Sir Thomas Lloyd, 1st Baronet

Sir Thomas Davies Lloyd, 1st Baronet (21 May 1820 – 21 July 1877) was a British Liberal Member of Parliament, for Cardiganshire (Ceredigion) 1865–1868 and Cardigan Boroughs 1868–1874. Although he coveted a peerage and spent a fortune in pursuit of that aim, he had to be content with a baronetcy.

He was the son of Thomas Lloyd of Cilrhiwe and Bronwydd, Cardiganshire, who had been the High Sheriff of Cardiganshire in 1814.[1] He was educated at Harrow School and Christ Church, Oxford. In 1840, he joined the 13th Light Dragoons, and was a commander in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada with the 82nd Foot. He married Henrietta Mary, fourth daughter of George Reid, Esquire, of Jamaica. Returning to Wales, he was High Sheriff of Cardiganshire in 1851, and in 1863 was created a baronet.

He rebuilt Bronwydd as a Victorian Gothic fantasy 1853–1856. The house is now a ruin, in the process of clearance. He restored the old castle at Newport, Pembrokeshire as a seat for his 'Marcher Lordship' of Cemais and Llangynllo Church. His chivalric fantasies left the estate deeply in debt.

Political career

Early political activity

An old fashioned Whig Liberal, Lloyd was first mooted as a Liberal parliamentary candidate for Cardigan Boroughs at the 1857 General Election, in opposition to John Lloyd Davies who had unexpectedly captured the seat at the 1855 by-election.[2] However, Edward Pryse, a member of the powerful Gogerddan family chose to contest the seat, and was supported by Lloyd.

In 1859 it was suggested that Lloyd would contest the county seat, but he refused the invitation.[3]

The 1865 General Election

Prior to the 1865 General Election, Colonel Powell, the sitting member for the Cardiganshire county constituency had indicated his intention to retire. As a leading landowner in the south of the county, LLoyd emerged as the Liberal candidate. However, when Powell reversed his decision, Lloyd issued an address stating that he would not oppose the sitting member. This reflected the fact that the Powell family, with one short interval in the 1850s, had held the county seat since 1816 and their claim to the seat had been widely accepted by the landowners of the county.[n 1] The result was that both Henry Richard and David Davies, Llandinam offered themselves as alternative Liberal candidates. A selection meeting was arranged to be held at Aberaeron, but shortly before this took place, Powell again announced his retirement. Lloyd now stated that he would now fight the seat after all and Richard withdrew in his favour.[5]

David Davies, however, did not withdraw, and proceeded to oppose Lloyd. Davies had a number of advantages, including the employment opportunities created by his railway building schemes. However, Lloyd was supported by those landowners who were associated with the Whig tradition, including Pryse family of Gogerddan who heavily influenced the politics of Aberystwyth. Also, a significant minority of nonconformists supported Lloyd. [6]

Lloyd won the seat with a majority of 361 votes.[7] Lloyd was ahead in four of the six polling districts,including Cardigan, where Lloyd polled 360 votes against a mere 65 for Davies. Lloyd trailed Lloyd by a narrow margin in the Lampeter district and was onlt heavily defeated in the Tregaron area, a result attributed to the coming of the railway and Davies's Calvinistic Methodist connections.[8]

Despite his victory, the contest had been a costly one for Lloyd. His opponent was a wealthy man, who had deposited £10,000 in an Aberystwyth bank as "ale money for the battle".[9] After the election, Davies made significant contributions to chapels in the north of the county where Lloyd had won by a small margin.[10] As the next election approached, Lloyd announced that he would not bear the cost of another contested election for the county.[11] He was however prepared to transfer to the borough seat in the event that the sitting member, Colonel Edward Pryse, decided to retire.

Member for Cardigan Boroughs, 1868-74

In 1868, Lloyd withdrew from the county seat in favour of Evan Mathew Richards but served as member for Cardigan Boroughs until 1874.

Lloyd died in 1877. He was succeeded by his son, Sir Marteine Lloyd, 2nd Baronet.

Notes

  1. ↑ In his article on the Cardiganshire election of 1865, widely regarded as the definitive account, Ieuan Gwynedd Jones makes no reference to Lloyd's refusal to oppose Powell in 1859.[4] The same reasons, presumably, explain Lloyd's temporary withdrawal in 1865

References

  1. ↑ "Welsh Biography Online". National Library of Wales. Retrieved 2011-04-08.
  2. ↑ "Editorial". Welshman. 6 March 1857. p. 3. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
  3. ↑ "Editorial". Welshman. 22 April 1859. p. 5. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  4. ↑ Jones 1964.
  5. ↑ Jones 1964, p. 16.
  6. ↑ Jones 1964, pp. 26-7.
  7. ↑ "Cardiganshire Election. Declaration of the Poll". Welshman. 21 July 1865. p. 4. Retrieved 2 May 2018.
  8. ↑ Jones 1964, p. 17.
  9. ↑ Jones 1964, p. 24.
  10. ↑ Jones 1967, p. 28.
  11. ↑ Jones 1964, p. 32.

Sources

Books and journals

  • James & Thomas, 'Wales at Westminster'
  • Jones, Ieuan Gwynedd (1964). "Cardiganshire Politics in the Mid-Nineteenth Century" (PDF). Ceredigion. 5 (1): 14–41. Retrieved 30 April 2018.
  • Leslie Baker-Jones, 'The Wolf and the Boar: The Lloyds of Bronwydd Cardiganshire: Lords Marcher of Cemais'

Online

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
William Thomas Rowland Powell		 Member of Parliament for Cardiganshire
1865 – 1868		 Succeeded by
Evan Matthew Richards
Preceded by
Edward Pryse		 Member of Parliament for Cardigan Boroughs
1868 – 1874		 Succeeded by
David Davies
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