William Bulkeley HughesJ.P. (26 July 1797 – 8 March 1882) was a Welsh politician who sat in theHouse of Commons from 1837 to 1859 and 1865 to 1882. He was elected forMember of Parliament forCarnarvon Boroughs constituency.[1][2][3]
Hughes was the eldest son of Sir William Bulkeley Hughes of Plas Coch, Llanidan,Anglesey and Elizabeth, of Coed Alun, Caernarfon.[4] He was educated atHarrow School and called to the bar atLincoln's Inn in 1824.[2][4]
As a prospector in railway shares, Bulkeley-Hughes made significant gains in the 1840s. In 1850, Bulkeley-Hughes had organised a banquet forRobert Stephenson to commemorate the opening of theBritannia Bridge. Bulkeley-Hughes was the chairperson of theAnglesey Central Railway from its founding until it was absorbed by theLondon and North Western Railway in 1876. As a politician, Bulkeley-Hughes wasJustice of the peace of Anglesey and Caernarvonshire, and becamesheriff of Anglesey in 1861.[4]
Bulkeley-Hughes was initially elected as aConservative ofCaernarfon (UK Parliament constituency) in 1837, during the election, Bulkeley-Hughes contested against and beatCharles Paget (Royal Navy officer), brother of theMarquess of Anglesey. For nearly 40 years he was M.P. in parliament with a short hiatus between 1859 – 1865.[4] Bulkeley-Hughes was re-elected as MP for Carnarvon Boroughs as a Liberal in1865 and held the seat until his death in 1882,[1] and aged 84 "was in point of age the 'father' of the House of Commons".[4] He is buried in the churchyard ofSt Edwen's Church, Llanedwen, Anglesey.[5]
In 1846 Bulkeley-Hughes sided with the pro-Free Trade wing of the party led bySir Robert Peel who became known as thePeelites. Hughes appears to have left the Peelites by 1859 as he stood as a 'Liberal' in the1859 general election but lost to a Conservative. A few weeks later the Peelites merged withRadicals andWhigs to create the Liberal Party.[citation needed]
Hughes married first Elizabeth Wormald, daughter of Jonathan Nettleship of Mattersey Abbey near Bawtry and widow of Harry Wormald in 1825. He married second Elizabeth Donkin, daughter of William Donkin, in 1866.[4][2] His only child, Lady Sarah Elizabeth married Charles Hunter-Hughes in 1876, who became theBaronet of Plâs Côch of the Hughes family estate inLlanedwen, Anglesey, north Wales.[6]
Edward Walford
| Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for Carnarvon 1837–1859 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for Carnarvon 1865–1882 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | OldestMember of Parliament? (not Father of the House) 1880–1882 | Succeeded by |