Arthur Howe Holdsworth
Encyclopedia
Arthur Howe Holdsworth was a Devon merchant named Governor of Dartmouth Castle
, a position held by his father Arthur from 1760 to 1777, in 1809. He was elected member of Parliament
for Dartmouth
in 1802, holding the seat until December 1819, when he vacated it in favour of Charles Milner Ricketts, a cousin of Lord Liverpool
. He returned to the seat in 1829, but was defeated by John Seale in 1832, after the Reform Act
partially disenfranchised the constituency.
Holdsworth was from a Devon mercantile and trading family and resided at Widdecombe House and Mount Galpin in Dartmouth located near Kingsbridge within the Stokenham Priory estate, owned by the Holdsworth family for many years. He served as the last Governor of Dartmouth.
Holdsworth was a well-known politician in Devonshire, his father Arthur having been a prominent shipowner, merchant and member of Parliament
. The son, Arthur Howe Holdsworth Holdsworth, was an active businessman with interests in shipping and an inventor with many patents to his name, most relating to shipbuilding and boats. He was a shareholder in the Bristol and Exeter Railway
and was a prime force behind Devon's expansive shipping interests.
The Holdsworth family's roots lay in Yorkshire, and a vicar ancestor moved to Devon in 1620. The vicar's son Arthur entered trade and, aided by the Champernowne family, began a lucrative trade with Newfoundland
. By 1672 he was mayor of Dartmouth and an imposing figure on the local business scene. In the following two centuries the Holdsworth family came to dominate the mercantile and cultural life of Dartmouth. They were leaders in the trade with Newfoundland and with Portugal
, where they owned estates. Their interests extended into trade with the Baltic, the West Indies and America.
"The family continued to prosper," according to David K. Brown in his book The Way of the Ship in the Midst of the Sea, "helped in 1725 by the award of 'The Waters of the Dart' from the Duchy of Cornwall
in 1725 which entitled them to levy tolls on all goods landed between Salcombe
and Torbay
, a rich perquisite which lasted until 1860. The Holdsworths and their relations held most of the important posts in and around Dartmouth: Freemen, Mayors, Governor of the Castle since 1725, Rector of Stokenham and Brixham, etc. The family home was Widdicombe House, near Torcross, built in 1785 and enlarged in 1820. They also owned Brooke Hall, Dartmouth."
At his death in 1860, Holdsworth left an enormous estate. Following Holdsworth's stinging defeat for his Parliamentary seat in 1832 by Sir John Henry Seale, 1st Baronet
, whose family had challenged the Holdsworth family's hold on the Corporation, all the Holdsworth family members left Dartmouth. The acrimony between the Holdsworths and their Seale family adversaries even forced the move of the 1839 marriage between Holdsworth's daughter Catherine Henrietta Elizabeth Holdsworth and civil engineer William Froude
from Dartmouth, where the Holdsworths had long worshipped, to the Brixham
parish church instead.
Arthur Howe Holdsworth was married to the former Henrietta Eastabrook. His middle name was a tribute to the British Admiral Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe
, a family friend who served as one of two members of Parliament from Dartmouth from 1757 to 1782, overlapping the service in Parliament of Arthur Howe (1780-1786). The Holdsworth family later intermarried with other prominent West Country families, including the St. Aubyns of St. Michael's Mount, Cornwall, the Bastard family of Devon (whose members Edmund Bastard, Edmund Pollexfen Bastard
and John Bastard
sat with him for Dartmouth) and others.
Arthur Howe's Holdsworth's eldest son Arthur Bastard Eastabrook Holdsworth lived at Widdicombe House after the death of his father. Arthur Bastard Eastbrook Holdsworth's daughter Alice Mary married Edmund St. Aubyn
at Dartmouth, Devon, in 1847; his daughter Georgina married in 1868 at Stokenham, Devon, Thomas Levett-Prinsep, eldest son of Thomas Levett-Prinsep
JP
of Croxall Hall
, Derbyshire
. They had one son.
Dartmouth Castle
Dartmouth Castle is one of a pair of forts, the other being Kingswear Castle, that guard the mouth of the Dart Estuary in Devon, England .A small fortalice was built in 1388 under the direction of John Hawley...
, a position held by his father Arthur from 1760 to 1777, in 1809. He 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,...
for Dartmouth
Dartmouth (UK Parliament constituency)
Dartmouth, also at some times called Clifton, Dartmouth and Hardness, was a parliamentary borough in Devon which elected two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons in 1298 and to the Commons of England, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom from 1351 until 1832, and then one member from...
in 1802, holding the seat until December 1819, when he vacated it in favour of Charles Milner Ricketts, a cousin of Lord Liverpool
Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool
Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool KG PC was a British politician and the longest-serving Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since the Union with Ireland in 1801. He was 42 years old when he became premier in 1812 which made him younger than all of his successors to date...
. He returned to the seat in 1829, but was defeated by John Seale in 1832, after the Reform Act
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 was an Act of Parliament that introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system of England and Wales...
partially disenfranchised the constituency.
Holdsworth was from a Devon mercantile and trading family and resided at Widdecombe House and Mount Galpin in Dartmouth located near Kingsbridge within the Stokenham Priory estate, owned by the Holdsworth family for many years. He served as the last Governor of Dartmouth.
Holdsworth was a well-known politician in Devonshire, his father Arthur having been a prominent shipowner, merchant and 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,...
