William Harris (British MP)

William Harris (c. 1652 - October 17, 1709) was an English landowner who served two terms as a member of the Parliament of England and one as a member of the new Parliament of Great Britain.

Background

Harris was a member of the landed gentry family of Harris of Hayne (in Devon) and Kenegie (in Gulval, Cornwall). While nothing is known about his educational background, on 12 May 1682 he and three other men (including John Tredenham) were granted a patent for a new device to drain water out of mines, with especial reference to Cornish tin mines.^[1] On 4 October, 1685, he married Jane St. Aubyn of Clowance, Cornwall; they would have three sons, Christopher, John and William, and one daughter, Jane.^[2] In 1686, his father inherited the estate of Hayne from his cousin, Sir Arthur Harris.

Politics

He became MP for St. Ives in 1690 (he was regarded by Lord Carmarthen as a probable supporter of the Carmarthen Ministry if it were to come under attack); but did not stand for re-election in 1695. He remained active in local politics, becoming a councilman in the new Plymouth corporation in 1696. He was again elected to Parliament (this time for Okehampton, which his cousin Sir Arthur had once represented) in 1699, and was classed as a Country Whig, but by 1701 was regarded as having become more or less a Tory. He did not stand in 1702, but again remained locally active, serving as a Sheriff (1703-04) and Deputy Lieutenant for Devon (March 1705). In 1705 he was defeated for election to Parliament, but in 1708 was elected, in part because he was seen by the strong Whigs as being a more Whiggish choice than Tory incumbent Thomas Northmore. He died 17 October 1709 aged 57, and was succeeded in Parliament by his son Christopher, who was also his executor.^[2]

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