John Somerset Pakington: his first 50 years

By Andrew Harris
$4.99 Rating: Not yet rated.
Published: April 11, 2012
Words: 166,445 (approximate)
Language: English
ISBN: 9780954419349

Short description

A biography of the Sir John Pakington of Westwood Park, Droitwich, born in 1799, who was MP for Droitwich, Worcestershire for 37 years. At Westminster he served on many select committees, including that investigating the Andover Union scandal. He was also much involved in Worcestershire affairs..

Extended description

This book tells the story of the first 53 years of the life of John Somerset Pakington. Born in Powick, Worcestershire, in 1799 as John Russell, he enjoyed his early life as a country gentleman and something of a dandy, and, using his diaries and other sources, the story of his marriage, a duel (said to be the last fought in Worcestershire), and the birth of his first son is told.
In 1830 his uncle, Sir John Pakington, died, and this book recounts his battle to overturn his uncle’s will, and his subsequent inheritance of Westwood and the Pakington estates and surname. The early 1830s were a turbulent time in politics, and his ambition to get into parliament as a Tory initially ran aground on the pressure for reform, and it was only on his fourth attempt that he succeeded in being returned for Droitwich.
Once in parliament he soon became active as a back-bencher, and he championed many issues, and served on many select committees. In 1846 he was caught up in the Tory party split, .. (Read more) This book tells the story of the first 53 years of the life of John Somerset Pakington. Born in Powick, Worcestershire, in 1799 as John Russell, he enjoyed his early life as a country gentleman and something of a dandy, and, using his diaries and other sources, the story of his marriage, a duel (said to be the last fought in Worcestershire), and the birth of his first son is told.
In 1830 his uncle, Sir John Pakington, died, and this book recounts his battle to overturn his uncle’s will, and his subsequent inheritance of Westwood and the Pakington estates and surname. The early 1830s were a turbulent time in politics, and his ambition to get into parliament as a Tory initially ran aground on the pressure for reform, and it was only on his fourth attempt that he succeeded in being returned for Droitwich.
Once in parliament he soon became active as a back-bencher, and he championed many issues, and served on many select committees. In 1846 he was caught up in the Tory party split, and afterwards he nailed his colours to the mast of Lord Derby, who was later to become prime minister.
Pakington was active in Worcestershire issues, and chairman of the Droitwich Union, and how the experience he gained there led to his serving on the select committee to investigate the Andover workhouse scandal in 1846. He was also involved in the Severn navigation improvements, the Powick lunatic asylum, and the Worcester Infirmary, as well as serving as chairman of quarter sessions from 1834.
His diary reveals the tragedy of the death of his first wife and the whirlwind romance which led to his second marriage, which was also to end in tragedy.
This book will be of interest to anyone interested in Worcestershire history, as well as containing an account of many of the issues facing early Victorian politicians, and reveals the tremendous energy of a man who was later to serve in three governments.
(Less)

Tags

worcestershire, andover, severn river, tory, workhouses, pakington, droitwich

Available ebook reading formats

Single purchase gains access to all formats. How to download ebooks to e-reading devices and apps.

Format	Full Book	Sample First 20%
Online Reading (HTML, good for sampling in web browser)	Buy	View sample
Kindle (.mobi for Kindle devices and Kindle apps)	Buy	Download sample
Epub (Apple iPad/iBooks, Nook, Sony Reader, Kobo, and most e-reading apps including Stanza, Aldiko, Adobe Digital Editions, others)	Buy	Download sample
PDF (good for reading on PC, or for home printing)	Buy	No sample available
RTF (readable on most word processors)	Buy	No sample available
LRF (Use only for older model Sony Readers that don't support .epub)	Buy	Download sample
Palm Doc (PDB) (for Palm reading devices)	Buy	Download sample
Plain Text (download) (flexible, but lacks much formatting)	Buy	No sample available
Plain Text (view) (viewable as web page)	Buy	No sample available

Reviews

Log-in to write a Review   Log-in to add a Video Review

This book has not yet been reviewed.

Reason for report:
— Select a reason — Book is or contains spam Book infringes copyright Same content is published elsewhere with different author (for ex., by private-label rights) Duplicate Incomplete work (such as sample or serial) Should be marked adults-only Category is inappropriate Poorly formatted Nudity or other inappropriate content on cover Nudity or other inappropriate visual content in book Inappropriate erotica content Cover image is improper Content is inappropriate Other violation of Terms of Service Other reason not shown above.

Additional details: