Clifford Clifton

Sir Clifford Clifton (1626 - June 1670) was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1659.

Biography

Clifford was the son of Sir Gervase Clifton, 1st Baronet of Clifton-on Trent, Nottinghamshire and his second wife Lady Frances Clifford, daughter of Francis Clifford, 4th Earl of Cumberland, and was baptised on 22 June 1626. He was admitted at Gray's Inn in 1647.

In 1659, he was elected Member of Parliament for East Retford in the Third Protectorate Parliament. He was commissioner for militia for Nottinghamshire in March 1660 and became JP for Nottinghamshire in July 1660, remaining in the post until his death. In 1661 he was elected MP for East Retford again for the Cavalier Parliament. He was captain in the horse volunteers in 1661 and became Deputy Lieutenant for Nottinghamshire and commissioner for assessment for Nottinghamshire from 1661 until his death. He was knighted on 27 December 1661. From 1663 ro 1664 he was commissioner for assessment for Nottingham and from 1663 to his death he was commissioner for assessment for Middlesex, He succeeded to the Clifton estate on the death of his father in 1666. In 1669 he became JP for the liberties of Southwell and Scrooby.^[1] He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1667.^[2]

He died at the age of about 43 and was buried at Clifton on 22 June 1670.^[1]

Family

Clifton had married Frances Finch, daughter of Sir Heneage Finch former Speaker of the House of Commons, of Kensington on 4 July 1650. They had three sons and four daughters.^[1]

• William who inherited the baronetcy from his uncle Sir Gervase Clifton, 2nd Baronet (an elder half brother of Sir Clifford).^[3]
• Katherine, who married c. 1686 Sir John Parsons, 2nd Baronet.^[3]
• Arabella (died 1720), who married m 1685 Admiral Sir Francis Wheeler.^[3]
• The other children, died in infancy.^[3]

References

References

• Manuscripts and Special Collections staff (30 December 2013), "Biography of Sir Clifford Clifton (1626-1670)", Manuscripts and Special Collections, University of Nottingham, retrieved December 2013