Right Hon. Sir George Clerk of Penicuik, 6th baronet

6TH BARONET

Sir George Clerk, 6th Baronet

A grandnephew George, became the 6th Baronet at the age of 11 in 1798. The Rt. Hon. Sir George Clerk, as he became, had an active parliamentary career. Sir George made additions to Penicuik House in 1857, when the end blocks designed by David Bryce were built. These extensions on either side of the house were necessary because the 18th century house lacked the necessary rooms for the sort of Victorian house party entertaining which became the fashion in the railway age.

[Source: http://www.penicuikhouse.co.uk/history.aspx ]

FROM ELECTRIC SCOTLAND

His nephew, the Right Hon. Sir George Clerk, sixth baronet, succeeded. He was the son of James Clerk, third son of the fourth baronet, by Janet, daughter of George Irving, Esq. of Newton. He was born in 1787, and married in 1810, the daughter of Ewan Law, Esq., and niece of the first Lord Ellenborough. He was a lord of the admiralty from 1819 to 1830, except for a short interval; secretary of the treasury from November 1834 to April 1835, and again from September 1841 to February 1845. In the latter year he was sworn a member of the privy council. He became master of the mint, and vice-president of the board of trade in February 1845, and continued so till July 1846. He represented the county of Edinburgh in several parliaments previous to 1832, but had no seat from that time till 1835, when he was again returned for that county. He sat for Stamford from 1838 to 1847, when he was elected for Dover. He is a deputy lieutenant of the county of Edinburgh.

[Source: http://www.electricscotland.com/history/nation/clerk.htm ]

The elder son, afterwards the Right Honourable Sir George Clerk, succeeded to Penicuik on the death of his uncle, Sir John Clerk, in 1798...

Source: The life of James Clerk Maxwell:with a selection from his correspondence and occasional writings and a sketch of his contributions to science (Google eBook) By Lewis Campbell, William Garnett Macmillan, 1882

From p. 16..

http://books.google.com/books?id=d2oOAAAAIAAJ&source=gbs_navlinks_s

Sir George Clerk of Pennycuik, 6th Baronet (19 November 1787 – 23 December 1867) was a British politician and Deputy Lieutenant for Edinburghshire.

He was the son of James Clerk, third son of the fourth baronet, by his spouse Janet, daughter of George Irving of Newton.

He was elected Member of Parliament for Edinburghshire from 1811 to 1832 and again from 1835–1837, for Stamford 1838–1847 and then for Dover from 1847 to 1852.

He served as one of the Commissioners of Weights and Measures, 1818 to 1821; a Lord of the Admiralty, 1819 to 1830, and a member of the Council of the Lord High Admiral (The Duke of Clarence) 1827 to 1828; Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, 5 August to 22 November 1830; Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury, November 1834 to April 1835; Financial Secretary to the Treasury, September 1841 to February 1845; Vice-President of the Board of Trade, 1845 to 1846.

In 1845 he was sworn a member of the Privy Council, the same year becoming Master of the Mint.

In 1810 Sir George married the daughter of Ewan Law, Esq., a niece of the 1st Lord Ellenborough.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_George_Clerk,_6th_Baronet

Other References

• Biographical index of former fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, 1783-2002, pt. 1. A-J, page 190