John Blaquiere, 1st Baron de Blaquiere

John Blaquiere, 1st Baron de Blaquiere, KCB, PC (15 May 1732 – 27 August 1812), known as Sir John Blaquiere, Bt. from 1784 to 1800, was a British soldier, diplomat and politician of French descent. He served as Chief Secretary for Ireland between 1772 and 1776

The Right Honourable The Lord de Blaquiere KCB PC FRS
Lord de Blaquiere.
Chief Secretary for Ireland
In office 1772–1776
Monarch	George III
Preceded by	George Macartney
Succeeded by	Sir Richard Heron, Bt
Personal details
Born	15 May 1732 (1732-05-15)
Died	27 August 1812 (1812-08-28) (aged 80) Bray, County Wicklow
Nationality	British
Spouse(s)	Eleanor Dobson (c. 1756–1833)

Background

Blaquiere was the fifth son of Jean de Blaquiere, a French merchant who had emigrated to England in 1685, and his wife Marie Elizabeth de Varennes.[1]

Career

Blaquiere at first served in the British Army, in the 18th Dragoons (later renumbered the 17th Dragoons), where he achieved the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. In 1771 Blaquiere was appointed Secretary of Legation at the British Embassy in Paris, a post he held until 1772. The latter year Lord Harcourt, the British Ambassador in Paris, was appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, and Blaquiere joined him as Chief Secretary for Ireland.[1] He was admitted to the Privy Council of Ireland the same year[1][2] and made a Knight Companion of the Order of the Bath two years later.[1]

Blaquiere was to remain Chief Secretary until 6 December 1776.[3] He had been elected to the Irish House of Commons for Old Leighlin in 1773, a seat he held until 1783. After representing Enniskillen for a few months in 1783, he sat than for Carlingford from 1783 to 1790, for Charleville from 1790 to 1798 and for Newtownards from 1798 to the Act of Union in 1801.[1][4] Blaquiere was created a Baronet, of Ardkill in the County of Londonderry, on 16 July 1784,[5] and raised to the Peerage of Ireland as Baron de Blaquiere, of Ardkill in the County of Londonderry, on 30 July 1800,[6] for his support for the Act of Union.[1] Lord de Blaquiere also sat as a Member of the British House of Commons for Rye from 1801 to 1802[1][7] and for Downton from 1802 to 1806.[1][8]

He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1803.[9]

Family

Lord de Blaquiere married Eleanor, daughter of Robert Dobson, in 1775. They had four sons, including Peter de Blaquière, and three daughters. Lord de Blaquiere died at Bray, County Wicklow, in August 1812, aged 80. He was succeeded in his titles by his eldest son, John. Lady de Blaquiere died at Regent's Park, Marylebone, London, in December 1833.[1]

References

1. thepeerage.com John Blaquiere, 1st Baron de Blaquiere of Ardkill
2. leighrayment.com Privy Counsellors – Ireland
3. Johnston-Liik, Edith Mary (2002). History of the Irish Parliament 1692–1800, Volume III, Members of the Irish House of Commons. Ulster Historical Foundation. ISBN 1-903688-71-X.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link) P203
4. "leighrayment.com Irish House of Commons 1692–1800". Archived from the original on 1 June 2009. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
5. "No. 12560". The London Gazette. 17 July 1784. p. 3.
6. "No. 15281". The London Gazette. 5 August 1800. p. 889.
7. "leighrayment.com House of Commons: Rochester to Ryedale". Archived from the original on 16 September 2012. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
8. "leighrayment.com House of Commons: Dover to Dulwich and West Norwood". Archived from the original on 30 September 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2010.
9. "Library and Archive Catalogue". Royal Society. Retrieved 17 July 2011.

External links

• Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by John Blaquiere
• Courtney, William Prideaux (1886). "Blaquiere, John" . In Stephen, Leslie (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. 05. London: Smith, Elder & Co. pp. 205–206.

Parliament of Ireland
Preceded by Sir FitzGerald Aylmer, Bt Thomas Monck	Member of Parliament for Old Leighlin 1773–1783 With: Sir FitzGerald Aylmer, Bt 1773–1776 Hugh Massy 1776–1777 Robert Jephson 1777–1783	Succeeded by Henry Luttrell Arthur Acheson
Preceded by Henry Flood John Leigh	Member of Parliament for Enniskillen 1783 With: John McClintock	Succeeded by James Stewart John McClintock
Preceded by Thomas Knox Theophilus Blakeney	Member of Parliament for Carlingford 1783–1790 With: Thomas Coghlan	Succeeded by Sir Charles des Voeux, Bt James Blaquiere
Preceded by Rogerson Cotter Richard St George	Member of Parliament for Charleville 1790–1798 With: Rogerson Cotter	Succeeded by Rogerson Cotter Charles Boyle
Preceded by Richard Annesley John La Touche	Member of Parliament for Newtownards 1798–1801 With: Robert Alexander 1798–1800 Du Pre Alexander 1800–1801	Succeeded by Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Lord Hawkesbury Robert Saunders-Dundas	Member of Parliament for Rye 1801–1802 With: Lord Hawkesbury	Succeeded by Lord Hawkesbury Thomas Davis Lamb
Preceded by Edward Bouverie John Ward	Member of Parliament for Downton 1803–1806 With: John Ward 1803 Viscount Marsham 1803–1806	Succeeded by Bartholomew Bouverie Duncombe Pleydell-Bouverie
Political offices
Preceded by George Macartney	Chief Secretary for Ireland 1772–1776	Succeeded by Sir Richard Heron, Bt
Peerage of Ireland
New creation	Baron de Blaquiere 1800–1812	Succeeded by John de Blaquiere
Baronetage of Ireland
New creation	Baronet (of Ardkill) 1784–1812	Succeeded by John de Blaquiere