. The son, Arthur Howe Holdsworth Holdsworth, was an active businessman with interests in shipping and an inventor with many patents to his name, most relating to shipbuilding and boats. He was a shareholder in the Bristol and Exeter Railway
Bristol and Exeter Railway
The Bristol & Exeter Railway was a railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter.The company's head office was situated outside their Bristol station...
and was a prime force behind Devon's expansive shipping interests.
The Holdsworth family's roots lay in Yorkshire, and a vicar ancestor moved to Devon in 1620. The vicar's son Arthur entered trade and, aided by the Champernowne family, began a lucrative trade with Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
. By 1672 he was mayor of Dartmouth and an imposing figure on the local business scene. In the following two centuries the Holdsworth family came to dominate the mercantile and cultural life of Dartmouth. They were leaders in the trade with Newfoundland and with Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, where they owned estates. Their interests extended into trade with the Baltic, the West Indies and America.
"The family continued to prosper," according to David K. Brown in his book The Way of the Ship in the Midst of the Sea, "helped in 1725 by the award of 'The Waters of the Dart' from the Duchy of Cornwall
Duchy of Cornwall
The Duchy of Cornwall is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning British monarch inherits the duchy and title of Duke of Cornwall at the time of his birth, or of his parent's succession to the throne. If the monarch has no son, the...
in 1725 which entitled them to levy tolls on all goods landed between Salcombe
Salcombe
Salcombe is a town in the South Hams district of Devon, south west England. The town is close to the mouth of the Kingsbridge Estuary, built mostly on the steep west side of the estuary and lies within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty...
and Torbay
Torbay
Torbay is an east-facing bay and natural harbour, at the western most end of Lyme Bay in the south-west of England, situated roughly midway between the cities of Exeter and Plymouth. Part of the ceremonial county of Devon, Torbay was made a unitary authority on 1 April 1998...
, a rich perquisite which lasted until 1860. The Holdsworths and their relations held most of the important posts in and around Dartmouth: Freemen, Mayors, Governor of the Castle since 1725, Rector of Stokenham and Brixham, etc. The family home was Widdicombe House, near Torcross, built in 1785 and enlarged in 1820. They also owned Brooke Hall, Dartmouth."
At his death in 1860, Holdsworth left an enormous estate. Following Holdsworth's stinging defeat for his Parliamentary seat in 1832 by Sir John Henry Seale, 1st Baronet
Seale Baronets
The Seale Baronetcy, of Mount Boone in the County of Devon, is a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 31 July 1838 for John Seale, Whig Member of Parliament for Dartmouth from 1832 to 1844...
, whose family had challenged the Holdsworth family's hold on the Corporation, all the Holdsworth family members left Dartmouth. The acrimony between the Holdsworths and their Seale family adversaries even forced the move of the 1839 marriage between Holdsworth's daughter Catherine Henrietta Elizabeth Holdsworth and civil engineer William Froude
William Froude
William Froude was an English engineer, hydrodynamicist and naval architect. He was the first to formulate reliable laws for the resistance that water offers to ships and for predicting their stability....
from Dartmouth, where the Holdsworths had long worshipped, to the Brixham
Brixham
Brixham is a small fishing town and civil parish in the county of Devon, in the south-west of England. Brixham is at the southern end of Torbay, across the bay from Torquay, and is a fishing port. Fishing and tourism are its major industries. At the time of the 2001 census it had a population of...
parish church instead.
Arthur Howe Holdsworth was married to the former Henrietta Eastabrook. His middle name was a tribute to the British Admiral Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe
Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe
Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe KG was a British naval officer, notable in particular for his service during the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars. He was the brother of William Howe and George Howe.Howe joined the navy at the age of thirteen and served...
, a family friend who served as one of two members of Parliament from Dartmouth from 1757 to 1782, overlapping the service in Parliament of Arthur Howe (1780-1786). The Holdsworth family later intermarried with other prominent West Country families, including the St. Aubyns of St. Michael's Mount, Cornwall, the Bastard family of Devon (whose members Edmund Bastard, Edmund Pollexfen Bastard
Edmund Pollexfen Bastard
Edmund Pollexfen Bastard was a British Tory politician, son of Edmund Bastard and his wife Jane Pownoll. He married Anne Jane Rodney, granddaughter of Admiral Rodney....
and John Bastard
John Bastard (Royal Navy officer)
John Bastard was an officer of the Royal Navy who saw service during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and the War of 1812, rising to the rank of post-captain...
sat with him for Dartmouth) and others.
St Aubyn Baronets
There have been two Baronetcies created for members of the St Aubyn family, one in the Baronetage of England and one in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom....
at Dartmouth, Devon, in 1847; his daughter Georgina married in 1868 at Stokenham, Devon, Thomas Levett-Prinsep, eldest son of Thomas Levett-Prinsep
Thomas Levett-Prinsep
Thomas Levett-Prinsep , born Thomas Levett at Wychnor Park in Staffordshire, was a Derbyshire JP, member of the Tamworth Board of Guardians, landowner and cattle breeder in Derbyshire who took on the additional name of Prinsep upon inheriting his uncle's holding of Croxall Hall.Thomas Levett was...
JP
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
of Croxall Hall
Croxall Hall
Croxall Hall is a restored and extended 16th century manor house situated at Croxall, Staffordshire . It is a Grade II* listed building....
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
. They had one son.