newcastle. Born 9 Nov. 1646, he was made one of the knights of the Bath at the coronation of Charles II; and in the parliament called by James II he was returned as one of the knights for Buckinghamshire, sitting by his courtesy title of Viscount Brackley. In 1686 he succeeded his father in the peerage, and in the following year King James removed him from the lord-lieutenancy of Buckinghamshire, as he was then counted among the disaffected peers. At the Revolution of 1688 Bridgewater concurred in the vote of the House of Lords for settling the crown on the Prince and Princess of Orange. Upon his accession William III reconstituted the earl lord-lieutenant of Buckinghamshire. He was also sworn a member of the privy council, and appointed first commissioner of trade and the plantations. In March 1694-5 Bridgewater bore one of the banners of England and France at the funeral of Queen Mary. On 31 May 1699 he was nominated first commissioner for executing the office of lord high admiral of England; and on 1 June following he was appointed one of the lords justices of the kingdom during the king's absence beyond the seas, being subsequently confirmed in the office. Bridgewater was a man of excellent character, and well proved in the public business. He presided in the House of Lords, during the absence of Lord-chancellor Somers, on the occasion of the important debates on the Resumption Bill. On several occasions he prorogued parliament at the command of the king. He stood high in his sovereign's confidence, and died during his tenure of office as first lord of the admiralty, 19 March 1700-1. He was much lamented as a just and good man, a faithful friend, and a wise counsellor. He married first, Elizabeth, daughter of the Earl of Middlesex (who died in 1670); and secondly, Jane, eldest daughter of the Duke of Bolton. He was succeeded in the earldom by his third son, Scroop Egerton, who, after holding important posts in the state, was created Duke of Bridgewater, 18 June 1720. It was this duke who first conceived the idea of the great Bridgewater canal, and he obtained the first of the acts for putting the project in force.

Sources:
Collins's Peerage of England, ed. Brydges, vol. iii., 1812
Macaulay's Hist. of England, vol. v.

Contributor: G. B. S. [George Barnett Smith]

Published: 1888


Sir John Egerton, 3rd Earl of Bridgwater was styled as Lord Brackley between 1649 and 1686.¹ He was invested as a Knight, Order of the Bath (K.B.) on 23 April 1661.¹ He held the office of Member of Parliament (M.P.) (Whig) for Buckinghamshire from 1685 to 1686.¹ He succeeded to the title of 3rd Earl of Bridgwater [E., 1617] on 26 October 1686.¹ He succeeded to the title of 4th Viscount Brackley [E., 1616] on 26 October 1686.¹ He succeeded to the title of 4th Baron of Ellesmere, co. Shropshire [E., 1603] on 26 October 1686.¹ He was invested as a Privy Counsellor (P.C.) on 7 May 1691.¹ He held the office of First Lord of Trade between 1695 and 1699.¹ He held the office of Speaker of the House of Lords in 1697.¹ He held the office of First Lord of the Admiralty between 1699 and 1701.¹ He held the office of Lord Justice, Regent of the Realm from 1699 to 1700.¹ He held the office of Speaker of the House of Lords in 1700.¹ He has an extensive biographical entry in the Dictionary of National Biography.³

1. G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume II, page 313. Hereinafter cited as The Complete Peerage.

2. Cokayne, and others, The Complete Peerage, volume II, page 312.
3, Matthew H.C.G., editor, Dictionary of National Biography on CD-ROM (Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press, 1995). Hereinafter cited as Dictionary of National Biography.
4. Cokayne, and others, The Complete Peerage, volume II, page 315.

5. Cokayne, and others, The Complete Peerage, volume X, page 287.

6. Charles Mosley, editor, Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003). Hereinafter cited as Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition.

  Noted events in his life were:

• Will probated, Apr 1701. His will (dated 10 May 1687 to 4 March 1700/1) was probated in April 1701.¹

John married Lady Jane Paulet [57142] [MRIN: 551615224], daughter of Charles Paulet 1st Duke Bolton [42589] and Mary Scrope [42592], on 2 Apr 1673 in Charter House Chapel, Middlesex, England. (Lady Jane Paulet [57142] was born about 1655, died on 23 May 1716 and was buried on 31 May 1716 in Little Gaddesden, Hertfordshire, England.)