Henry John Selwin-Ibbetson, 1st Baron Rookwood, Bt, PC (26 September 1826 – 15 January 1902), known as Sir Henry Selwin-Ibbetson, Bt, from 1869 to 1892, was a British Conservative politician. He served under Benjamin Disraeli as Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department between 1874 and 1878 and as Financial Secretary to the Treasury between 1878 and 1880.
The Lord Rookwood | |
|---|---|
 H.J. Selwin-Ibbetson, Lord Rookwood | |
| Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department | |
| In office 25 February 1874 – 2 April 1878 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Prime Minister | Benjamin Disraeli |
| Preceded by | Henry Winterbotham |
| Succeeded by | Sir Matthew White Ridley, Bt |
| Financial Secretary to the Treasury | |
| In office 2 April 1878 – 21 April 1880 | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Prime Minister | The Earl of Beaconsfield |
| Preceded by | Hon. Frederick Stanley |
| Succeeded by | Lord Frederick Cavendish |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 26 September 1826 |
| Died | 15 January 1902 (aged 75) |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse(s) | (1) Hon. Sarah Copley (d. 1865) (2) Eden Thackrah (d. 1899) (3) Sophia Lawrell |
| Alma mater | St John's College, Cambridge |
Background and education edit
Born Henry John Selwin, Rookwood was the only son of Sir John Thomas Selwin, 6th Baronet, and his wife Isabella, daughter of General John Leveson-Gower, and was educated at home[1] and at St John's College, Cambridge where he took his degree in 1849.[1][2][3]
Political career edit
Selwin-Ibbetson unsuccessfully contested Ipswich in 1857 and 1859[1] but in 1865 he was successfully returned to Parliament as one of two representatives for Essex South.[1][4] He later represented Essex West from 1868 to 1885[1][4] and Epping from 1885 to 1892.[1][4] In 1867 he resumed by Royal licence the original family surname of Ibbetson in addition to that of Selwin and the following year he succeeded his father in the baronetcy.
When the Conservatives came to power in 1874 under Benjamin Disraeli Rookwood refused the office of Chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means (Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons). Disraeli instead appointed him Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, a position he held until 1878, and was then Financial Secretary to the Treasury from 1878 to 1880. In 1879 he declined to become Governor of New South Wales. He was later Second Church Estate Commissioner between 1885 and 1886 and 1886 to 1892.[1] On his retirement from the House of Commons in 1892 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Rookwood, of Rookwood Hall and Down Hall, both in the County of Essex.[5] Lord Rookwood "secured Epping Forest for the public".[6]
Family edit
Lord Rookwood married firstly the Hon. Sarah Elizabeth Copley, eldest daughter and co-heiress of Lord Chancellor John Copley, 1st Baron Lyndhurst, in 1850. After her death in 1865 he married secondly Eden Thackrah, daughter of George Thackrah and widow of his first cousin Sir Charles Henry Ibbetson, 5th Baronet, in 1867. After her death in 1899 he married thirdly Sophia Harriet Lawrell (c.1841 – 30 July 1932), daughter of Digby Lawrell, in 1900.[7][8] There were no children from the three marriages.[9]
His estate comprised some 4,000 acres, coal mines in Durham and Yorkshire, and a considerable quantity of house property in Halifax.
Lord Rookwood died in London 15 January 1902, aged 75, when the baronetcy and barony both became extinct.[1][3][10]
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f g h Lee, Sir Sidney (editor). The Dictionary of National Biography. Supplement: January 1901-December 1911. Oxford University Press.
- ^ "Selwin (or Selwin-Ibbetson), Henry John (SLWN845HJ)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
- ^ a b "Obituary - Lord Rookwood". The Times. No. 36667. London. 17 January 1902. p. 8.
- ^ a b c "leighrayment.com House of Commons: Elginshire to Eye". Archived from the original on 29 November 2017. Retrieved 6 October 2009.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "No. 26298". The London Gazette. 17 June 1892. p. 3513.
- ^ "Our portraits". Graphic. British Newspaper Archive. 25 January 1902. p. 9/119 col.3. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "Lord Rookwood to Miss Sophia H. Lawrell". Gentlewoman. British Newspaper Archive. 15 September 1900. p. 40/350 col.1. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "The late Lady Rookwood". Chelmsford Chronicle. British Newspaper Archive. 12 August 1932. p. 5 col.7. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "Personal". Illustrated London News. British Newspaper Archive. 25 January 1902. p. 4/120 col.1. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "Funeral of Lord Rookwood". Barking, East Ham & Ilford Advertiser, Upton Park and Dagenham Gazette. British Newspaper Archive. 25 January 1902. p. 3 col.5. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
External links edit
Media related to Henry John Selwin-Ibbetson at Wikimedia Commons