John Freeman-Mitford, 1st Earl of Redesdale

John Thomas Freeman-Mitford, 1st Earl of Redesdale, 2nd Baron Redesdale (1805 - 2 May 1886), was the only son and heir of John Freeman-Mitford, 1st Baron Redesdale.

In 1851 he was chosen chairman of committees in the House of Lords, a position which he retained until his death, and in 1877 he was created earl of Redesdale. His chief interest was reserved for ecclesiastical questions, and he won some repute as a Protestant controversialist. He assisted to revive Convocation in 1853; was an active opponent of the disestablishment of the Irish Church; and engaged in controversy with Cardinal Manning on the subject of communion in both kinds. On his death, his titles became extinct.

He wrote Thoughts on English Prosody and Translations from Horace, and Further Thoughts on English Prosody (Oxford, 1859), in addition to various pamphlets on ecclesiastical topics.

The earl bequeathed his estates to his kinsman, Algernon Bertram Freeman-Mitford.


 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainChisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.