George Byng (1735–1789)


George Byng of Wrotham Park in Middlesex, was a British politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1768 to 1784.

Origins

He was the eldest son of Robert Byng, Governor of Barbados, by his wife Elizabeth Forward, a daughter and co-heiress of Jonathan Forward. He was a grandson of Admiral George Byng, 1st Viscount Torrington of Southill Park in Bedfordshire.

Career

He inherited the estate of Wrotham Park from his unmarried and childless uncle Admiral John Byng, famously court-martialled and shot in 1757 following the fall of Minorca. At the 1768 general election Byng was elected as a Member of Parliament for Wigan. He was returned unopposed for Wigan in 1774. He was returned unopposed as MP for Middlesex at the 1780 general election but was defeated in a contest in 1784.

Marriage and progeny

On 5 March 1761 Byng married Anne Conolly, daughter of William James Conolly by his wife Lady Anne Wentworth, a daughter of Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford. William James Conolly was an Irish Member of Parliament and was the nephew and heir of William Conolly, of Castletown House, County Kildare, Speaker of the Irish House of Commons, reputed to be the wealthiest man in Ireland. By his wife he had progeny including:
He died on 27 October 1789.