Henry Newport, Earl of Bradford

Henry Newport, Earl of Bradford, Baron Newport of High Ercall, Lord Lieutenant and Custos of Shropshire was buried on 20th January 1735 in the Duke of Ormond's vault at the eastern end of Henry VII's chapel in Westminster Abbey. He has no monument but his name was inscribed on the stone above the vault in the late 19th century.

He came from an ancient Shropshire family and was born on 8th August 1683. His parents were Richard, 2nd Earl of Bradford and Mary (Wilbraham). He was a Member of Parliament and died unmarried. His brother Thomas, an "imbecile" after a fall from a horse in early life, succeeded him, and he had another brother Richard.

Henry's illegitimate son by Mrs Anne Smyth, called at first John Harrison and later by private Act of Parliament John Newport, was buried opposite the door of St Paul's chapel on 9th May 1783. He was said to have been a lunatic for most of his life. His mother, wife of Ralph Smyth, had been buried in the north ambulatory on 7th November 1742.

Further information

www.historyofparliamentonline.org