Sir William Ashhurst or Ashurst (26 April 1647 – 12 January 1720) was an English banker, Sheriff of London, Lord Mayor of London and Member of Parliament.
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The son of Henry Ashurst[1] Ashurst was a member of the Corporation of London from 1678, and an alderman from 1687; he was knighted in 1687, and was Sheriff of London in 1991–1692 and Lord Mayor of London in 1693–1694.[2][3]
A Whig, he represented the City of London in Parliament for three separate periods between 1689 and 1710; he was generally regarded as one of the Country Whigs, but voted with the Court Whigs against the Disbanding Bill in 1698-9.[3]
He was a good friend of Edmund Calamy and was a nonconformist like the rest of his family, so unsurprisingly he was an active supporter of the Glorious Revolution and sat in the Convention Parliament (1689).[3]
He was one of the founding subscribers of the Bank of England, and a Director of the bank in 1697–1700, 1701–3, 1704–6, 1707–9 and 1711–14.[4][5]
Sir William married Elizabeth the daughter of Robert Thompson.[6] When in the country they lived in a Queen Anne style red-brick mansion he built in the outer bailey of Hedingham Castle after his purchase of the castle in 1693.[2][7]
| Parliament of England | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Sir Patience Ward Sir Robert Clayton Sir Thomas Pilkington William Love |
Member of Parliament for City of London with Sir Patience Ward Sir Robert Clayton Sir Thomas Pilkington 1689–1690 |
Succeeded by Sir William Prichard Sir Samuel Dashwood Sir William Turner Sir Thomas Vernon |
| Preceded by Sir William Prichard Sir Samuel Dashwood Sir John Fleet Sir Thomas Vernon |
Member of Parliament for City of London with Thomas Papillon 1695-1701 Sir Robert Clayton 1695-1698, 1701-1702 Sir James Houblon 1698-1701 Sir John Fleet 1695-1701, Mar-Nov 1701 Sir Gilbert Heathcote Feb-Mar 1701, Nov 1701-1702 Sir William Withers Feb-Nov 1701 Sir Thomas Abney 1701-1702 1695–1702 |
Succeeded by Sir William Prichard Sir John Fleet Sir Gilbert Heathcote Sir Francis Child |
| Preceded by Sir William Prichard Sir John Fleet Sir Gilbert Heathcote Sir Francis Child |
Member of Parliament for City of London with Sir Robert Clayton Samuel Shepheard Sir Gilbert Heathcote 1705–1707 |
Succeeded by Parliament of Great Britain |
| Parliament of Great Britain | ||
| Preceded by Parliament of England |
Member of Parliament for City of London with Sir William Withers Samuel Shepheard 1707-1708 Sir John Ward 1708-1710 Sir Gilbert Heathcote 1707–1710 |
Succeeded by Sir William Withers Sir Richard Hoare Sir George Newland Sir John Cass |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Sir John Fleet |
Lord Mayor of the City of London 1693-1694 |
Succeeded by Sir Thomas Lant |