BIDDULPH, Robert (1801-1864), of Ledbury, Herefordshire

A London banker whose family owned land in Herefordshire, Biddulph represented Hereford as a Reformer in two short parliaments in the 1830s. In 1837 he declared to electors, ‘I do not wish to form new institutions, but to strengthen old ones’, which reflected his Whiggish views, his support for the ballot notwithstanding.1Hereford Journal, 26 July 1837. He was a reluctant MP who made little impact in the Commons, but remained an important figure in local politics.

Biddulph’s father John was a partner in the banking firm of Biddulph, Cocks and Co., of Charing Cross.2Gent. Mag. (1864), i. 539. The family possessed an ancient lineage and had long resided in Ledbury in Herefordshire, and Biddulph’s uncle and namesake had represented the county between 1796 and 1802.3HP Commons, 1790-1820, iii. 205-6; The assembled Commons (1837), 21. A parliamentary guide noted in 1837 that the Biddulphs ‘have always been attached to the Whig party’, and Robert Biddulph was no exception.4Ibid.

Biddulph offered for Hereford at the 1832 general election, emphasising his support for religious liberty, retrenchment and the abolition of slavery.5Hereford Journal, 20 June 1832. He was described by one supporter, James Phillips, of Bryngwyn, as ‘an active, enterprising young man’.6Hereford Journal, 12 Dec. 1832. Biddulph, who advocated a ‘fixed moderate duty’ on corn, the ballot and reform of the church, especially pluralities, was elected in second place.7Ibid.

A silent member, who does not appear to have served on any committees after 1832, Biddulph’s voting behaviour in the first two sessions of the reformed Commons is difficult to discern as he rarely appears in the lists of surviving minorities. However, in 1833 he opposed currency reform, while supporting the ballot, and he divided against Hume’s motion for a fixed duty on corn, 7 Mar. 1834. His votes were evidently sufficient to justify his label as a ‘true, bold and consistent Reformer’ at the 1835 general election, when he stood his ground.8Hereford Journal, 7 Jan. 1835. Addressing electors, Biddulph defended the record of the Whig government, particularly the reform of tithes. Reiterating his belief in the ballot, Biddulph noted that in 1832 ‘many persons said they wished to vote for me, if they had not other interests they were compelled to support’.9Ibid.

Elected in second place as a ‘firm supporter of the late administration’, Biddulph naturally sided with the Whig leadership in the key party votes on the address, speakership and the Irish church, 19, 26 Feb., 2 Apr. 1835. He continued to cast votes in favour of the ballot, if not other political reforms, as the intimidation he witnessed during his election campaign had reinforced his belief in its necessity to protect voters.10Hereford Times, 10 Jan. 1835. Having experienced the hostility of Hereford’s Tory corporation on two occasions, Biddulph had a vested interest in supporting municipal reform, including the initial proposal to abolish the freeman franchise for parliamentary elections. He continued to back the Whigs’ proposed reforms of the Irish church and municipal corporations. He also voted with Melbourne’s government against radical demands to scrutinise the pension lists. He opposed Chandos’s motion for agricultural relief, 27 Apr. 1836, but supported Clay’s proposal for a fixed duty on corn, 16 Mar. 1837.

At the 1837 general election, when he was beaten by ten votes, Biddulph argued that the most important issues that needed to be addressed were Ireland and the established church. He favoured the national scheme of education outlined by the government and regretted that their scheme to replace church rates had been dropped.11Hereford Times, 22 July 1837. Biddulph had only stood again to keep out a Tory MP, and had little further political ambition.12Hereford Times, 29 July 1837. He declined invitations to come forward for his old constituency in 1841, 1842 and 1845, all occasions when he would have been easily returned.13Hereford Times, 12 June 1841, 2 Oct. 1841; Hereford Journal, 30 July 1845. However, he remained a prominent figure in Herefordshire politics, nominating Liberal candidates for the county and city.14Hereford Journal, 24 July 1847, 7 Aug. 1847.

After his father’s death in 1845, Biddulph took over as head of the family bank and inherited the Ledbury estate.15Gent. Mag. (1864), i. 539. On his death in 1864 his personalty was sworn under £20,000.16National Probate Calendar, 27 May 1864. A local newspaper remarked that although Biddulph ‘was much occupied with his engagements in the banking establishment … he always found time to devote to the public service’.17Worcestershire Chronicle, 9 Mar. 1864. He was succeeded by his eldest son Michael Biddulph (1834-1923), MP for Herefordshire, 1865-85, and Herefordshire South, 1885-1900. A Liberal Unionist after 1886, he was created 1st Baron Biddulph in 1903.18Burke’s peerage (1949), 190.