William Duckett (MP)

See also William Duckett (disambiguation)

William Duckett (bapt. 23 May 1624 – 1 November 1686) was an English gentleman who sat in the House of Commons between 1659 and 1679.

Duckett was the son of John Duckett, of Hartham House, Corsham, Wiltshire, a Royalist gentleman. He matriculated at St John's College, Oxford, on 3 July 1640 aged 16. He was student of the Inner Temple in 1642.^[1]

In 1659, Duckett was elected Member of Parliament for Calne in the Third Protectorate Parliament.^[2] In 1660, he was re-elected Member for Calne in the Convention Parliament. He was re-elected in 1661 for the Cavalier Parliament and sat until 1679.^[2]

Family

Duckett married three times:

1. On 6 March 1650, he married Elizabeth Henshaw (c. 1621-c. 1654) at St Bartholomew-the-Great in London, with one son Lionel who was also a member of parliament for Calne.^[1] Elizabeth was the brother of Thomas Henshaw, alchemist
2. About 1655, he remarried, as a widower, the widow Anne Chapman née Knight. There was one daughter, Jane (1657-1713) and 3 short-lived sons.
3. About 1669 he remarried, as a widower, Margaret Moore, who survived him. There were no documented children from this marriage. However, descendants of Richard Duckett (ABT 1672 London - 1733 Maryland, USA), who married Charity Jacob in 1699 Maryland, can show common genetic descent with other descendants of William Duckett, implying Richard may well have been a son of William and Margaret.

Duckett died on 1 November 1686 at his home in Calne, Wiltshire, at the age of 62. He was buried on 5 November 1686. His will was executed by his widow, Margaret, with probate on 3 January 1687.

References