John Egerton, 1st Earl of Bridgewater KB, PC (1579 – 4 December 1649) was an English peer and politician.
The son of the Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley and Elizabeth Ravenscroft, he was a Member of Parliament (MP) for Callington from 1597 to 1598, and for Shropshire in 1601. Knighted on 8 April 1599, he was Baron of the Exchequer of Chester from 1599 to 1605. In 1603, Egerton was appointed a Knight of the Order of Bath and in 1605, he received a Master of Arts from the University of Oxford. Having succeeded to his father's titles in March 1617, he was created Earl of Bridgewater on 27 May 1617.
Egerton was sworn of the Privy Council in 1626. From 1605 to 1646, he was Custos Rotulorum of Shropshire and from 1628 to 1649 Custos Rotulorum of Buckinghamshire. Between 1631 and 1642, he was Lord President of Wales and Lord Lieutenant of Wales and the Marches of Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire.
John Milton's Comus celebrates the installation of Egerton, as Lord President of Wales. Egerton died intestate and was buried in Little Gaddesden in Hertfordshire.
On 27 June 1602, Egerton married Lady Frances Stanley, daughter of the Ferdinando Stanley, 5th Earl of Derby and Lady Alice Spencer. Coincidentally, Frances's mother Alice married, after the death of Ferdinando Stanley, on 20 October 1600,[1] John's father Thomas Egerton, 1st Viscount Brackley. John and Frances had eight children:
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Sir Richard Leveson |
Custos Rotulorum of Shropshire 1605–1646 |
Vacant |
| Preceded by The Duke of Buckingham |
Custos Rotulorum of Buckinghamshire 1628–1649 |
|
| Preceded by The Earl of Northampton |
Lord President of Wales, Lord Lieutenant of Wales, Herefordshire, Monmouthshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire 1631–1642 |
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| Peerage of England | ||
| New creation | Earl of Bridgewater 2nd creation 1617–1649 |
Succeeded by John Egerton |
| Preceded by Thomas Brackley |
Viscount Brackley 1617–1649 |
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