Sir William Lowther, MP, 1st Baronet of Marske

Family and Education bap. 4 Jan. 1676, 1st surv. s. of Anthony Lowther† of Marske by Margaret, da. of Admiral Sir William Penn of Pennsylvania. m. 24 June 1697, Catherine (d. 1701), da. and h. of Thomas Preston*, 2s. 2da. suc. fa. 1693; cr. Bt. 15 June 1697.1

Offices Held

Biography In 1693 Lowther inherited extensive Yorkshire estates (worth £1,601 p.a. in 1705), and in June 1697 married the heiress of Thomas Preston, thereby gaining Lancashire estates worth nearly £1,000 p.a. He had completed negotiations for the marriage by early 1697, and in May Lord Lonsdale (Sir John Lowther, 2nd Bt. II*), Lowther’s second cousin twice removed, approached the secretary of state, Sir William Trumbull*, with a request that Lowther be created a baronet. This was granted shortly before Lowther’s wedding. The Preston estates brought with them an interest at Lancaster, and Lowther canvassed the borough in November 1701, though he withdrew before the poll. The election also saw him campaigning in Westmorland on behalf of the Whig Sir Richard Sandford, 3rd Bt.* Returned unopposed at Lancaster in 1702, he was an inactive Member. On 23 Jan. 1703 he told against bringing up a clause to the bill extending the time to take the Abjuration, that would have safeguarded members of corporations who had replaced those who had previously failed to take the oath, but was absent from the division on 13 Feb. 1703 on the Lords’ amendments to this bill. He was forecast in October 1704 as a likely opponent of the Tack, and did not vote for it on 28 Nov. He died of dropsy on 6 Apr. 1705, and was buried at Cartmel, Lancashire. Lowther was succeeded in his estates and title by his young son Thomas. Though the second baronet also inherited outstanding debts of £1,945, these had been discharged by the time he reached his majority in 1720, and he went on to represent Lancaster in George II’s reign.2

Ref Volumes: 1690-1715 Authors: Eveline Cruickshanks / Richard Harrison Notes 1. H. Owen, Lowther Fam. 257, 263–4; Trans. Cumb. and Westmld. Antiq. and Arch. Soc. n.s. xliv. 112. 2. Trans. Hist. Soc. Lancs. and Cheshire, cxxvii. 47–49; HMC Kenyon, 416; BL, Trumbull Add. mss 117, Trumbull to William Blathwayt*, 21 May 1697; CSP Dom. 1697, pp. 164, 193; Lancs. RO, Kenyon mss DDKe 9/100/6, Charles Rigby to George Kenyon*, 25 Nov. 1701; Bagot mss at Levens Hall, William Banks to James Grahme*, 14 Sept. 1701; Trans. Cumb. and Westmld. Antiq. and Arch. Soc. 114.

Sir William Lowther, 1st Baronet (4 January 1676 – 6 April 1705) was an English landowner from Marske-by-the-Sea, Yorkshire. He was the eldest son of Anthony Lowther and Margaret Penn, daughter of Sir William Penn.

On 15 June 1697, he was created a baronet.

He married Catherine Preston and had three children:

Sir Thomas Lowther, 2nd Baronet (1699–1745) Catherine Lowther Margaret Lowther

References Burke, John, and Bernard Burke. A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Extinct and Dormant Baronetcies of England, Ireland, and Scotland. Baltimore: Genealogical Pub. Co, 1977.googlebooks.com Accessed 3 November 2007 Lowther pedigree 1 Leigh Rayment's list of baronets Parliament of England Preceded by Roger Kirkby Robert Heysham Member of Parliament for Lancaster 1702–1705 With: Robert Heysham Succeeded by Robert Heysham William Heysham Baronetage of England New title Baronet (of Marske) 1697–1705 Succeeded by Thomas Lowther