Sir John Rushout | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of Parliament forMalmesbury | |
| In office 1713–1722 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas Farrington Joseph Addison |
| Succeeded by | Giles Earle John Fermor |
| Member of Parliament forEvesham | |
| In office 1722–1768 | |
| Preceded by | John Deacle John Rudge |
| Succeeded by | George Durant John Rushout |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 6 February 1685 England |
| Died | 2 February 1775 (aged 89) England |
| Spouse | Lady Anne Compton |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | England Great Britain |
| Branch/service | English Army British Army |
| Years of service | c. 1698–1712 |
| Rank | Captain |
CaptainSir John Rushout, 4th Baronet,PC (6 February 1685 – 2 February 1775) was a British army officer andWhig politician who representedMalmesbury andEvesham in theHouse of Commons of Great Britain from 1713 to 1768. A supporter ofWilliam Pulteney and opponent ofRobert Walpole, he was briefly part of theshort-lived ministry. Rushout wasFather of the House from 1762 until 1768.
John Rushout was the fourth son ofSir James Rushout, 1st Baronet and his wife, Alice Pitt, the daughter of Edmund Pitt. His elder brotherJames succeeded to the baronetcy on the death of his father.[1] He graduated fromEton College in 1698 and joined theEnglish Army. He was acornet in theRoyal Horse Guards in 1705 and was promoted to lieutenant in 1706. In 1710, he became captain. On the death of his nephew, the third baronet, on 21 September 1711 he succeeded to thebaronetcy and most of the family's estates in Worcestershire. He resigned hisBritish Army commission in January 1712 which he later claimed was to pre-empt his dismissal under the Duke of Ormond's policy of weeding out Whig officers in order to defeat the Hanoverian succession.[2] In 1729, he married Lady Anne Compton, the sixth daughter ofGeorge Compton, 4th Earl of Northampton in 1729.[1]
Rushout was elected at aby-election on 20 April 1713 as WhigMember of Parliament forMalmesbury, with the support ofLord Wharton. He voted against the French commerce bill on 18 June 1713. At the1713 British general election, he stood without success at Evesham, but was returned unopposed for Malmesbury again. He voted against the expulsion of Richard Steele on 18 March 1714 and acted as a teller for the Whig side on the Harwich election petition on 16 July 1714.[2]
At the1715 British general election, Rushout was returned again as MP for Malmesbury. He voted against the septennial bill, but for the repeal of the Occasional Conformity and Schism Acts. He was absent from the vote on thePeerage Bill. At the1722 British general election, he was returned for both Malmesbury andEvesham. However he was unseated on petition at Malmesbury on 13 December 1722, and so took up his seat at Evesham. He initiated the House of Commons inquiry into the Atterbury plot, and in 1725 sponsored the complaint leading to Lord Macclesfield's impeachment.[2]
He then followed his friend,William Pulteney, into opposition. He spoke against a vote of credit on 25 March 1726, and introduced a bill against election bribery on 27 April which was lost in the House of Lords after being passed in the Commons. He was returned as MP for Evesham at the1727 British general election and was a lieutenant to Pulteney, playing a leading role in the Whig opposition. He acted as Pulteney's second in his duel with Lord Hervey in 1731. He chaired a select committee of the House of Commons, whose report led to the passing of the Molasses Act. During theexcise bill crisis in 1733 he was put down as secretary at war in the list of a new ministry prepared by the opposition leaders.[2]
At the1734 British general election, he was returned again for Evesham. He spoke in favour of increasing the allowance toFrederick, Prince of Wales on 22 February 1737. It was said he was a frequent and boring speaker, with a trick of always putting out one leg and looking at it while speaking. At the1741 British general election, he was returned again as MP for Evesham.[3]
On the fall of Walpole in 1742, Rushout, withSamuel Sandys, andPhillips Gybbon became Pulteney's representatives on the new Treasury board, where they combined to outvote the first lord, Wilmington. He was elected to the secret committee of enquiry into theWalpole ministry, but defendedJohn Scrope, the secretary of the Treasury, for refusing to give evidence. When Pelham replaced Wilmington, under a compromise, Rushout was appointedTreasurer of the Navy in 1743 and was made aPrivy Counsellor in 1744.
However, he was turned out of office with most of Bath's followers in 1744. He spoke against the Queen of Hungary's subsidy on 18 February 1745 with the intention of sowing dissensions between the Old Whigs and the Government's new allies. He also refused to make any payments from the sums standing in his account as treasurer of the navy, thus holding up payments, for 8 or 9 months, to all the seamen who had not received their pay up to the date of his dismissal.
When Bath and Granville made their abortive attempt to form what became known as the "short-lived ministry" in February 1746, he was expected to be appointedLeader of the House of Commons, but Pulteney's attempt to form a government collapsed before Rushout could be offered the position. He was returned at Evesham at the1747 British general election and joined the Leicester House party. He was put down to have a peerage and the pay office when the Prince came to the throne. After Frederick's death in 1751 he attached himself to Newcastle in the hopes of a peerage .[3]
At the1754 British general election, Rushout was returned head of the poll for Evesham after a contest. At the1761 British general election, he stood together with his son, and after another hard contest they were both returned. He became the longest standing member (Father of the House) in 1762. In the debates on Wilkes's privilege in November 1763, he spoke against theGrenville ministry, and voted against them in the division on general warrants in February 1764. He opposed the repeal of the cider duty, despite representing a cider producing county. He became less regular in his attendance and retired on account of age at the1768 British general election.[4]
Rushout died on 2 February 1775 leaving a son and two daughters. He was succeeded in the baronetcy by his sonJohn.[1]
| Parliament of Great Britain | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forMalmesbury 1713–1722 With:Joseph Addison to 1719 Fleetwood Dormer 1719 – March 1722 Viscount Hillsborough from March 1722 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament forEvesham 1722–1768 With:John Rudge to 1734 William Taylor 1734–1741 Edward Rudge 1741–1754 John Porter 1754–1756 Edward Rudge 1756–1761 John Rushout from 1761 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Father of the House 1762–1768 | Succeeded by |
| Baronetage of England | ||
| Preceded by | Baronet (of Milnst) 1711–1775 | Succeeded by |
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