The Earl of Portarlington | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament for Queen's County | |
| In office 1768–1779 Serving with William Pole, Charles Coote | |
| Preceded by | William Dawson William Pole |
| Succeeded by | John Warburton Charles Coote |
| Member of Parliament for Portarlington | |
| In office 1766–1768 Serving with John Damer, Sir Roger Palmer, Bt | |
| Preceded by | George Hartpole John Damer |
| Succeeded by | William Henry Dawson Sir Roger Palmer, Bt |
| Personal details | |
| Born | John Dawson 23 August 1744 Northamptonshire, England |
| Died | 30 November 1798 (aged 54) |
| Spouse |
Lady Caroline Stuart
(m. 1778; died 1798) |
| Children | 9 |
| Parent(s) | William Dawson, 1st Viscount Carlow Mary Damer |
John Dawson, 1st Earl of Portarlington PC (Ire) (23 August 1744 – 30 November 1798) was an Anglo-Irish politician and peer.
Dawson was born on 23 August 1744 in Northamptonshire, England. He was the only surviving son of William Dawson, 1st Viscount Carlow and Mary Damer.[1] His sister, Hon. Mary Dawson, married Col. Mervyn Archdall, Governor of Fermanagh.[2]
His paternal grandparents were Ephraim Dawson, an MP for Portarlington and Queen's County in the Irish House of Commons who was a successful banker that acquired an estate at Portarlington, County Laois, and the former Anne Preston (daughter of Samuel Preston). His maternal grandfather was Joseph Damer and his uncle was Joseph Damer, 1st Earl of Dorchester.[3]
Between 1766 and 1768 he was a Member of Parliament for Portarlington in the Irish House of Commons. In 1768 he was elected to represent Queen's County.[4] He resigned his seat in the Commons upon succeeding to his father's peerage in 1779 and assumed his seat in the Irish House of Lords. On 21 June 1785, Dawson was created Earl of Portarlington in the Peerage of Ireland. Between 1779 and his death he was Governor of Queen's County. In 1796 he was made a member of the Privy Council of Ireland.[1]
On 1 January 1778, he married Lady Caroline Stuart (1750–1813), the fifth daughter of John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, who served as Prime Minister from 1762 to 1763, and Mary Wortley-Montagu, Baroness Mount Stuart of Wortley. Together they had five sons and four daughters, including:[1]
Lord Portarlington died on 30 November 1798. He was succeeded in his title by his eldest son, John.[3]
As his eldest son died unmarried with no issue, the earldom passed to his grandson, Henry Dawson-Damer (1822–1889),[6] who married Lady Alexandrina Octavia Maria Vane, second daughter of Charles Vane, 3rd Marquess of Londonderry.[7]