Richard Milles
Encyclopedia
Richard Milles was an English landowner, horticulturalist and Tory politician who sat in the House of Commons
from 1761 to 1780.
Milles was the son of Christopher Milles of Nackington, and his wife Mary Warner, daughter of Richard Warner of North Elmham
Norfolk. He was educated at Westminster School
and at St John's College, Cambridge
. He entered Lincoln's Inn in 1753. He was a country gentleman with large estates. Before 1761, he went on the Grand Tour
of Europe. He was noted as a botanist and planted an orchard at his garden at North Elmham.
Milles was elected Member of Parliament
(MP) for Canterbury
in 1761 and won that and two subsequent election by a comforatble majority, holding the seat to 1780 when he did not stand.
Milles married on 9 October 1765, Mary Elizabeth Tanner, daughter of the Rev. Thomas Tanner, DD, Prebendary of Canterbury.
Their only daughter, Mary Elizabeth Milles (1767-1818), later Lady Sondes married Hon. Lewis Thomas Watson, son of Lewis Watson, 1st Baron Sondes in 1785. Hon. Lewis Thomas Watson was descended collaterally from the Earls of Rockingham, and his mother had been a granddaughter of John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland
and a daughter of Henry Pelham
, a former prime minister. The first of the couple's four sons was born in 1792, and in 1795 Lewis Watson succeeded his father as second Baron Sondes of Lees Court and of Rockingham Castle, Northamptonshire. He died in 1806. Three years later, Lady Sondes married Brigadier General Sir Henry Tucker Montresor. She died in Kent in 1818.
Her portrait was painted by both Joshua Reynolds
and Thomas Gainsborough
House of Commons of Great Britain
The House of Commons of Great Britain was the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain between 1707 and 1801. In 1707, as a result of the Acts of Union of that year, it replaced the House of Commons of England and the third estate of the Parliament of Scotland, as one of the most significant...
from 1761 to 1780.
Milles was the son of Christopher Milles of Nackington, and his wife Mary Warner, daughter of Richard Warner of North Elmham
North Elmham
North Elmham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.It covers an area of and had a population of 1,428 in 624 households as of the 2001 census. For the purposes of local government, it falls within the district of Breckland....
Norfolk. He was educated at Westminster School
Westminster School
The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
and at St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
. He entered Lincoln's Inn in 1753. He was a country gentleman with large estates. Before 1761, he went on the Grand Tour
Grand Tour
The Grand Tour was the traditional trip of Europe undertaken by mainly upper-class European young men of means. The custom flourished from about 1660 until the advent of large-scale rail transit in the 1840s, and was associated with a standard itinerary. It served as an educational rite of passage...
of Europe. He was noted as a botanist and planted an orchard at his garden at North Elmham.
Milles was elected Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) for Canterbury
Canterbury (UK Parliament constituency)
Canterbury is a county constituency which has been represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom since 1918. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
in 1761 and won that and two subsequent election by a comforatble majority, holding the seat to 1780 when he did not stand.
Milles married on 9 October 1765, Mary Elizabeth Tanner, daughter of the Rev. Thomas Tanner, DD, Prebendary of Canterbury.
Their only daughter, Mary Elizabeth Milles (1767-1818), later Lady Sondes married Hon. Lewis Thomas Watson, son of Lewis Watson, 1st Baron Sondes in 1785. Hon. Lewis Thomas Watson was descended collaterally from the Earls of Rockingham, and his mother had been a granddaughter of John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland
John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland
John Manners, 2nd Duke of Rutland KG was the son of John Manners, 1st Duke of Rutland and his third wife Catherine Wriothesley Noel, daughter of Baptist Noel, 3rd Viscount Campden...
and a daughter of Henry Pelham
Henry Pelham
Henry Pelham was a British Whig statesman, who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 27 August 1743 until his death in 1754...
, a former prime minister. The first of the couple's four sons was born in 1792, and in 1795 Lewis Watson succeeded his father as second Baron Sondes of Lees Court and of Rockingham Castle, Northamptonshire. He died in 1806. Three years later, Lady Sondes married Brigadier General Sir Henry Tucker Montresor. She died in Kent in 1818.
Her portrait was painted by both Joshua Reynolds
Joshua Reynolds
Sir Joshua Reynolds RA FRS FRSA was an influential 18th-century English painter, specialising in portraits and promoting the "Grand Style" in painting which depended on idealization of the imperfect. He was one of the founders and first President of the Royal Academy...
and Thomas Gainsborough
Thomas Gainsborough
Thomas Gainsborough was an English portrait and landscape painter.-Suffolk:Thomas Gainsborough was born in Sudbury, Suffolk. He was the youngest son of John Gainsborough, a weaver and maker of woolen goods. At the age of thirteen he impressed his father with his penciling skills so that he let...